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îmiUd'iii  Colors  bj  P^.Éuvâl’  &  San  PliilaJ 


ASSUMPTA  EST 


AHCEU:  lAVPAflTES.  BEflEDICUIlT  DOMIHUM 


•  HODIE  MARIA  VIRCO  COE  LOS  ASCEIÏDIT:  CAVDETE  QUIA  CUM  XPO  REC  n  AT  If)  ÆTERflUM 


The  Life  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ  and  his  Apostles,  Translated  from  the 
French  of  Father  Francis  De  Ligny,  S.  J.,  by  Mrs.  J.  Sadlier.  Being  duly  submitted  for 

EXAMINATION  TO  Us,  WE  HEREBY  APPROVE  OF  ITS  PUBLICATION. 


JOHN, 

Archbishop  of  New  York. 


New  York,  September  18, 1851 


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THE 


FROM  HIS  INCARNATION  UNTIL  HIS  ASCENSION. 


DENOTING  AND  INCORPORATING 


€Jj t  ÎSnrte  nf  fjjc  Inrrtît  €iA  from  ftjE  ©itlgafc. 


CONNECTED,  EXPLAINED,  AND  BLENDED  WITH  REFLECTIONS, 


TRANSLATED  FROM  THE  FRENCH  OF 


FATHER  FRANCIS  DE  LIGNY, 


imm 


33ij  Bits.  3.  laMitr 


NEW  YORK 


!il  BARCLAY  STREET. 


D.  &  J.  SADLIER  &  CO 


BOSTON  :  -123  FEDERAL  STREET. 


MONTREAL,  C.  E. 


AND  179  NOTRE-DAM 


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3  T3ol 
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Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1851, 

By  D.  &  J.  S adliek  &  Company, 

In  the  Clerk’s  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the  Southern  District  of 

New  York. 


TRANSLATOR’S  PREFACE. 


The  first  part  of  this  work,  viz.,  the  “Life  of  Our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,”  has  been  already  published  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic  ; 
but  somehow  the  translation  was  not  approved  of  by  American  read¬ 
ers,  and  I  have  endeavored  to  place  before  them  a  new  version  of  a 
work  so  justly  esteemed.  In  looking  over  the  translation  already 
made  by  a  learned  gentleman  of  Dublin,  I  very  soon  perceived  that 
his  great  error  lay  in  a  too  close  adherence  to  the  original,  thereby 
cramping  and  constraining,  to  a  certain  extent,  the  English  mean¬ 
ing.  There  is  no  denying  that  the  translation  is,  in  the  main,  a 
faithful  one  ;  but  it  is  in  many  instances  too  faithful  to  the  French 
to  be  altogether  true  to  the  English,  seeing  that  the  genius  of  the 
two  languages  is  so  very,  very  different.  If  I  have  succeeded,  even 
partially,  in  making  this  great  work  acceptable  to  the  Americai 
public,  I  shall  be  well  repaid  for  my  labor. 

With  respect  to  the  second  part,  the  “  Lives  of  the  Apostles,”  I 
am  not  aware  that  it  has  been  as  yet  translated,  and  I  feel  happy 
to  offer  it  to  those  who  cannot  enjoy  it  in  the  beauty  of  the  original. 
I  am  fully  conscious  that  my  translation  will  give  but  a  faint  idea 
of  the  author’s  style,  but  I  have  the  poor  consolation  of  knowing 
that  very  few  translations  ever  do.  I  have  done  it  to  the  best  of 
my  ability  ;  and  if  it  be  not  all  that  the  reader  could  wish,  surely  it 
is  better  than  having  a  work  so  rare  and  so  valuable  locked  up  in 
the  recesses  of  a  foreign  language.  I  am  only  sorry  that  this  most 
valuable  production  of  the  learned  and  pious  De  Ligny  has  not 


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*  translator’s  preface. 

fallen  into  better  bands  ;  but  as  the  task  bas  devolved  on  me,  I 
bave  endeavored  to  perform  it  in  what  I  considered  tbe  most  suita- 
-tbat  is  to  say,  without  any  of  those  meretricious  orna¬ 
ments  of  style  which  might  infringe  on  the  chaste  simplicity  of  the 
learned  author.  The  Scriptural  portions  of  the  work,  I  have,  of 
couise,  copied  with  the  most  scrupulous  care  from,  an  approved  ver¬ 
sion  of  the  New  Testament,  and  I  trust  they  will  be  found  correct. 

Montreal,  Avgust,  1851. 


„v\ 


manner- 


I 


PREFACE  TO  THE  FIRST  EDITION. 


Max  y  pious  and  enlightened  persons  have  considered  that  a  work 
like  this  might  not  be  altogether  useless  ;  and  hence  it  is  that  its 
author  has  placed  it  before  the  public.  He  first  undertook  it  with 
the  sole  idea  that  it  was  a  good  and  suitable  work  for  the  leisure 
hours  of  a  priest  ;  and  even  in  occupying  those  hours,  it  was  pro¬ 
ductive  of  some  advantage  to  himself,  so  that  he  could  not  consider 
such  time  ill  spent.  But  if  this  work  may  also  serve  to  instruct  the 
faithful,  he  believes  it  his  duty  not  to  withhold  it  from  them.  His 
idea  is  not  a  new  one,  and  he  has  no  desire  to  claim  the  merit  of  in¬ 
vention.  There  are  in  existence  numberless  concordances  of  the 
four  Gospels,  wherein  the  word  of  God  and  the  word  of  man  are  in¬ 
terwoven,  as  in  this  work.  Many,  almost  numberless,  are  the  com¬ 
mentaries  and  reflections  on  the  Gospels  ;  so  that  the  present  writer 
can  lay  claim  to  nothing  peculiar,  excepting  only  his  style  and  his 
selections,  together  with  some  observations  which  he  believed  neces¬ 
sary,  in  order  to  explain  certain  obscure  texts.  Even  for  these  he 
cannot  venture  to  claim  originality  :  he  can  only  say  that  he  has 
never  seen  them  in  any  of  the  authors  consulted  by  him.  To  these 
are  added  some  moral  reflections,  which  grew  out  of  the  subjects 
before  him,  and  which  appeared  to  the  author  as  calculated  to  ex¬ 
cite  and  nourish  piety.  He  has  also  endeavored  to  explain  some  of 
the  evangelical  dogmas.  The  nature  of  the  work  required  that 
these  explanations  should  be  brief,  and  it  was,  moreover,  necessary 
to  make  them  clear  and  simple  :  it  is  for  the  reader  to  judge  wheth- 


a  O  9  3  0  0  14) 


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0  PREFACE  TO  THE  FIRST  EDITION. 

er  lie  bas  succeeded  in  these  points.  These  explanatory  notes  are 
not  intended  for  professed  theologians.  Far  be  it  from  the  author’s 
mind  to  think  of  giving  instruction  to  those  whom  he  considers  as 
his  masters.  No  ;  they  are  solely  intended  for  that  numerous  class 
who,  in  matters  concerning  religion,  have  no  more  than  the  limited 
knowledge  usually  obtained  in  what  is  called  “  a  Christian  educa¬ 
tion.”  They  may  also  be  found  of  some  value  to  those  ecclesiastics 
who  have  as  yet  made  no  very  profound  study  of  Scripture  or  the¬ 
ology,  or  to  those  who  may  have  forgotten,  in  the  multitude  of  their 
avocations,  a  portion  of  what  they  had  in  early  life  acquired.  Many 
of  these  explanations  are  directed  against  heretics,  for  it  is  always 
useful  to  know  how  they  pervert  the  Scriptures  in  support  of  their 
errors,  and  the  manner  in  which  the  Church  confutes  them.  Prot¬ 
estants  in  particular  are  frequently  referred  to,  as  being  more 
known  to  us,  and  coming  in  closer  contact  with  us.  But  there  is 
yet  another  reason — shall  we  venture  to  confess  it?  There  are 
sometimes  found  among  us  Catholics  (at  least  by  profession)  who 
advance  in  conversation  the  same  opinions  as  they  do  ;  and  who, 
though  not  daring  to  maintain  them  as  dogmas,  at  least  propose 
them  speculatively.  This  mode  of  speaking  is  seldom  found  in  coun¬ 
tries  where  the  leaven  of  Protestantism  has  not  penetrated,  which 
fact  shows  plainly  the  origin  of  the  evil.  Whether  those  who  as¬ 
sume  this  tone  believe  or  do  not  believe  what  they  say — for  it  gen¬ 
erally  happens  that  there  is  more  of  vanity  than  of  conviction  in 
these  flippant  remarks — yet  every  Catholic,  who  is  truly  attached 
to  the  faith  of  his  fathers,  will  be  very  glad  to  have  the  means  either 
of  enlightening  or  confounding  them,  as  the  case  may  require.  The 
authorities  whom  the  author  has  followed  in  explaining  the  sacred 
text  are,  generally  speaking,  the  Fathers  of  the  Church,  and  the 
best  authorized  commentators.  He  embraces  no  particulai  system, 
and  gives  no  opinion  of  his  own  on  those  questions  ;  he  simply  fol- 


'IV 


A 


PREFACE  TO  THE  FIRST  EDITION. 


lows  tlie  teaching  and  tradition  of  the  Catholic  Church.  Whatever 
is  at  all  opposed  to  that  appears  to  him  suspicious,  and  he  therefore 
scrupulously  avoids  it.  He  cannot  hope  that  his  work  will  be  found 
free  from  errors,  but  he  implores  his  readers  to  place  them  solely 
to  the  account  of  his  limited  intelligence,  and  to  rectify  them  by 
the  same  standard  which  has  guided  him  in  his  work — the  common 
teachings  of  the  Catholic  Church. 


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INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  SECOND  FRENCH  EDITION, 


There  are  few  who  have  not  wished,  when  reading  over  the  New 
Testament,  to  have  its  contents  arranged  in  one  regular  history, 
giving  the  Life  of  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  according  to  the  order  of 
time,  and  disengaged  from  the  numerous  repetitions  unavoidable  in 
four  different  narratives.  This  was  the  intention  with  which  Father 
De  Ligny  commenced  his  work,  and  there  is  no  doubt  that  he  has 
carried  it  out  with  complete  success.  Taking  for  his  basis  the  His¬ 
tory  of  the  Life  of  Jesus  Christ ,  he  has  compiled  it  from  the  text 
of  the  four  Evangelists.  In  this  new  edition,  all  the  Scriptural  part 
has  been  marked  by  inverted  commas,  and  the  references  are  every¬ 
where  given,  so  that  the  reader  may  at  any  time  compare  this  nar¬ 
rative  with  the  Gospel  history. 

Although  this  History  of  the  Life  of  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  forms 
a  complete  work  in  itself,  yet  we  have  thought  it  expedient  to  fol¬ 
low  it  up  by  a  summary  of  what  is  contained  in  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles.  In  order  to  render  this  edition  still  more  complete,  we 
have  furnished  it  with  an  Analytical  Table  of  Contents ,  arranged 
with  the  utmost  care  and  attention.  Such  a  Table  we  considered 
necessary,  in  order  to  point  out  the  various  and  important  subjects 
treated  of  in  the  notes. 

There  are  now  very  few  of  the  faithful  who  cannot  provide  them¬ 
selves  with  a  work  so  useful,  so  precious.  Its  merit  is  universally 
recognized,  and  its  reputation  is  daily  increasing.  It  is,  beyond  all 
doubt,  the  best  concordance  which  we  have  of  the  four  Gospels,  as 


■?/ 


7/i 


<3 


10 


INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  SECOND  FRENCH  EDITION. 


well  as  tlie  most  faitliful  and  exact  translation  of  them  which  we 
have  in  our  language  ( Father  De  Ligny  speaks ,  of  course ,  of  the 
French  language). 

“  Father  De  Ligny’s  paraphrase  has  no  interference  with  the  di¬ 
vine  original,  and  it  is  so  written  as  to  exclude  all  modern  idioms 
or  peculiarities  of  style  which  might  detract  from  the  dignity  and 
severe  simplicity  of  the  ancient  phraseology,  of  which  the  Scriptures 
are  the  most  perfect  model.  Leaving  the  text  in  all  its  integrity, 
he  has  contrived  to  introduce  short  reflections,  so  skilfully  construct¬ 
ed,  that,  without  at  all  infringing  on  the  sacred  text,  they  serve,  as 
it  were,  to  fill  up  the  interstices,  and  to  preserve  the  thread  of  the 
history,  correcting  and  arranging  its  various  incidents,  so  as  to  make 
one  complete  whole.  Explanations  of  the  Word  of  God  may  be 
given  by  men,  without  at  all  compromising  the  dignity  of  the  text. 
Finally,  the  work  is  enriched  by  critical  notes,  equally  useful  to  the 
true  believer,  and  to  the  skeptic  or  infidel  :  to  the  former  for  con¬ 
firming  him  in  his  faith,  and  to  the  latter  for  dissipating  his  doubts 
and  convincing  him  of  his  error. 

“  Another  recommendation  for  this  work  is  the  very  name  of  its 
author.  Father  De  Ligny  was  a  member  of  that  illustrious  society 
whose  fall  has  been  a  grievous  disaster  to  France,  and  whose  mem¬ 
ory  is  still  so  fondly  cherished*  ILe  first  appeared  with  success  in 
the  pulpits  of  the  French  capital,  and  had  even  been  appointed  to 
preach  at  court,  when  the  genius  of  destruction,  which  had  been  so 
long  laboring  to  undermine  all  the  religious  orders,  commenced  with 
destroying  the  most  useful  as  well  as  the  most  distinguished.  Father 


*  Happily,  the  fall  of  the  Jesuits  was  hut  temporary,  and  their  society  has  risen  again, 
phoenix -like,  from  its  own  ashes,  to  shed  renewed  light  on  the  darkening  countries  of 
Europe. — (Translator.) 


Ma 

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INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  SECOND  FRENCH  EDITION.  11 

De  Ligny  then  retired  to  Avignon,  where  he  continued  to  exercise 
his  rare  talents  for  preaching.  His  elocution  had  in  it  something 
very  original,  not  without  a  certain  degree  of  quaintness  ;  but  it 
was  so  analogous  to  his  character,  that  it  excited  more  interest  than 
the  most  studied  oratory  could  ever  produce,  and  gave  added  charms 
to  his  discourse.  Nor  were  his  virtues  at  all  inferior  to  his  talents. 
He  was  distinguished  by  that  modesty  of  demeanor  and  suavity  of 
manner  which  are  usually  characteristic  of  the  members  of  his  order, 
and  which  serve  to  smooth  down  the  prejudices  of  worldlings,  while 
they  secure  the  respect  due  to  religion.  He  preached  through  all 
the  southern  provinces  of  France,  and  everywhere  addressed  crowd¬ 
ed  audiences,  till  the  very  close  of  his  life.  He  died  at  Avignon  in 
1788,  in  the  seventy-eighth  year  of  his  age,  happy  in  being  taken 
hence  on  the  very  eve  of  the  dread  catastrophe,  and  in  having  heard 
but  the  distant  growling  of  that  storm  which  soon  after  burst  over 
the  fair  fields  of  France.  He  died  with  only  a  presentiment  of  the 
evil  to  come.” — (M.  De  Boulogne.) 


It  may  be  well  to  mention  here  that  the  learned  and  pious  author 
of  this  work  wras  born  at  Amiens,  on  the  4th  of  May,  1709,  and  en¬ 
tered  the  Society  of  Jesus  while  yet  very  young.  He  was  for  some 
time  Professor  of  Humanities  in  certain  of  the  colleges  belonging  to 
his  order  ;  but  having  shown  very  decided  talents  for  the  pulpit,  he 
in  his  more  advanced  years  devoted  himself  to  the  holy  office  of 
preaching  the  Word. 

While  stationed  at  Avignon,  Father  De  Ligny  published,  under 
his  own  superintendence,  the  first  edition  of  this  work,  undoubtedly 
the  greatest  of  all  his  productions.  He  had  previously  published  at 
Paris,  in  1759,  “The  Life  of  Ferdinand,  King  of  Castile  and  Leon.” 
In  his  latter  years  he  composed  “  The  History  of  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles,”  but  it  was  not  published  till  after  his  death. 


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V3 


THE  HISTORY 

OF  THE  LIFE  OF  OUR  LORD 

JESUS  CHRIST, 

♦  * 

FROM  HIS  INCARNATION  TO  HIS  ASCENSION. 


PART  I. 

FROM  THE  INCARNATION  OF  THE  WORD  UNTIL  THE  CURE  OF  THE 

MAN  BORN  BLIND. 


CHAPTER  I. 

PREFACE  OF  SAINT  LUKE. - ETERNAL  GENERATION  OF  THE  WORÎ)  AND  HIS  INCARNA¬ 
TION. - TESTIMONY  RENDERED  TO  HIM  BY  SAINT  JOHN  THE  BAPTIST. - THE  HOLY 

PRECURSOR  ANNOUNCED  AND  PROMISED. 

(a)  “The  beginning  of  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  the  Son  of 
God.” 

( b )  “  Forasmuch  as  many  have  taken  in  hand  to  set  forth  in  order 
a  narration  of  the  things  that  have  been  accomplished  among  us,  ac¬ 
cording  as  they  have  delivered  them  unto  us  who  from  the  begin¬ 
ning  were  eye-witnesses  and  ministers  of  the  Word;  it  seemed  good 
to  me  also,  having  diligently  attained  to  all  things  from  the  begin¬ 
ning,  to  write  to  thee  in  order,  most  excellent  Theophilus,  that  thou 
mayest  know  the  verity  of  those  words  in  which  thou  hast  been  in¬ 
structed.” 

Thus  speaks  Saint  Luke  ;  and  Saint  Mark,  the  other  disciple, 
might  have  used  the  same  language.  Nay,  both  evangelists  could 
have  said  what,  in  point  of  fact,  Saint  John  has  declared  :  (<?)  “That 
which  was  from  the  beginning,  which  we  have  heard,  which 
we  have  seen  with  our  eyes,  which  we  have  looked  upon,  and 

(c)  I.  St  John,  i.  1,  3.; 


7. 


!// 


.4 


our  hands  have  handled,  of  the  Word  of  life . We  declare  unto 

you  ;  that  you  also  may  have  fellowship  with  us,  and  our  fellowship 
may  be  with  the  Father  and  his  Son  Jesus  Christ.”  Viz.:  whilst 
some  recount  what  they  actually  saw,  others'  relate  what  they  heard 
from  those  who  had  viewed  the  facts  ;  the  first  class  of  evangelists 
being  intelligent  witnesses,  and  the  latter  attentive  hearers,  all  were 
faithful  historians.  The  coincidences  of  their  statements  are  so  per¬ 
fect,  that  no  inconsistency  can  possibly  be  detected,  and  there  is  just 
enough  of  variation  in  the  details  to  rebut  the  slightest  presumption 
of  collusion  or  conspiracy.  Through  all  these  minute  differences  we 
may  recognize  the  organs  of  the  same  spirit,  just  as  in  the  varieties 
of  family  features  we  acknowledge  the  offspring  of  the  same  father. 
We  shall  now  enter  on  their  narrative,  by  stating  what  was  before 
the  origin  of  time,  this  Eternal  Word,  whose  temporal  life  is  the  sub¬ 
ject  of  this  History. 

(a)  “  In  the  beginning  was  (1)  the  Word  (2),  and  the  Word  was 
with  God,  and  the  Word  was  God  (3);  the  same  was  in  the  begin¬ 
ning  with  God  (4).  All  things  were  made  by  him  (5)  ;  and  with¬ 
out  him  was  rnatle  nothing  that  was  made. 

(a)  St.  John,  i.  1-t18. 

(1)  The  word  of  the  Father  ;  the  interior  expression  of  his  intelligence  ;  the  eternal  and 
infinite  production  of  his  infinite  knowledge.  The  term  of  this  knowledge  is  a  divine  per¬ 
son  distinct  from  the  divine  person  which  produces  it.  If  undoubtedly  this  is  a  great  mys¬ 
tery,  may  we  not  add  that  it  is  the  only  mystery  here?  For  that  this  person  must  be 
consubstantial  and  coeternal  with  his  principle,  is  as  evident  as  that  the  knowledge,  rea¬ 
son,  and  wisdom  of  the  Godhead  cannot  be  of  any  other  substance  or  of  shorter  duration 
than  God  himself.  We  must  needs  say  the  same  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  is  the  substan¬ 
tial  love  of  the  Father  and  the  Son. 

(2)  When  every  object  which  had  a  beginning  began  its  existence,  the  Word  was  al¬ 
ready  :  hence  he  is  without  beginning  ;  hence  he  is  eternal. 

(3)  Skeptics  might  perhaps  cavil  at  the  other  expressions  in  this  verse  which  declare 
the  divinity  of  the  Word,  but  this  proposition  narrows  them  explicitly  to  the  sense  of  di¬ 
vinity  strictly  speaking;  for  is  it  possible  to  say  more  precisely  that  the  Word  was  God, 
than  by  saying  the  Word  ivas  God  ? 

(4)  This  resumption  represents,  if  we  may  presume  to  use  such  a  form  of  expression, 
the  situation  of  the  Word  during  that  eternity,  which  preceded  creation.  He  dwelt  shroud¬ 
ed  in  the 'bosom  of  his  Father;  as  yet  he  had  not  been  produced,  or,  as  we  might  say, 
brought  forward  to  view  ;  he  was  displayed  by  the  creation  and  incarnation.  This  may 
be  considered  as  an  abstract  of  what  the  Evangelist  states  and  is  going  to  state  concern¬ 
ing  him. 

(5)  God  made  all  things  by  his  word,  since  he  created  them  by  his  intelligence  ;  hence 


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“  In  him  was  life  (6),  and  the  life  was  the  light  of  men  (7 )•  The 
light  shineth  in  darkness,  and  the  darkness  did  not  comprehend 
it  (8).  There  was  a  man  sent  from  God  whose  name  was  John. 
This  man  came  for  a  witness,  to  give  testimony  of  the  light,  that  all 
men  might  believe  through  him.  He  was  not  the  light,  but  was  to 
give  testimony  of  the  light.  The  word  was  the  true  light  which  en- 
lighteneth  every  man  that  cometh  into  this  world.” 

“  He  was  in  the  world,  and  the  world  was  made  by  him,  and  the 
world  knew  him  not.  He  came  to  his  own,  and  his  own  received 
him  not.  But  as  many  as  received  him,  he  gave  them  power  to  be 
made  the  sons  of  God,  to  them  that  believe  in  his  name,  who  are 
born,  not  of  blood,  nor  of  the  will  of  the  flesh,  nor  of  the  will  of 
man,  but  of  God  (9).  And  the  word  was  made  elesh  (10). 


we  say  (and  in  as  strict  a  sense  of  the  Word  as  of  the  Father)  that  all  things  were  made 
by  him.  The  Arians  concluded  from  this  that  the  Son  was  inferior  to  the  Father,  since 
he  acted  in  the  subordinate  character  of  his  instrument  at  the  creation.  Yet  the  intelli¬ 
gence  which  actuates  was  never  denominated  an  instrument  ;  and  supposing  the  denomi¬ 
nation  were  correct,  we  must  admit  that  such  an  instrument  should  be  coequal  to  his  em¬ 
ployer.  For  who  ever  advanced  or  thought  that  an  intelligent  being,  no  matter  what  that 
might  be,  was  greater  than  his  own  intelligence,  or  somewhat  less  than  himself  ? 

(6)  He  was  the  author  and  the  meritorious  cause  of  the  life  of  grace  to  be  followed  by 
an  eternal  life  of  glory.  This  meaning  explains  the  passage  of  Saint  John,  by  Saint  John 
himself,  who  says,  Epistle  I.  John,  v.  11,  “God  has  given  to  us  eternal  life,  and  this 
life  is  in  his  Son.”  Here,  alluding  to  the  Son,  he  says,  “In  him  was  life.”  Both  ex¬ 
pressions  convey  obviously  the  same  meaning. 

(7)  The  Word  gave  life  to  men  by  irradiating  their  souls,  and  that  light  referred  to 
here  is  the  light  of  faith,  and  not,  as  many  say,  the  natural  light  of  reason.  This  is  de- 
ducible  from  many  reasons.  The  following  is  conclusive  :  The  Evangelist  speaks  here  of 
that  light  to  which  he  is  just  going  to  state  that  Saint  John  the  Baptist  gave  testimony. 
Now,  the  direct  object  of  Saint  John  the  Baptist’s  testimony  was  not  Jesus  Christ  as 
author  of  the  light  of  reason,  hut  Jesus  Christ  as  author  of  the  Christian  faith  and  evan¬ 
gelical  law. 

(8)  Mankind  were  immersed  in  the  darkness  of  ignorance  and  error.  They  could  not 
discern  the  light,  because  they  did  not  wish  to  discern  it.  Those  who  bandage  their  own 
eyes  cannot  see  the  light  of  day.  Ought  they,  therefore,  to  blame  the  sun  ? 

(9)  Here  the  Evangelist  speaks  simultaneously  of  the  incarnation  of  the  word,  and  the 
spiritual  birth  of  the  children  of  God,  as  the  first  is  the  meritorious  cause,  and  also  the 
evidence  of  the  latter.  At  least  it  is  a  further  argument,  inasmuch  as  it  is  more  difficult 
to  believe  that  the  word  of  God  was  made  flesh,  than  that  flesh  and  blood  could  become 
the  adopted  child  of  God. 

(10)  That  is  to  say,  that  he  was  made  man.  The  evangelist  names  the  part  for  the  whole  ; 
and  that,  too,  the  most  despicable  part,  to  impress  us  more  deeply  with  the  procKgious 


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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


“  He  dwelt  among  us  full  of  grace  and  truth  ;  and  we  have  seen 
his  glory  (11),  the  glory  as  it  were  of  the  only  begotten  of  the 
Father. 

“  John  beareth  witness  of  him,  and  crieth  out,  saying  :  This  was 
he  of  whom  I  spoke,  he  that  shall  come  after  me  is  preferred  before 
me,  because  he  was  before  me.  Of  his  fulness  we  all  have  receiv¬ 
ed  (12),  and  grace  (13)  for  grace.  For  the  law  was  given  by  Moses, 
grace  and  truth  came  by  Jesus  Christ.” 

Let  none  be  surprised  at  our  descanting  on  matters  rising  so  high 
above  the  sphere  of  human  understanding.  They  may  be  heard 
with  astonishment,  but  our  testimony  is  not  the  less  admissible. 
“  No  man,  it  is  true ,  hath  seen  God  ;  but  the  only  begotten  Son,  who 
is  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father,  he  hath  declared  him  to  us .” 

The  most  obvious  characteristics  should  designate  that  man  who 
was  commissioned  to  point  out  first  to  the  world  the  incarnate  word. 
Nothing  else  could  give  irresistible  weight  to  his  testimony.  God 
provided  for  this  emergency,  and  we  shall  now  see  that  at  the  out- 


humiliation  of  the  Son  of  God.  There  is  great  energy  in  the  juxtaposition  of  the  two 
ternis  the  word  was  made  flesh.  Hence,  some  of-  the  earlier  heretics  took  occasion  to 
say  that  the  word  merely  assumed  the  flesh,  which  he  animated  as  its  soul.  Jesus  Christ 
anticipated  them  by  saying,  “  My  soul  is  troubled  ;  my  soul  is  sorrowful  unto  death  ; 
Father,  into  thy  hands  I  commend  my  spirit.”  Supposing  even  that  he  had  not  spoken 
thus,  he  is  styled  man  more  than  once  in  Scripture,  which  is  quite  enough  to  clear  up  all 
doubts  of  his  having  assumed  a  rational  soul.  A  human  body  without  a  soul  would  no 
more  be  a  man  than  a  tree  is;  and  if  its  soul  was  irrational,  such  an  object  would  differ 
in  figure  only  from  the  brute.  This  observation  is  directed  against  the  heretic  Appollo- 
narius,  who  attributed  mere  sensation,  or  a  sensitive  soul,  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  not  a  ra¬ 
tional  soul.  It  would  be  an  endless  task  to  review  all  the  impious  absurdities  and  fanci¬ 
ful  visions  which  the  heretics  ran  into  with  reference  to  the  Incarnation.  We  evince  our 
faith  and  good  sense  by  thoroughly  acquiescing  in  all  that  it  has  pleased  God  to  reveal 
to  us  on  the  subject. 

(11)  His  glory  was  made  manifest  by  his  miracles.  Saint  John  had  the  further  ad¬ 
vantage  of  having  been  one  of  those  three  who  had  seen  him  in  his  transfiguration. 

(12)  All  graces  come  from  the  plenitude  of  Jesus  Christ,  as  the  showers  which  fertilize 
the  earth  are  exhaled  from  the  ocean,  and  the  rivers  roll  back  again  the  mass  of  waters 
which  they  derived  from  that  mighty  element. 

(13)  The  law  of  grace  as  contradistinguished  from  the  grace  of  the  law  ;  for  this  really 
was  a  grace  ;  but  the  latter  is  so  superior  to  the  former,  that,  when  spoken  of  by  way  of 
comparison,  the  first  might  simply  be  called  the  law,  and  the  second  the  grace  ;  the  more 
so,  as  all  the  grace  of  the  old  law  sprang  from  the  grace  of  the  new  law,  which  gushed 
forth  by  anticipation. 


set  such  an  individual  attracted  the  attention  of  all  Judea  by  the 
prodigies  which  preceded  and  accompanied  his  birth. 

(a)  “There  was  in  the  days  of  Herod  (14),  the  king  of  Judea,  a 
certain  priest  named  Zachary  of  the  course  of  Abia(15),  and  his 
wife  was  of  the  daughters  of  Aaron,  and  her  name  Elizabeth.  They 
were  both  just  before  God,  walking  in  all  the  commandments  and 
justifications  of  the  Lord,  without  blame.  They  had  no  son,  for  that 
Elizabeth  was  barren,  and  they  both  were  well  advanced  in  years. 
It  came  to  pass  that  while  Zachary  executed  the  priestly  office  be¬ 
fore  God  in  the  order  of  his  course,  according  to  the  custom  of  the 
priestly  office,  it  was  his  lot  to  offer  incense,  going  into  the  temple 
of  the  Lord  (16);  and  all  the  multitude  of  the  people  was  praying 
without  at  the  hour  of  incense  (17).  In  the  mean  while  there  ap¬ 
peared  to  him  an  angel  of  the  Lord,  standing  on  the  right  side  of 
the  altar  of  incense.  Zachary  seeing  him,  was  troubled,  and  fear 
fell  upon  him.  But  the  angel  said  to  him  :  Fear  not,  Zachary  ;  for 
thy  prayer  is  heard,  and  thy  wife  Elizabeth  shall  bear  thee  a  son, 

(a)  St.  Luke,  i.  5-25. 


(14)  We  find  three  Herods  mentioned  in  the  New  Testament.  This  Herod,  an  Idu- 
mean  by  birth,  and  surnamed  Herod  the  Great,  was  the  first  of  his  family  who  reigned 
in  Judea.  His  jurisdiction  extended  over  the  whole  country,  and  it  was  he  who  ordered 
the  massacre  of  the  innocents.  The  second  was  Antipas,  son  of  the  former  Herod  :  he 
was  Tetrarch  of  Galilee,  and,  haring  contracted  an  incestuous  marriage  with  Herodias, 
murdered  Saint  John  the  Baptist.  This  was  the  man  who  sent  Jesus  Christ  to  Pilate, 
and  had  him  robed  in  derision  with  a  white  garment.  A  third  Herod,  surnamed  Agrip¬ 
pa,  is  spoken  of  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  He  was  the  son  of  Aristobulus,  who,  to¬ 
gether  with  his  brother  Alexander,  was  put  to  death  by  Herod  the  Great,  their  father. 
Mariamne  was  their  mother.  It  was  he  who  caused  Saint  James  to  be  beheaded  ;  who 
cast  Saint  Peter  into  prison  ;  who  was  at  length  stricken  by  an  angel,  and  died,  gnawed 
by  worms,  because  he  had  not  referred  the  glory  to  God  when  a  fawning  multitude  cried 
out  :  “  His  voice  is  the  voice  of  God,  not  of  man.”  He  was  the  father  of  that  Agrippa 
before  whom  Saint  Paul  pleaded  his  own  cause. 

(15)  David  had  divided  all  the  sacerdotal  order  into  families  or  societies,  each  of  which 
was  distinguished  by  the  surname  of  its  chief  or  head.  They  performed  service  by  turns, 
and  the  peculiar  functions  of  each  priest  were  assigned  to  him  by  lot. 

(16)  In  the  part  of  the  temple  where  the  altar  of  incense  was  erected  ;  this  was  sep¬ 
arated  by  a  veil  from  the  more  inward  recess,  called  the  Holy  of  Holies,  into  which  the 
high  priest  alone  was  admissible,  and  that  but  once  a  year. 

(17)  In  the  vestibule,  or  lobby,  where  the  people  staid  praying.  Priests  alone  were 
allowed  to  enter  that  part  where  the  altar  of  incense  was. 


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and  tliou  shalt  call  his  name  John  (18).  Thou  shalt  have  joy  and 
gladness,  and  many  shall  rejoice  at  his  birth  ;  For  he  shall  be  great 
before  the  Lord.  He  shall  drink  no  wine  nor  strong  drink  ;  and  he 
shall  be  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost  even  from  his  mother’s  womb  (19). 
He  shall  convert  many  of  the  children  of  Israel  to  the  Lord  their- 
God  (20):  And  he  shall  go  before  him  in  the  spirit  and  power  of 
Elias,  that  he  may  turn  the  hearts  of  the  fathers  to  the  children  (21), 
and  the  incredulous  to  the  wisdom  of  the  just,  to  prepare  for  the 
Lord  a  perfect  people. 

“  Zachary  said  to  the  angel,  "Whereby  shall  I  know  this  ?  for  I  am 
an  old  man,  and  my  wife  is  advanced  in  years. 

“  The  angel  answering  said  to  him  :  I  am  Gabriel,  who  stand  be¬ 
fore  God.  I  am  sent  to  speak  to  thee,  and  to  bring  thee  these 


(18)  The  words  thy  prayer  is  heard  being  followed  immediately  by  the  prediction,  thy 
wife  Elizabeth  shall  bear  thee  a  son,  would  at  first  sight  lead  us  to  infer  that  the  object 
of  Zachary’s  prayer  was  to  have  a  son  ;  yet  had  he  made  this  his  petition,  he  would 
scarcely  have  been  incredulous  to  the  voice  of  an  angel  promising  fulfilment,  unless  we 
assume  that  he  made  a  request  which  he  thought  that  he  never  could  obtain,  which,  in¬ 
deed,  would  be  a  very  unreasonable  request.  It  is  highly  probable  that  he  prayed  for 
the  coming  of  the  liberator  of  Israel,  sole  object  of  the  vows  and  prayers  of  the  just  of 
the  old  law.  The  birth  of  a  son  was  evidence  to  Zachary  that  his  prayer  was  favorably 
heard  ;  therefore  the  discourse  of  the  angel  bears  the  following  explanation  :  your  prayer 
to  accelerate  the  coming  of  the  Messiah  is  heard,  and  the  proof  I  give  you  is,  that  you 
yourself  shall  have  a  son,  and  that  son  shall  be  his  precursor. 

(19)  Saint  Augustine  says  that  Saint  John  had  not  been  sanctified,  that  is.  purified  from 
original  sin  from  his  mother’s  womb,  but  merely  that  he  had  been  thenceforth  destined  to 
the  office  of  precursor  much  in  the  same  sense  as  Saint  Paul  said  of  himself,  that  God 
had  separated  him,  that  is,  chosen  him  for  the  apostleship,  from  his  mother’s  womb. 
The  words  now  before  us,  he  shall  be  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost  even  from  his  mother’s 
womb,  would  seem  to  refute  this  sentiment,  the  plenitude  of  the  Holy  Ghost  being  incom¬ 
patible  with  the  state  of  sin. 

(20)  Never,  perhaps,  at  any  former  period  were  the  Jews  more  scrupulously  attached 
to  the  adoration  of  one  God  the  Creator,  than  at  the  period  of  the  coming  of  Christ  ;  so 
that  the  Lord  their  God,  to  whom  Saint  John  converted  many  of  the  children  of  Israel, 
can  be  no  other  than  Jesus  Christ.  Besides,  it  is  added  that  he  shall  go  before  him  (the 
Lord  their  God),  that  is  to  say,  be  his  precursor.  Now,  of  whom  was  Saint  John  pre¬ 
cursor,  if  not  of  Jesus  Christ?  Wherefore  Jesus  Christ  is  not  different  from  the  Lord 
God,  and  this  is  an  unanswerable  proof  of  his  divinity. 

(21)  The  patriarchs  who  shall  rejoice  to  behold  their  posterity  imitating  their  faith  and 
piety.  Other  interpreters  construe  the  passage  thus:  to  give  to  the  children  the  hearts 
of  their  fathers,  that  is,  upright  and  virtuous  hearts,  like  those  of  their  fathers.  Both 
meanings  are  good — the  first  is  most  generally  followed. 


OF  OUR  LORD  .TESUS  CHRIST, 


good  tidings  and,  as  a  token  both  to  punisli  and  to  cure  your  in¬ 
credulity,  “behold  thou  skalt  be  dumb,  and  shalt  not  be  able  to 
speak  until  the  day  wherein  these  things  shall  come  to  pass  ;  be¬ 
cause  thou  hast  not  believed  my  (22)  words  which  shall  be  fulfilled 
in  their  time. 

“  The  people  were  waiting  for  Zachary,  and  they  wondered  that 
he  staid  so  long  in  the  temple.  When  he  came  out,  he  could  not 
speak  to  them  ;  and  they  understood  that  he  had  seen  a  vision,  for 
he  made  signs  to  them,  and  remained  dumb.  After  the  days  of 
his  office  were  accomplished,  he  departed  to  his  own  house.  And 
after  those  days  his  wife  Elizabeth  conceived  and  hid  herself  five 
months  (23).  Thus,”  said  she,  concealing  her  secret  joy  within  her¬ 
self,  “  Thus  hath  the  Lord  dealt  with  me,  in  the  days  wherein  he 
hath  had  regard  to  take  away  my  reproach  among  men.” 


CHAPTER  H 


ANNUNCIATION. - VISITATION. - BIRTH  OF  SAINT  JOHN  THE  BAPTIST. - CANTICLE  OF 


The  time  was  fulfilled,  and  all  was  prepared  for  the  incarnation 
of  the  word,  when,  “  in  the  sixth  month”  after  the  conception  of  the 
divine  Precursor,  ( a )  “  the  angel  Gabriel  was  sent  from  God  into  a 

(a)  St.  Luke,  i.  26-80. 


(22)  Zachary,  it  s.eems,  was  merely  in  doubt  ;  yet  to  doubt  is  not  to  believe,  and  the 
word  of  the  angel  is  exact.  However,  call  it  doubt  or  incredulity,  it  was  reprehensible, 
and  was  justly  punished  :  some  say  he  sinned  mortally,  but  such  is  not  the  general  opin¬ 
ion  ;  surprise  and  want  of  thought  give  a  complexion  to  his  incredulity  similar  to  the  fault 
of  Moses,  which  did  not  deprive  him  of  grace,  though  it  entailed  exclusion  from  the  land 
of  promise. 

(23)  Elizabeth  was  unwilling  to  expose  to  public  derision  the  first  signs  of  a  pregnancy 
which  might  at  least  seem  equivocal  in  a  woman  so  far  advanced  in  years.  She  felt  no 
uneasiness  at  being  seen  when  her  pregnancy  became  a  fact  so  incontestible  as  to  chal¬ 
lenge  surprise  and  admiration.  This  is  the  most  likely  reason  that  can  be  assigned  for 
her  conduct  under  these  circumstances. 


I 

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à 


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<T> 


city  of  Galilee  called  Nazareth,  to  a  virgin  espoused  (1)  to  a  man 
whose  name  was  Joseph,  of  the  house  of  David,  and  the  virgin’s 
name  was  Mary.  The  angel  being  come  in,  said  unto  her,  Hail  full 
of  grace  ;  the  Lord  is  with  thee  ;  blessed  art  thou  among  women. 
When  she  had  heard,  she  was  troubled  at  his  saying,  and  thought 
with  herself  what  manner  of  salutation  this  should  be.  Fear  not, 
Mary,  the  angel  said  to  her  ;  for  thou  hast  found  grace  with  God. 
Behold,  thou  shalt  conceive  in  thy  womb  ;  and  shalt  bring  forth  a 
son,  and  thou  shalt  call  his  name  Jesus,  tie  shall  be  great,  and  shall 
be  called  the  son  of  the  Most  High  ;  the  Lord  God  shall  give  unto 
him  the  throne  of  David  (2)  his  father;  he  shall  reign  in  the  house 
of  Jacob  for  ever,  and  of  his  kingdom  there  shall  be  no  end  (3). 


(1)  There  are  several  reasons  assigned  why  God  wished  that  the  Virgin  who  was  to  be 
the  mother  of  God,  should  be  espoused.  The  following  may  be  considered  as  the  prin¬ 
cipal  reason  :  mankind  could  not  recognize  the- virginity  of  Mary  until  they  had  first  rec¬ 
ognized  Christ  to  be  the  Messiah.  It  would  have  been  monstrous  indecency  that  until 
then  he  might  pass  for  illegitimate,  and  his  mother  for  an  indifferent  character. 

The  Latin  word  desponsata  of  the  Vulgate,-  which  the  Douay  version  as  well  as  our 
author  translates  by  the  word  espoused,  avait  pour  époux,  may  signify  affianced  as  well 
as  espoused.  Our  author  states  that  this  induced  many  holy  doctors  to  say  that  Joseph 
and  Mary  were  merely  affianced,  but  that  the  great  majority  hold  that  they  were  really 
espoused  ;  and  for  a  very  good  reason.  To  ward  off  all  suspicion  injurious  to  the  mother 
and  son  by  the  veil  of  a  marriage,  it  was  imperative  that  Joseph  and  Mary  should  be  pub¬ 
licly  recognized  as  espoused,  at  least  nine  months  before  the  birth  of  Christ. 

(2)  The  throne  of  which  that  of  David  was  merely  the  figure.  Yet  this  may  be  called 
the  Throne  of  David,  and  we  may  add,  as  did  the  angel,  that  Jesus  Christ  shall,  reign  in 
the  House  of  David,  which  was  originally  formed  from  the  children  of  David,  who  recog¬ 
nized  the  Redeemer,  and  ranged  themselves  under  his  laws.  Those  who  rejected  him  no 
longer  constituted  the  true  Israel,  being  no  longer  a  part  of  the  people  of  God.  They 
lopped  themselves  off  from  the  paren»  stem,  the  Gentiles  took  their  place,  and  formed, 
with  the  posterity  of  Jacob,  one  undivided  people,  of  whom  Jacob  is  the  common  stem 
to  which  all  the  branches  are  united,  whether  they  spring  from  or  are  engrafted  on  it. 
Such  is  the  comparison  of  Saint  Paul,  which  likens  the  people  of  God  to  an  immense 
trunk'  that  has  always  subsisted,  and  during  the  lapse  of  centuries  has  but  lost  some 
branches  to  acquire  others. 

(3)  The  kingdom  of  Christ  on  earth,  which  is  the  visible  church,  shall  not  end  like  all 
the  monarchies  which  have  successively  appeared  on  earth  ;  but  it  shall  last  as  long  as 
the  world.  The  universal  dominion  which  Jesus  Christ  exercises  over  all  nature,  he  of 
whom  it  is  written  that  every  knee  shall  bend,  in  heaven,  on  earth,  and  in  hell — this  em¬ 
pire,  I  say,  shall  last  as  long  as  God  himself.  In  both  these  senses  the  angel  saith  here, 
of  his  kingdom  there  shall  be  no  end. 


Ü 


fo  a  a  o  a  o  o  a  - 


c 


N.Y.D  SrJ.SADLIER. 


CS 


CHAP.  II.] 

Mary  said  to  the  angel,  How  shall  this  be  done  (4),  because  I  know 
not  man  (5)  ?  The  angel  answering,  said  to  her,  The  Holy  Ghost 
shall  come  upon  thee,  and  the  power  of  the  Most  High  shall  over¬ 
shadow  thee.  Therefore  (6)  also  the  Holy  which  shall  be  born  of 
thee  shall  be  called  the  Son  of  God.  Behold  thy  cousin  Elizabeth, 
she  hath  also  conceived  a  son  in  her  old  age,  and  this  is  the  sixth 
month  with  her  that  is  called  barren  ;  because  no  word  shall  be  im¬ 
possible  with  God.  Mary  then  said,  Behold  the  handmaid  of  the 
Lord  ;  be  it  done  to  me  according  to  thy  word.  Then  the  angel  de¬ 
parted  from  her,”  and  Mary  found  she  was  pregnant  of  the  man  God, 
whom  the  Holy  Ghost  formed  in  her  sacred  womb  directly  when  she 
gave  her  consent  to  this  great  mystery. 

Having  had  intelligence  from  the  angel  of  the  event  which  had 
occurred  to  Elizabeth,  and  docile  to  the  inspiration  which  taught 
her  the  duties  she  had  to  perform,  “  Mary  rising  up,  went  into  the 


(4)  Mary  was  not  in  any  doubt,  but  sbe  wished  to  be  enlightened  as  to  the  manner  in 
which  the  words  of  the  angel  were  to  be  accomplished.  The  sequel  explains  the  reason. 

(5)  This  woidd  not  be  a  proper  saying  'had  not  Mary  made  a  vow,  or  at  least  an  un¬ 
changeable  resolution  to  remain  always  a  virgin.  She  was  too  judicious  not  to  perceive 
that  it  might  be  answered  to  her  :  That  which  has  not  been  may  be,  and  then  you  shall 
conceive  a  son.  Wherefore  when  she  said,  I  know  not  man,  we  must  construe  :  I  know 
not  and  I  never  shall  know  mfin.  No  other  meaning  can  be  reasonably  assigned  to  her 
reply.  We  thus  see  the  reason  why  the  Fathers  availed  themselves  of  it  against  those 
heretics  who  dared  to  assert  that  after  the  birth  of  Jesus  Christ,  Mary  had  known  Joseph, 
and  had  children  by  him.  What  great  motive  or  powerful  interest  could  induce  her  to 
change  a  resolution  which  she  alleged  as  a  hindrance  to  the  choice  which  God  had  made 
of  her  to  be  the  mother  of  the  Messiah  ? 

(6)  It  did  not  necessarily  follow  from  the  fact  of  a  virgin  conceiving  by  virtue  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  that  the  son  she  should  bear  must  be  truly  God.  Adam  was  not  God,  al¬ 
though  he  was  the  immediate  production  of  Almighty  power.  Hence,  to  understand 
this  and  therefore,  that  is,  to  know  the  connection  between  this  proposition  the  Holy  Ghost 
. hall  come  upon  thee,  &c.,  and  this  other,  the  Holy  which  shall  be  born  of  thee  shall  be 
called  the  Son  of  God,  observe  that  two  things  were  foretold  :  one,  that  a  virgin  should 
coilceive  without  losing  her  virginity  ;  the  other,  that  the  son  she  should  bring  forth  was 
to  be  truly  God.  We  must  presume  that  Mary,  enlightened  as  she  was,  had  not  been 
ignorant  of  the  prophecies  :  but  supposing  she  were  ignorant,  this  and  therefore  may  still 
be  explained.  The  discourse  of  the  angel  signifies,  You  are  the  Virgin  of  whom  it  is  fore¬ 
told  that  she  shall  conceive  without  the  agency  of  man  ;  and  therefore,  the  child  which 
shall  be  born  of  you  is  he  of  whom  it  is  foretold  that  he  shall  be  verily  God.  Wherefore 
the  Divinity  of  Christ  is  not  a  necessary  sequel  of  his  birth  by  a  virgin,  though  it  is  an  in¬ 
fallible  sequel,  inasmuch  as  all  that  God  foretold  must  happen. 


\[Y 


P 


te*#' 


i 


S-V* 


hill  country  with  haste,  into  a  city  of  Juda.  She  entered  into  the 
house  of  Zachary,  and  saluted  Elizabeth.  When  Elizabeth  heard 
the  salutation  of  Mary,  the  infant  leaped  in  her  womb  (7),  and  Eliz¬ 
abeth  was  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  she  cried  out  with  a  loud 
voice,  Blessed  art  thou  among  women,  and  blessed  is  the  fruit  of  thy 
womb.  Whence  is  this  to  me  that  the  mother  of  my  Lord  should 
come  to  me  (8)  ?  for  behold,  as  soon  as  the  voice  of  thy  salutation 
sounded  in  my  ears,  the  infant  in  my  womb  leaped  for  joy  (9). 
Blessed  art  thou  that  hast  believed,  because  those  things  shall  be  ac¬ 
complished  that  were  spoken  to  thee  by  the  Lord.  Mary  said  then  : 
My  soul  doth  magnify  the  Lord,  and  my  spirit  hath  rejoiced  in  God, 
my  Saviour,  because  he  hath  regarded  the  humility  of  his  hand¬ 
maid  ;  for  behold  from  henceforth  all  generations  shall  call  me  bless¬ 
ed,  because  he  that  is  mighty  hath  done  great  things  to  me  (10). 
Holy  is  his  name,  and  his  mercy  is  from  generation  unto  generation 
to  them  that  fear  him.”  Cease  to  be  surprised  at  such  a  wonderful 
sight.  He  has  showed  the  might  in  his  arm  ;  and  in  exalting  my 
lowliness  to  such  a  prodigious  degree,  he  has  merely  acted  in  unison 
with  his  usual  course  of  proceeding.  His  ordinary  conduct  is  to  ele¬ 
vate  the  lowly,  to  humble  the  proud  and  the  great.  We  know  that 
at  all  times  “  he  hath  scattered  the  proud  in  the  conceit  of  their  heart. 
He  hath  put  down  the  mighty  from  their  seats,  and  hath  exalted 


(7)  This  was  the  moment  of  the  sanctification  of  Saint  John  the  Baptist.  This  sancti¬ 
fication  was  the  first  fruit  of  the  Incarnation  of  the  Word.  Mary’s  voice  was  the  instru¬ 
ment,  and,  as  it  were,  the  sensible  sign  of  the  invisible  operation  of  grace.  It  is  a  motive 
of  confidence  in  Mary,  to  find  her  assisting  in  the  first  application  that  was  made  of  the 
merits  of  Jesus  Christ,  after  his  incarnation,  and  in  the  sanctification  of  the  holiest  of  the 
children  of  women. 

(8)  Had  Saint  Joseph  made  the  journey,  and  further,  had  he  been  present  at  this  in¬ 
terview,  he  would  have  been  instructed  in  that  mystery,  by  his  ignorance  of  which  he 
was  subsequently  thrown  into  such  great  perplexities.  This  note  regards  painters,  who, 
in  their  pictures  of  the  Visitation,  scarcely  ever  fail  to  represent  Saint  Joseph. 

(9)  Joy  seems  to  include  knowledge.  Such  knowledge,  it  is  generally  believed,  was 
imparted  to  Saint  John,  with  the  enlightened  sentiment  of  the  incarnate  Word’s  presence 
and  of  the  miracle  of  sanctification,  which  the  Holy  Ghost,  whose  plenitude  he  then  re¬ 
ceived,  worked  within  him. 

(10)  By  this  canticle  it  is  visible  that  Mary  dwelt  alone  upon  the  power  and  goodness 
of  God— the  lowliness  and  happiness  of  herself.  Saint  Ambrose  calls  this  the  ecstasy 
of  her  humility. 


CHAP.  H.] 


23 


OF  ODii  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 

tlie  humble.  He  hath  filled  the  hungry  with  good  things,  and  the 
rich  he  hath  sent  away  empty.” 

Thus  his  fidelity  and  goodness  appear  with  no  less  lustre  than  his 
power.  By  performing  that  which  now  makes  the  subject  of  your 
admiration,  “He  hath  received  Israel  his  servant,  being  mindful  of 
his  mercy  as  he  spoke  to  our  fathers,  to  Abraham,  and  to  his  seed 
for  ever.” 

“  Mary  abode  with  Elizabeth  about  three  months,  and  she  return¬ 
ed  to  her  own  house  (11).” 

“Now  Elizabeth’s  full  time  of  being  delivered  was  come,  and  she 
brought  forth  a  son.  Her  neighbors  and  kinsfolk  heard  that  the 
Lord  had  shewed  his  great  mercy  towards  her,  and  they  congratu¬ 
lated  with  her.  On  the  eighth  day  they  came  to  circumcise  the 
child,  and  they  called  him  by  his  father’s  name  (12),  Zachary.  Not 
so,  said  his  mother,  but  he  shall  be  called  John.  They  said  to  her  : 
There  is  none  of  thy  kindred  that  is  called  by  this  name.  And  they 
made  signs  (13)  to  his  father  how  he  would  have  him  called.  De¬ 
manding  a  writing-table,  he  wrote,  saying  :  John  is  his  name  ;  and 
they  all  wondered.  Immediately  his  mouth  was  opened  and  his 
tongue  loosed  ;  he  spoke,  blessing  God.  Fear  came  upon  all  their 
neighbors  ;  and  all  these  things  were  noised  abroad  over  all  the  hill 
country  of  Judea.  All  they  that  heard  them  laid  them  up  in  their 
heart,  saying  :  What  a  one  think  ye  shall  this  child  be  ?  for  the  hand 
of  the  Lord  was  with  him.”  This  was  the  moment  which  God  had 
chosen  to  accumulate  his  choicest  blessings  on  this  happy  family. 
He  gave  to  Zachary  in  addition  to  his  speech,  which  he  recovers  by 


(11)  Without  waiting  for  Elizabeth’s  confinement,  although  many  other  writers  come 
to  a  different  conclusion,  and  seem  to  think  that  Mary  must  have  been  present  at  the 
birth  of  Saint  John.  But  besides  that  the  Evangelist’s  recital  naturally  inclines  us  to 
believe  that  her  departure  was  precedent,  does  it  not  seem  that  the  absence  was  much 
more  likely  than  the  presence  of  the  purest  of  virgins  ? 

(12)  The  name  was  not  conferred  until  the  eighth  day,  and  after  the  circumcision,  for 
by  circumcision  alone  the  child  was  incorporated  into  the  society  of  the  people  of  God. 
’Tis  apparently  for  the  same  reason  that,  in  Christianity,  the  name  is  given  to  the  child 
when  baptized. 

(13)  This  statement  gives  us  to  understand  that  Zachary  had  also  been  rendered  deaf, 
for  had  he  been  simply  dumb,  it  would  not  have  been  necessary  to  speak  to  him  by 
signs. 


24  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I. 

miracle,  tlie  gift  of  prophecy.  This  holy  old'  man  was  filled  with 
the  Holy  Ghost,  and  he  poured  forth  that  divine  Canticle  which  com¬ 
prises  the  entire  plan  of  the  Gospel,  and  a  description  of  the  Church 
in  its  sunniest  days. 

“  Blessed  be  the  Lord,  God  of  Israel,  because  he  hath  visited  and 
wrought  the  redemption  of  his  people  ;  and  hath  raised  up  a  horn 
of  salvation  to  us  in  the  house  of  David  his  servant.” 

“  As  he  spoke  by  the  mouth  of  his  holy  prophets  who  are  from 
the  beginning,  salvation  from  our  enemies,  and  from  the  hand  of  all 
that  hate  ns.” 

“  To  perform  mercy  to  our  fathers,  and  to  remember  his  holy  tes¬ 
tament,  the  oath  which  he  swore  to  Abraham  our  father,  that  he 
would  grant  to  us  ;  that  being  delivered  from  the  hand  of  our  ene¬ 
mies,  we  may  serve  him  without  fear  in  holiness  and  justice  before 
him,  all  our  days.” 

Zachary,  foreseeing  the  high  destinies  of  his  son,  turns  to  him  then, 
and  addresses  to  him  these  sublime  words,  which  the  child  of  eight 
days  old  heard  and  understood  :  “  And  thou,  child,  shalt  be  called 
the  prophet  of  the  Highest  ;  for  thou  shalt  go  before  the  face  of  the 
Lord,  to  prepare  his  ways,  to  give  knowledge  of  salvation  to  his  peo¬ 
ple,  unto  the  remission  of  their  sins.” 

So  great  a  favor  cannot  be  deserved;  but  it  shall  come  to  ns 
“  through  the  bowels  of  the  mercy  of  our  God,  in  which  the  Orient 
from  on  high  hath  visited  us,  to  enlighten  them  that  sit  in  darkness 
and  in  the  shadow  of  death,  to  direct  our  feet  in  the  way  of  peace.” 
Therefore  the  Messiah  as  represented  here  is  not  what  the  Jews  rep¬ 
resented  to  themselves — a  warrior  king  and  a  conqueror  ;  he  is  a 
Saviour,  who,  without  a  single  motive  but.  his  mercy,  and  without 
a  single  interest  but  our  salvation,  brings  down  to  us  the  remission 
of  our  sins.  Thenceforth  a  new  order  of  things  succeeds  to  the  an¬ 
cient  dispensation.  Fear  is  replaced  by  love,  and  the  just  man  passes 
his  days  in  holiness  and  innocence.  He  enjoys  the  peace  of  a  pure 
and  tranquil  conscience — a  peace  superior  to  all  others,  and  which 
leads  him  by  the  only  true  happiness  we  can  relish  in  this  life  to  that 
eternal  happiness  which  the  Messiah  has  merited  for  us,  and  which, 
properly  speaking,  is  the  conquest  he  has  made.  Such  is  the  pic¬ 
ture  which  Zachary  has  drawn  of  the  Messiah’s  reign.  The  apostles, 


after  tlie  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  had  not  a  more  just  idea  of  the 
subject,  nor  one  more  free  from  vulgar  prejudices. 

“  Meantime  the”  miraculous  “  child  grew  up  and  was  strengthened 
in  spirit,  and  was  in  the  deserts,  where  he  remained  until  the  day  of 
his  manifestation  to  Israel  (14),”  which  did  not  occur  until  the  time 
when  the  Messiah  was  himself  on  the  point  of  manifesting  his  pres¬ 
ence.  For  the  preaching  of  the  Precursor  was  to  be  directly  follow¬ 
ed  by  the  preaching  of  the  Saviour,  as  his  birth  shortly  preceded 
the  birth  of  Christ.  (a)  “  Now  the  birth  of  Christ  was  thus.” 


CHAPTER  III. 


DOUBT  OF  SAINT  JOSEPH.- 


-BIRTH  OF  JESUS  CHRIST. - HIS  CIRCUMCISION. - HIS  GENE¬ 

ALOGY. 


( h )  “When  Mary,  his  Mother,  was  espoused  to  Joseph  [_we  have 
seen  that ],  before  they  came  together,  she  was  found  with  child  of 
the  Holy  Ghost.  Whereupon  Joseph  (1),  her  husband,  being  a  just 
man  (2),  and  not  willing  publicly  to  expose  her,  was  minded  to  put 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  i.  18.  (J)  St.  Matthew,  i.  18-25. 

(14)  We  do  not  precisely  know  at  what  age  he  retired  into  the  desert.  It  was  from 
his  tender  years,  according  to  the  general  impression  which  appears  to  have  been  adopted 
by  the  Church.  We  must  not  inquire  whether  he  had  sufficient  discretion  to  guide  him  ¬ 
self,  he  to  whom  God  had  granted  the  use  of  this  faculty  in  his  mother’s  womb  !  The 
Holy  Ghost,  who  had  conducted  him  into  solitude,  continued  still  to  be  his  director  and 
master.  There  he  led  an  evangelical  life  ;  and  with  good  reason  was  he  reckoned  by  the 
ancient  Solitaries  as  their  leader,  and  in  some  sort  the  founder  of  the  anchorite  life.  Thus 
it  was  that  he  disposed  himself  for  the  sublime  ministry  to  which  he  was  destined,  and 
warned  those  who  were  to  follow  him  that  the  mould  for  forming  apostolic  men  is  the 
mortification  of  the  solitary  life. 

(1)  Mary  had  not  informed  him  of  any  thing.  There  were  two  causes  for  her  silence  : 
1st,  her  confidence  in  God,  in  whose  care  for  lier  reputation  she  reposed  entire  confi¬ 
dence;  2d,  her  prudence:  an  occurrence  of  this  nature  could  not  be  credited  on  her  re¬ 
port  ;  heaven  must  speak  to  make  it  credible. 

(2)  Had  he  denounced  her,  it  seems  that  he  would  not  have  been  unjust.  But  he 
liked  better  not  to  avail  himself  of  the  right  given  to  him  by  appearances.  He  deemed 
a  mild  and  moderate  demeanor  preferable,  under  these  circumstances,  to  rigorous  jus- 


26 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  L 

her  away  privately.  But  while  he  thought  on  these  things,  behold 
the  Angel  of  the  Lord  appeared  to  him  in  his  sleep,  saying  :  Joseph, 
son  of  David,  fear  not  to  take  unto  thee  Mary,  thy  wife;  for  that 
which  is  conceived  in  her  is  of  (3)  the  Holy  Ghost.  She  shall  bring 
forth  a  son,  and  thou  shalt  call  his  name  Jesus  ;  for  he  shall  save  his 
people  from  their  sins.” 

This  supernatural  conception  had  been  foretold.  Had  Joseph 
been  but  slightly  versed  in  the  knowledge  of  the  Holy  Scriptures, 
he  ought  not  have  been  ignorant  of  it,  and  such  knowledge  served 

tice.  Besides,  the  quality  of  the  just  man  given  to  him  in  the  Gospel  does  not  merely 
signify  an  equitable  man  ;  it  expresses  the  assemblage  of  all  virtues  in  a  most  exalted  de¬ 
gree.  Another  cause,  which  is  more  than  likely,  is  given  for  this  proceeding.  The  vir¬ 
tue  of  his  incomparable  wife  was  of  so  unequivocal  a  character,  that  when  confronting  it, 
if  we  may  venture  so  to  speak,  with  what  he  perceived,  he  knew  not  what  to  believe  or 
what  to  disbelieve.  Wherefore  he  endeavored  to  reconcile  both  things  by  separating 
from  her,  on  account  of  the  semblance  of  crime,  and  by  saving  her  honor,  on  account  of 
the  persuasion  of  her  virtue,  which  was  so  forcible  as  to  counterbalance  in  his  mind  such 
appearances. 

(3)  Every  thing  which  God  performs  outside  of  his  essence  (ad  extra)  is  common  to 
the  three  divine  persons.  Nevertheless,  the  Incarnation  is  attributed  to  the  Holy  Ghost, 
because  it  is  a  work  of  love  and  goodness. 

The  Holy  Ghost  ought  not,  however,  to  be  called  the  father  of  Jesus  Christ,  because, 
when  forming  his  body,  he  furnished  nothing  from  his  own  substance. 

In  this  work  there  was  no  fresh  creation.  The  entire  matter  which  served  to  form  the 
body  of  Jesus  Christ  was  extracted  from  the  blood  of  Mary.  On  this  account  we  may 
say  correctly,  that  she  contributed  more  than  any  other  mother  to  the  formation  of  the 
body  of  her  son. 

It  does  not  follow  from  this  that  Mary,  who  certainly  was  Jesus  Christ’s  mother,  should 
be  called  the  father  of  Jesus  Christ,  because  that  particle  of  her  blood  from  which  the 
body  of  Jesus  Christ  was  formed  was  not  a  germ,  and  the  same  particle  took  the  form 
of  a  human  body  only  by  the  supernatural  operation  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

God  was  not  the  natural  father  of  Adam,  although  God  himself  immediately  produced 
Adam,  since  he  did  not  produce  him  from  his  own  substance. 

Adam  was  not  the  father  of  Eve,  although  she  was  produced  from  his  substance,  be¬ 
cause  the  side  of  the  first  man,  which  served  in  the  construction  of  the  first  woman,  was 
not  a  human  germ  :  thus  it  is  that  Jesus  Christ,  inasmuch  as  he  is  God,  has  a  father  and 
not  a  mother  :  and  inasmuch  as  he  is  man,  he  has  a  mother  and  no  father.  As  God,  he 
was  begotten,  not  made  (genitum  non  factum )  ;  and  as  man,  he  was  made,  and  not  be¬ 
gotten,  properly  so  speaking. 

We  deem  it  right  to  add,  the  body  of  Jesus  Christ  was  not  formed  successively  and 
by  degrees,  nor  animated  some  time  after  conception,  as  happens  to  other  children.  Per¬ 
fect  organization,  yet  of  suitable  diminutiveness,  animation,  and  hypostatic  union  of  body 
and  soul  with  the  person  of  the  Word,  were  all  the  work  of  one  and  the  same  instant, 
and  the  instant  was,  as  has  been  said,  that  of  Maiy’s  consent. 


apparently  to  facilitate  his  belief.  “  Now  all  this  was  done  that  the 
word  might  be  fulfilled  which  the  Lord  spoke  by  the  Prophet  :  Be¬ 
hold,  a  virgin  shall  be  with  child,  and  shall  bring  forth  a  son,  and 
they  shall  call  his  name  Emanuel,  which,  being  interpreted,  is  God 
with  us.  Joseph  rising  up  from  sleep,  did  as  the  Angel  of  the  Lord 
had  commanded  him,  and  took  unto  him  his  wife.  He  knew  her  not 
until  she  brought  forth  her  first-born  son,  and  he  called  his  name 
Jesus.” 

It  was  at  Nazareth  that  Joseph  had  these  perplexities,  and  the 
vision  of  the  angel  which  dissipated  them.  No  doubt  he  did  not 
then  intend  to  quit  that  town  where  he  usually  resided.  But  the 
prophets  had  already  foretold  that  the  Christ  should  be  born  at 
Bethlehem  ;  and  God,  who  does  every  thing,  even  when  he  seems 
least  active,  obliged  Joseph  to  remove  there  with  his  wife  precisely 
at  the  time  when  Mary  was  to  bring  forth  her  son.  The  occasion 
of  this  journey  was  as  follows  : 

(a)  “  In  those  days  there  went  out  a  decree  from  Cæsar  Augustus, 
that  the  whole  world  (4)  should  be  enrolled.  This  enrolling  was 
first  made  by  Cyrimus,  the  governor  of  Syria  ;  and  all  went  to  be 
enrolled,  every  one  to  his  own  city.  Because  he  was  of  the  house 
and  family  of  David,  Joseph  also  went  up  from  Galilee,  out  of  the 
city  of  Nazareth,  into  Judea,  to  the  city  of  Judea,  which  is  called 
Bethlehem,  to  be  enrolled  with  Mary,  his  espoused  wife,  who  was 
with  child.  When  they  came,  her  days  were  accomplished  that  she 
should  be  delivered,  and  she  brought  forth  her  first-born  son  (5), 
wrapped  him  up  in  swaddling-clothes,  and  laid  him  in  a  manger,  be¬ 
cause  there  was  no  room  for  them  in  the  inn.  There  were  in  the 
same  country  shepherds  watching  and  keeping  the  night-watches 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ii.  1-21. 


(4)  That  is  to  say,  all  the  subjects  of  the  Roman  empire.  The  Romans  called  them¬ 
selves  masters  of  the  world,  although  then  empire,  in  its  widest  extent,  had  never  been 
one-fourth  part  of  the  habitable  world.  It  is  true,  that  the  part  which  they  occupied 
constituted  the  greatest  part  that  was  known  in  those  times. 

(5)  And  at  the  same  time  her'  only  son.  To  enable  him  to  be  called  first-born,  it  is 
enough,  especially  in  the  language  of  Scripture,  that  no  other  should  have  preceded  him. 
It  is  thus  that  he  is  called  by  Saint  John,  the  only  begotten  son  of  the  Father;  and  his 
first-begotten,  by  Saint  Paul  (Heb.  i.  6). 


► 


28 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[PART ‘I. 


over  their  flocks  (6).  An  angel  of  the  Lord  stood  by  them  ;  the 
brightness  of  God  shone  round  about  them,  and  they  feared  with  a 
great  fear.  But  the  angel  said  to  them  :  Fear  not,  for  I  bring  you 
good  tidings  of  great  joy,  that  shall  be  to  all  the  people.  This  day 
is  born  to  you  a  Saviour,  who  is  Christ,  the  Lord,  in  the  city  of  Da¬ 
vid.  This  shall  be  a  sign  to  you  :  you  shall  find  the  infant  wrapped 
in  swaddling-clothes,  and  laid  in  a  manger.  Suddenly  there  was 
with  the  angel  a  multitude  of  the  heavenly  host,  praising  God,  and 
saying  :  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on  the  earth  peace  to  men 
of  good  will. 

“  After  the  angels  departed  from  them  into  heaven,  the  shepherds 
said  one  to  another  :  Let  us  go  over  to  Bethlehem,  and  let  us  see 
this  word  that  is  come  to  pass,  which  the  Lord  hath  shewed  to  us. 
They  came  with  haste,  and  they  found  Mary  and  Joseph,  and  the 
infant  lying  in  a  manger.  Seeing,  they  understood  the  word  that 
had  been  spoken  to  them  concerning  this  child  ;  and  all  they  that 
heard  wondered  ;  also  at  those  things  that  were  told  them  by  the 
shepherds.  But  Mary  kept  all  these  words,  pondering  them  in  her 
heart.  The  shepherds  returned,  glorifying  and  praising  God  for  all 
the  things  they  had  heard  and  seen,  as  it  was  told  unto  them. 

“  After  eight  days  were  accomplished  that  the  child  should  be  cir¬ 
cumcised,  his  name  was  called  Jesus  (7),  the  name  which  was  called 
by  the  angel  before  he  was  conceived  in  the  womb.” 


(6)  Yet  it  was  the  25th  of  December;  but  the  winters  in  Palestine  are  much  less 
harsh  than  ours. 

(7)  No  one  is  ignorant  of  this  name’s  signifying  Saviour  in  Hebrew.  We  shall  not 
descant  upon  the  properties  of  this  adorable  name,  which  maketh  every  knee  bend  in 
heaven,  on  earth,  and  in  hell.  We  shall  only  remark,  that  by  being  the  proper  name  of 
Jesus  Christ,  it  gave  ground  to  the  objection  that  Jesus  Christ  did  not,  therefore,  call 
himself  Emanuel,  as  the  Prophet  Isaias  had  foretold.  All  the  enemies  of  religion — Jews, 
Pagans,  and  ancient  heretics — reproached  him  with  this  apparent  contradiction  ;  yet 
nothing  is  more  easily  explained.  The  name  Emanuel  had  been  foretold,  not  inasmuch 
as  it  was  to  be  the  proper  name  for  Jesus  Christ,  but  as  significative  of  what  Christ  was 
to  be  :  and  in  point  of  fact,  since  he  is  at  the  same  time  both  God  and  man,  and  that  he 
has  conversed  with  men,  he  truly  was  God  with  us.  Thus  the  same  Isaias  said  :  His 
name  shall  be  called  Wonderful,  Counsellor,  God  the  mighty.  Father  of  the  world  to 
come,  Prince  of  peace  (ix.  6).  This  does  not  mean  that  any  of  these  names  was  to  be 
his  proper  name,  but  that  he  should  be  all  that  is  signified  by  these  names,  and  that  not 
one  of  them  is  unsuitable  to  him. 


."Nr ew  Yof  le ,  D .  J .  S  a-dli  er 


c=^ 


m 


49* 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


29 


CHAP.  III.] 

We  place  here  the  genealogy  of  the  Saviour,  such  as  Saint  Mat¬ 
thew  and  Saint  Luke  have  given  it  to  us.  The  first,  whose  principal 
object  was  to  make  known  the  accomplishment  of  the  prophecies  in 
the  person  of  Jesus  Christ,  opens  by  calling  him  the  Son  of  David, 
the  Son  of  Abraham,  because  those  two  Patriarchs  had  a  special 
promise  that  the  Messiah  should  be  born  of  their  blood.  Then  run¬ 
ning  over  the  several  degrees,  (a)  “  Abraham,”  says  he,  “  begot  Isaac, 
Isaac  begot  Jacob,  Jacob  begot  Judas  and  his  brethren,  and  Judas 
begot  Phares  and  Zara  of  Tliamur,  Phares  begot  Esron,  Esron  begot 
Aram,  Aram  begot  Aminadab,  Aminadab  begot  Naasson,  Naasson 
begot  Salmon,  Salmon  begot  Booz  of  Pahab,  Booz  of  Bahab  begot 
Obed  of  Ruth,  Obed  begot  Jesse,  Jesse  begot  David  the  King,  Da¬ 
vid  the  King  begot  Solomon  of  her  that  had  been  the  wife  of  Urias, 
Solomon  begot  Roboam,  Roboam  begot  Abias,  Abias  begot  Asa, 
Asa  begot  Josaphat,  Josaphat  begot  Joram,  Joram  begot  Ozias  (8), 
Ozias  begot  Joatham,  Joatham  begot  Achaz,  Achaz  begot  Ezechias, 
Ezechias  begot  Manasses,  Manasses  begot  Amon,  Amon  begot  Josi- 
as,  Josias  begot  Jechonias  and  his  brethren  about  the  time  they  were 
carried  away  to  Babylon,  and  after  they  were  carried  to  Babylon 
Jechonias  begot  Salathiel,  Salathiel  begot  Zorobabel,  Zorobabel  begot 
Abuid,  Abuid  begot  Eliacim,  Eliacim  begot  Azor,  Azor  begot  Sadoc, 
Sadoc  begot  Achim,  Achim  begot  Eliud,  Eliud  begot  Eleazor,  Ele- 
azor  begot  Mathan,  Mathan  begot  Jacob,  Jacob  begot  Joseph  (9), 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  i.  1-17. 


(8)  Three  are  omitted — Ochosias,  Joas,  and  Amasias.  The  mixture  of  the  blood  of 
Achab  with  that  of  David  was  the  cause.  God  had  declared  to  Achab  that,  in  punish¬ 
ment  of  his  crimes  and  impiety,  all  his  race  should  be  exterminated.  He  had  promised 
David  that  his  race  should  always  subsist,  and  would  reign  during  many  centuries.  Here 
we  see  the  accomplishment  of  both  promise  and  threat  :  David’s  blood  is  perpetuated, 
and  continues  to  reign  in  Juda  ;  but  three  kings  of  Juda,  descended  from  Achab  by  his 
daughter  Athalie,  wife  of  Joram,  are  suppressed  in  the  list  of  Kings,  and  by  this  sup¬ 
pression  are,  as  much  as  it  was  feasible,  included  in  the  proscription  of  the  impious  Achab. 

(9)  As  Jesus  Christ  was  son  of  Mary,  and  not  of  Joseph,  persons  are  always  tempted 
to  ask— Why  the  Evangelists  have  given  the  genealogy  of  Joseph,  and  not  that  of  Mary  ? 
This  difficulty  may  be  considered  as  the  rock  on  which  all  the  interpreters  that  endeav¬ 
ored  to  explain  it  away  have  split  :  some  give  explanations  by  no  means  reasonable,  and 
the  most  rational  interpreters  have  stated  nothing  certain.  It  is  more  than  probable  that 
information  respecting  this  point  was  extensively  circulated  at  the  time  the  evangelists 
wrote.  The  just  must  know  clearly  that  Jesus  Christ  was  the  son  of  David.  Therefore 


f~X 


& 


the  husband  of  Mary,  of  whom  was  born  Jesus,  who  is  called  Christ. 
So  all  the  generations  from  Abraham  to  David  are  fourteen,  from 
David  until  the  carrying  away  to  Babylon  fourteen,  and  from  the 
carrying  away  to  Babylon  till  Christ  fourteen.” 

The  genealogy  which  Saint  Luke  gives  differs  from  this  in  many 
particulars.  In  the  first  place,  he  progresses  directly  in  the  reverse 
of  Saint  Matthew  ;  and  whilst  the  latter  descends  from  Abraham  un¬ 
til  Joseph  and  down  to  Jesus  Christ,  Saint  Luke  ascends  from  Jesus 
Christ  and  Joseph  not  only  until  Abraham,  but  even  up  to  Adam, 
A  second  difference  is,  that  he  traces  the  descent  of  Joseph  not 
through  Solomon,  but  through  Nathan,  another  son  of  David.  The 
third  discrepancy  is,  that  he  makes  Joseph  not  the  son  of  Jacob,  as 
Saint  Matthew  says  ;  but  (a)  the  son  of  Heli  (10),  “  who  was  of 

(a)  St.  Luke,  iii.  23-38. 


tlie  intelligence  was  necessary,  and  when  it  ceased  to  be  so,  was  lost.  We  must  not  be 
surprised,  for  nothing  is  useless  in  Scripture.  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  that  teach  thee 
'profitable  things. — Isaias,  48.  Now  every  thing  is  not  equally  useful  at  all  times.  It  is 
enough  that  God  confers  the  understanding  of  each  text  at  the  time  of  its  utility.  Thus 
our  predecessors  had  information  on  several  points  which  those  had  not  who  came  after 
them  ;  and  our  successors  shall  be  informed  on  many  points  unintelligible  to  those  who 
went  before  them.  Such  are  the  many  prophecies  of  the  Apocalypse  which  regard  later 
times.  Faith  believes  all  things  ;  but  the  reason  of  the  faithful  rests  satisfied  with  know- 
ing  what  God  has  placed  within  the  reach  of  our  information. 

(10)  This  third  difference  is  the  most  embarrassing.  Still,  although  Joseph  truly  was 
the  son  of  Jacob,  he  might  be  called  son  of  Heli,  for  one  or  other  of  the  following  rea- 
sons  :  1.  By  title  of  adoption.  2.  As  son  of  the  widow  of  Heli,  married  a  second  time 
by  J  acob,  according  to  the  disposition  of  the  law  obliging  the  brother  or  nearest  relative 
to  marry  the  widow  of  the  brother  or  parent  who  had  died  without  children  ;  and  the 
offspring  of  the  second  marriage  were  considered  as  belonging  to  the  deceased.  3.  Jo¬ 
seph  might  be  called  son  of  Heli,  because  he  was  his  son-in-law  ;  for,  supposing  this,  Heli 
is  not  different  from  Joachim,  father  of  the  Blessed  Virgin.  Out  of  these  three  explana¬ 
tions,  the  first  is  the  least  followed  ;  the  second  is  the  most  ancient  and  the  best  author¬ 
ized.  Saint  Augustine,  who  originally  adopted  the  first,  and  to  whom  the  third  was  by 
no  means  objectionable,  finally  returned  to  this  view  of  the  subject,  as  may  be  seen  in 
the  eighth  book  of  the  Retrac.,  ch.  vii.  The  third,  which  has  been  relished  by  a  great 
number  of  modern  writers,  has  this  fortunate  circumstance  in  its  favor,  that  it  presents 
the  genealogy  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  and  by  this  means  the  true  genealogy  of  our  Sa¬ 
viour,  and  his  descent  from  David.  All  this,  nevertheless,  does  not  go  beyond  conjec¬ 
ture,  and  each  individual  has  a  right  to  rely  upon  the  explanation  which  seems  most 
probable  to  him.  What  we  are  bound  to  believe  is,  that  the  evangelists  do  not  contradict 
one  another,  and  in  this  there  exists  no  difficulty.  For,  as  the  sundry  suppositions  ad- 


H 


I 


1 


CHAP.  III.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


Matkat,  who  was  of  Levi,  who  was  of  Melclii,  who  was  of  Janne,  who 
was  of  Joseph,  who  was  of  Mathathias,  who  was  of  Amos,  who  was 
of  Nahum,  who  was  of  Hesli,  who  was  of  Nagge,  who  was  of  Ma- 
hath,  who  was  of  Mathathias,  who  was  of  Semei,  who  was  of  Joseph, 
who  was  of  Juda,  who  was  of  Joanna,  who  was  of  Roza,  who  was  of 
Zorobabel,  who  was  of  Salathiel,  who  was  of  Neri  (11),  who  was  of 
Melchi,  who  was  of  Addi,  who  was  of  Cosan,  who  was  of  Helmadan, 
who  was  of  Her,  who  was  of  Jesus,  who  was  of  Eliezer,  who  was  of 
Jorim,  who  was  of  Mathat,  who  was  of  Levi,  who  was  of  Simeon, 
who  was  of  Judas,  who  was  of  Joseph,  who  was  of  Jona,  who  was  of 
Eliakim,  who  was  of  Melea,  who  was  of  Menna,  who  was  of  Matha- 
tha,  who  was  of  Nathan,  who  was  of  David,  who  was  of  Jesse,  who 
was  of  Obed,  who  was  of  Booz,  who  was  of  Salmon,  who  was  of 
Naasson,  who  was  of  Aminadab,  who  was  of  Aram,  who  was  of  Es- 
ron,  who  was  of  Phares,  who  was  of  Judas,  who  was  of  Jacob,  who 
was  of  Isaac,  who  was  of  Abraham,  who  was  of  Thare,  who  was  of 
Nachor,  who  was  of  Sarug,  who  was  of  Ragau,  who  was  of  Phaleg, 
who  was  of  Heber,  who  was  of  Sale,  who  was  of  Cainan,  who  was  of 
Arphaxad,  who  was  of  Sem,  who  was  of  Noe,  who  was  of  Lamech, 
who  was  of  Mathusale,  who  was  of  Henoch,  who  was  of  Jared,  who 
was  of  Malaleel,  who  was  of  Cainan,  who  was  of  Henos,  who  was  of 
Seth,  who  was  of  Adam,  who  was  of  God  (12).” 

These  genealogies  were  mainly  for  the  Jews,  who  could  not  rec¬ 
ognize  a  Messiah  that  might  not  have  been  of  the  blood  of  David. 
Whatever  difficulties  we  may  meet  in  them,  it  is  certain  that  Jesus 
Christ’s  descent  from  David  was  never  questioned,  as  it  never  could 
be,  in  point  of  fact.  For  those  who  deemed  him  simply  the  son  of 
Joseph  could  not  moot  an  objection  ;  no  more  than  those  who  be- 

vanced  to  harmonize  them  are  all  possible,  it  follows,  at  all  events,  that  no  contradiction 
can  be  proved,  and  this  is  quite  assurance  enough  for  our  faith. 

(11)  Saint  Matthew  says  Jechonias  was  father  of  Salathiel.  Yet  the  latter  might  he 
called  son  of  Neri,  either  inasmuch  as  he  was  his  son-in-law,  or  inasmuch  as  he  was  his 
grandson  by  this  mother,  the  daughter  of  Neri,  who  had  married  Jechonias,  which  again 
suffices  to  obviate  contradiction. 

(12)  That  is  to  say,  who  had  God  for  the  immediate  author  of  his  existence.  We 
may  remark,  in  connection  with  this,  that  Saint  Luke,  who  here  employs  the  term  of  son 
in  a  sense  different  from  that  of  eternal  generation,  thereby  authorizes  the  different  mean¬ 
ings  we  have  given  to  this  term  in  the  preceding  notes. 


m  i 


1 fiii 


32 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[part  Î. 

lieve  lie  was  born  of  a  virgin  can  doubt  for  one  moment  but  that  be 
was  all  that  tbe  Prophets  announced  he  was  to  have  been,  all  that 
the  Evangelists  assure  us,  all  that  he  has  declared  of  himself. 


CHAPTER  IY. 

ADORATION  OF  THE  MAGI. - PURIFICATION. - FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT. - MASSACRE  OF 

THE  INNOCENTS. - RETURN  TO  NAZARETH. - JESUS  LOST  AND  FOUND  IN  THE 

TEMPLE. 

Another  sign,  just  as  plainly  foretold,  was  to  manifest  him  to 
the  Gentiles  ;  and  this  sign,  whether  it  appeared  at  the  moment  of 
his  birth,  or  a  little  before,  immediately  produced  its  effect.  For, 
( a )  “When  Jesus  was  born  in  Bethlehem  of  Juda,  in  the  days  of 
King  Herod,  behold  there  came  wise  men  (1)  from  the  East  (2)  to 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  ii.  1-12. 


(1)  We  find  the  term  Magi  used  by  the  ancient  authors  to  signify,  1.  Magicians  and 
enchanters  ;  2.  The  inhabitants  of  a  certain  district  of  Arabia  which  was  called  Magodie  ; 
3.  Wise  men  and  philosophers  of  Persia,  who  perhaps  were  called  Magi  because  there 
was  a  good  deal  of  astronomy  mixed  up  with  their  philosophy,  and  the  simplicity  of  the 
ancients  identified  astronomy  with  the  magic  art. 

The  number  of  the  Magi  who  came  to  adore  the  Saviour  is  not  recorded.  The  tradi¬ 
tionary  number  of  three,  which  is  usually  fixed  upon,  seems  to  be  grounded  upon  the 
number  of  presents  which  they  offered. 

Their  royalty  is  not  acknowledged  by  some  interpreters.  Being  commonly  credited, 
the  antiquity  of  the  idea  entitles  it  to  respect.  Yet  we  must  not  be  understood  to  mean 
that  they  were  great  and  powerful.  We  know  that  there  are  still  several  countries 
where  the  title  King  is  conferred  on  petty  potentates,  whose  sovereign  jurisdiction  only 
extends  over  two  or  three  boroughs. 

(2)  According  to  some,  they  came  from  Persia,  which  is  directly  east  of  Palestine. 
The  name  of  Magi  helps  to  support  this  view  of  the  case,  which  probably  would  have 
prevailed,  if  the  distance  of  nearly  five  hundred  leagues  from  Persia  to  Judea  did  not 
present  a  difficulty  highly  embarrassing  and  unanswerable  to  any  one  who  adopts  the 
generally  received  idea  that  the  Magi  arrived  at  Bethlehem  on  the  thirteenth  day  after  the 
birth  of  the  Saviour.  The  knowledge  of  stars  which  they  are  supposed  to  have  possess¬ 
ed,  induced  others  to  say  that  they  came  from  Chaldea,  a  country  fertile  in  astronomers,  sit¬ 
uate  northeast  of  Judea.  Finally,  the  quality  of  the  presents  they  carried  has  given  rise  to 


OS'  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


33 


CHAP,  IV.] 

Jerusalem,  saying:  Where  is  he  that  is  born  King  of  the  Jews? 
for  we  have  seen  his  star  (3)  in  the  East,  and  are  come  to  adore 
him.  King  Herod  hearing  this,  was  troubled,  and  all  Jerusalem 
with  him;  and  assembling  together  all  the  chief  priests  and  the 
scribes  of  the  people,  he  inquired  of  them  where  Christ  should  be 
born.  They  said  to  him,  In  Bethlehem  of  Juda  ;  for  so  it  is  written 
by  the  prophet  :  And  thou,  Bethlehem,  the  land  of  Juda,  art  not 
the  least  among  the  princes  of  Juda  ;  for  out  of  thee  shall  come 
forth  the  captain  that  shall  rule  my  people  Israel.  Then  Herod, 
privately  calling  the  wise  men,  learned  diligently  of  them  the  time 
of  the  star  which  appeared  to  them,  and  sending  them  into  Bethle¬ 
hem,  said  :  Go  (4),  and  diligently  inquire  after  the  child,  and  when 
you  have  found  him  bring  me  word  again,  that  I  also  may  come 
and  adore  him.  Having  heard  the  king,  they  went  their  way,” 


the  opinion  of  their  having  come  from  Arabia,  -which  is  placed  southeast  of  Judea,  from 
which  it  is  not  very  far  distant  ;  and  this  opinion  is  generally  adopted. 

(3)  We  have  nothing  but  conjecture  as  to  the  nature  of  the  star  which  appeared  to 
them,  in  what  part  of  the  heavens  they  descried  it,  and  the  manner  in  which  their  course 
was  thereby  directed.  Here  are  the  most  probable  which  have  been  made.  This  was 
not. a  real  star,  but  a  meteor  more  brilliant  than  stars  usually  are,  inasmuch  as  its  lustre 
was  not  eclipsed  by  the  brightness  of  daylight.  They  saw  the  star  over  Judea  ;  for  how 
could  it  have  made  them  think  of  the  birth  of  a  new  King  of  the  Jews,  had  they  seen  it 
over  the  country  which  they  inhabited  ;  and  could  the  prophecy  which  said,  a  star  shall 
he  horn  of  Jacob,  be  applicable  to  a  star  which  may  have  suddenly  arisen  over  Arabia? 
Placed  over  Judea,  this  star,  by  its  position  alone,  furnished  them  with  a  guide;  nor  was 
it  necessary  to  see  it  set  in  motion  to  ascertain  whither  they  should  direct  their  steps. 
Once  arrived  at  Jerusalem,  they  no  longer  saw  the  star.  If  it  were,  as  has  been  said,  in 
order  to  test  their  faith  that  God  made  the  star  disappear,  his  principal  intention  was  to 
disclose  to  the  Jews,  by  means  of  the  Magi,  the  Messiah’s  birth,  and  to  the  Magi,  by 
means  of  the  Jews,  the  spot  where  the  Messiah  should  be  born,  and  the  accordance  of 
the  prophecies  with  the  miraculous  sign  which  had  attracted  them. 

(4)  Herod  reasoned  thus  :  should  the  inquiry  be  made  in  my  name  and  by  my  people, 
mistrust  will  make  them  conceal  the  child,  whereas  they  will  be  all  eagerness  to  find 
out  the  child  for  these  good-natured  East-men,  of  whom  no  one  has  the  slightest  diffi¬ 
dence.  This  was  subtle  reasoning  ;  but  the  man  did  not  reason  when  he  ordered  the 
murder  of  the  innocents.  For  this  murder  was  useless  if  the  Messiah  were  not  born; 
and  if  the  Messiah  were  bom,  God,  who  had  promised  him  to  the  world,  could  not  allow 
him  to  be  enveloped  in  the  general  massacre.  When  Herod  was  subtle,  God  made  a 
mockery  of  his  subtlety  ;  when  he  was  irrational,  God  allowed  him  to  commit,  without 
reaping  any  fruit  to  himself,  a  crime  which  has  rendered  him  the  execration  of  all  ages. 
Ye  wise  and  mighty  of  the  world,  how  foolish,  how  weak  are  ye  when  you  dare  to  cross 
the  designs  of  the  Deity  ! 


3 


É 

#  m, 
W 


% 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


without  distrust,  and  disposed  to  satisfy  him  ;  and  “  behold  the  star 
which  they  had  seen  in  the  East  went  before  them  until  it  came 
and  stood  over  where  the  child  was.  Seeing  the  star,  they  rejoiced 
with  exceeding  great  joy,  and  entering  into  the  house  (5),  they 
found  the  child  with  Mary  his  mother  (6),  and  falling  down,  they 
adored  (7)  him.”  Afterivards  “opening  their  treasures,  they  offer 
ed  him  gifts,  gold,  frankincense,  and  myrrh  (8),  and  having  received 
an  answer  in  sleep  that  they  should  not  return  to  Herod,  they  went 
back  another  way  into  their  country.” 

That  prince  awaited  their  return  ;  and  since  he  reckoned  upon 
them,  it  seems  that  he  made  no  other  inquiries  (a),  “  when,  after  the 
days  of  her  purification,  according  to  the  law  of  Moses  (9),  were 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ii.  22-32. 


(5)  The  majority  of  the  old  writers  affirm  that  this  was  in  the  stable  of  Bethlehem; 
others  think  Mary  had  quitted  a  by-place  so  inconvenient,  and  had  taken  another  lodg¬ 
ing.  The  truth  is  not  known  ;  but  if  we  confine  ourselves  to  the  text,  we  will  find  it 
difficult  to  credit  that  what  is  called  simply  the  house  could  have  been  a  stable. 

(6)  Joseph  is  not  named,  which  gives  ground  to  the  presumption  of  his  absence;  for 
when  the  shepherds  came  to  the  manger,  and  on  the  other  occasions  when  Joseph  was 
present,  the  Evangelists  make  mention  of  him.  Those  who  are  anxious  to  give  a  reason 
for  every  thing,  say  that  God  permitted  his  absence,  lest  the  Magi  might  fancy  him  the 
father  of  Jesus  Christ.  This  idea  was  utterly  independent  of  his  presence  or  absence, 
and  must  still  have  been  prevalent  in  the  minds  of  the  Magi,  had  not  God  revealed  to 
them  that  the  child  whom  they  adored  was  the  son  of  a  virgin. 

(7)  Scripture  frequently  employs  this  term  to  signify  the  homage  rendered  to  kings  or 
personages  for  whom  we  have  a  high  respect.  In  this  passage  the  term  is  more  com¬ 
monly  taken  in  the  sense  of  adoration  properly  speaking,  because  there  is  very  little 
doubt  but  the  Magi  knew  by  a  supernatural  light  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ. 

(8)  These  presents  were  mysterious.  By  gold,  they  recognized  the  royalty  of  Jesus 
Christ  ;  by  incense,  his  divinity  ;  and  by  myrrh,  which  was  used  in  embalming  bodies, 
his  humanity  in  suffering  and  mortal  flesh.  We  shall  imitate  them,  said  a  holy  father, 
by  offering  to  God  the  gold  of  charity,  the  incense  of  prayer,  and  the  myrrh  of  mortifi¬ 
cation. 

These  were  our  first  fruits,  and  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles  commenced  by  them. 
Hence  the  unusual  joy  with  which  we  celebrate  the  feast  of  the  Epiphany. 

(9)  Here  we  should  notice  two  distinct  laws — one,  which  obliged  those  who  had  borne 
children  to  come  and  be  purified  at  the  temple  after  a  certain  number  of  days  ;  the  other, 
which  prescribed  the  offering  of  every  first-born  male  to  the  Lord.  It  may  be  asked, 
whether  both  these  laws  regard  Jesus  Christ  and  Mary?  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  God,  is 
above  every  law.  Yet,  having  voluntarily  submitted  himself  to  the  observation  of  the 
Mosaic  law,  he  could  not,  as  he  was  the  first-born,  fail  in  accomplishing  the  law  referring 


y  -  - 


\ 


CHAP.  IV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


accomplished,  she  carried  Jesus  to  Jerusalem  to  present  him  to  the 
Lord,  as  it  is  written  in  the  law  of  the  Lord,  that  every  male  open¬ 
ing  the  womb  shall  be  called  holy  to  the  Lord,  and  to  offer  a  sacri¬ 
fice,  as  it  is  written  in  the  law  of  the  Lord,  a  pair  of  turtle-doves, 
or  two  pigeons.  At  this  time  there  was  a  man  in  Jerusalem  named 
Simeon.  This  man  was  just  and  devout,  waiting  for  the  consolation 
of  Israel,  and  the  Holy  Ghost  was  in  him  :  he  had  even  received  an 
answer  from  the  Holy  Ghost  that  he  should  not  see  death  before 
he  had  seen  the  Christ  of  the  Lord.  He  came  by  the  Spirit  into 
the  temple  ;  and  when  his  parents  brought  in  the  child  Jesus,  to  do 
for  him  according  to  the  custom  of  the  law  (10),  he  took  him  into 
his  arms,  and  blessed  God,  and  said  :  Now  thou  dost  dismiss  thy 
servant,  O  Lord,  according  to  thy  word  in  peace,  because  my  eyes 
have  seen  thy  salvation,  which  thou  hast  prepared  before  the  face 
of  all  people  :  a  light  to  the  revelation  of  the  Gentiles,  and  the 
glory  of  thy  people  Israel.” 

Thus  we  see  literally  accomplished  in  this  holy  old  man  that  ex¬ 
pression  of  the  Psalmist  :  (a)  “  I  will  fill  him  with  length  of  days, 
and  I  will  show  him  the  salvation.”  But  the  favor  surpassed  the 
promise  :  for,  not  content  with  allowing  him  to  see,  the  Lord  permit¬ 
ted  him  to  clasp  his  Saviour  in  his  arms  ;  and  besides  the  consola¬ 
tion  of  Israel  which  he  expected,  he  was  moreover  gladdened  by 
the  knowledge  of  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles,  and  that  salvation 
was  thrown  open  to  all  people — a  truth  which  was  pointed  out  by 
all  the  prophets,  but  which  was  then  scarcely  known,  and  which 
the  Apostles  themselves  did  not  entirely  understand  until  some 
time  after  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

(a)  Psalms,  xc.  16. 

to  this  qualification.  The  law  of  purification  had  for  its  object  the  expiation  of  the  legal 
impurity  which  women  contracted  in  consequence  of  their  child-bearing.  Mary,  whose 
divine  parturition  had  been  purer  than  the  sunbeam,  was  not  in  the  case  contemplated 
by  the  law;  still  her  perfect  purity  was  an  unknown  mystery,  and  the  time  was  not  yet 
come  to  reveal  it.  Wherefore  she  could  not  dispense  herself  from  the  common  obliga¬ 
tion,  without  causing  herself  to  be  regarded  as  a  prevaricator,  that  is  to  say,  without  giv¬ 
ing  scandal.  Thenceforth  did  it  not  become  an  obligation  on  charitable  grounds  ? 

(10)  That  is  to  say,  offer  him  to  the  Lord,  and  redeem  him  afterwards,  by  giving  five 
shekels  of  silver,  as  is  marked  out  in  the  18th  chapter  of  the  book  of  Numbers  ;  for  the 
offering  of  the  lamb  or  of  the  turtles  was  only  for  the  purification  of  the  mother. 


■3- 


V/i 


WA 


36 


THE  HISTORY  OP  THE  LIEE 


[part ‘I. 


“  His  father  and  mother  were  wondering  at  those  things  which 
were  spoken  concerning  him.  Simeon  blessed  them”  both.  But  en 
lightened  as  he  was  on  the  difference  he  should  make  between  her 
who  was  really  the  mother,  and  him  who,  merely  in  public  opinion, 
was  the  father,  he  said,  speaking  only  to  Mary,  his  mother  :  («)  “  Be¬ 
hold,  this  child  is  set  for  the  ruin  and  for  the  resurrection  of  many 
in  Israel,  and  for  a  sign  which  shall  be  contradicted  (11).  And  thy 
own  soul,”  he  adds  to  her,  “  a  sword  shall  pierce,  that  out  of  many 
hearts  thoughts  may  be  revealed.” 

He  also  prophesied  the  passion  of  the  Saviour.  God  wished  that 
this  awful  futurity  should  be  ever  present  to  the  mind  of  Mary  dur¬ 
ing  the  entire  course  of  her  Son’s  life.  The  object  was  to  prepare  her 
for  the  catastrophe,  and  also  to  temper  the  joy  of  possessing  such  a 
treasure.  Had  this  joy  been  utterly  unalloyed,  she  would  not  have 
acquired  sufficient  merit;  her  consent  to  the  sacrifice  of  her  son 
would  only  have  been,  like  that  of  Abraham,  the  merit  of  one  day, 
had  she  not,  by  anticipating  the  intelligence,  been  furnished  with 
an  occasion  to  make  that  sacrifice  every  day  of  her  life,  nay,  per¬ 
haps  at  every  moment  of  the  days  and  years  which  preceded  the 
event. 

( b )  “  The  Lord  saith  :  In  the  last  days  I  will  pour  out  of  my 
spirit  upon  all  flesh,  your  sons  and  your  daughters  shall  prophesy.” 
This  prediction,  which  was  entirely  accomplished  after  the  descent 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  began  from  this  day  to  be  verified.  God  included 
both  sexes  in  the  glorious  testimony  which  he  designed  should  be 
rendered  to  his  son.  With  the  holy  old  man  Simeon  he  associated 
( c )  “  a  prophetess  called  Anna.  She  was  the  daughter  of  Phanuel, 
of  the  tribe  of  Aser.  She  was  far  advanced  in  years,  and  had  lived 
with  her  husband  seven  years  from  her  virginity.  And  she  was  a 
widow  until  fourscore  and  four  years,  who  departed  not  from  the 
temple,  by  fastings  and  prayers  serving  night  and  day.  Coming 
in  at  the  saine  hour,  she  gave  praise  to  the  Lord,  and  spoke 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ii.  33-35.  (6)  Acts,  ii.  17.  ( c )  St.  Luke,  ii.  36-39.  . 


(11)  Jesus  Christ  always  had  true  and  false  disciples.  In  the  calm  of  peace  it  is  hardly 
possible  to  distinguish  between  them,  but  the  flail  of  persecution  separates  in  a  sensible 
manner  the  grain  from  the  chaff, 


CHAP.  IV.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


f 


\ 


\\ 


of  liim  to  all  that  looked  for  the  redemption  of  Israel  (12).  Final¬ 
ly,  when  Joseph  and  Mary  had  performed  all  things  according  to 
the  law  of  the  Lord,  they  returned  into  Galilee,  to  their  own  city 
Nazareth.” 

Scarcely  had  they  arrived  there  (13),  when  (a)  “an  angel  of  the 
Lord  appeared  in  sleep  to  Joseph  (14),  saying  :  Arise,  take  the  child 
and  his  mother,  fly  into  Egypt,  and  be  there  until  I  shall  tell  thee  : 
for  it  will  come  to  pass  that  Herod  will  seek  the  child  to  destroy 
him.  Joseph  arose,  and  took  the  child  and  his  mother  by  night  (15), 
and  retired  into  Egypt,  and  (16)  he  was  there  until  the  death  of 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  ii.  13-23. 


(12)  In  a  city  so  large  and  so  populous  as  Jerusalem,  at  a  period  when  those  who 
were  in  charge  of  police  regulations  were  neither  as  intelligent  as  at  present  in  every 
matter  which  concerned  government,  nor  apparently  as  exact  in  the  reports  which  they 
made,  it  was  possible,  nay,  very  probable,  that  Herod  knew  nothing  whatever  of  what 
had  occurred  at  the  temple,  or  that  he  did  not  receive  the  information  until  the  holy 
family  had  already  departed  for  Nazareth,  whilst  he  thought  them  returned  to  Bethle¬ 
hem.  What  fortifies  this  conjecture  is  the  certainty  that  Herod  only  ascertained  from 
the  Magi  the  birth  of  the  Saviour,  although  bruited  about  with  such  notoriety  at  Beth¬ 
lehem  and  all  the  surrounding  country.  This  remark  helps  to  make  us  comprehend 
how  it  is  that  the  purification  is  found  placed  between  the  adoration  of  the  Magi  and  the 
flight  into  Egypt,  and  goes  to  support  the  common  opinion,  which  must  not  be  departed 
from  except  when  Ave  are  coerced  by  evident  reasons. 

(13)  According  to  this  arrangement,  we  should  admit  that  the  angel  appeared  to  Jo¬ 
seph  at  Nazareth,  and  there  gave  him  the  order  to  fly  into  Egypt.  Still  the  recital  of 
Saint  Matthew  leads  us  naturally  to  believe  that  this  apparition  took  place  at  Bethlehem. 
This  raises  a  very  considerable  difficulty,  but  not  greater  than  those  which  are  met  in  the 
different  systems  imagined  by  the  interpreters.  We  have  hazarded  one,  Avhich  shall  ap¬ 
pear  in  the  note  on  the  return  of  Saint  Joseph  from  Egypt  to  Nazareth.  v 

(14)  The  revelation  was  made  to  Joseph.  Joseph  orders  and  directs  the  journey. 
This  was  so  because  God  had  established  him  head  of  the  family  :  authority  is  attached 
to  station,  not  to  science  and  sanctity,  Avhich  Avere  far  superior  in  Jesus  and  in  Mary. 

(15)  The  conduct  pursued  by  Saint  Joseph  in  this  circumstance  has  ever  been  regard¬ 
ed  the  model  of  a  perfect  obedience.  His  Avas  simple,  and  without  reasoning.  He  did 
not  allege  that,  in  order  to  secure  his  son  from  the  fury  of  Herod,  God  had  an  infinity 
of  means  less  painful  to  the  child,  to  the  mother,  and  to  himself.  His  obedience  Avas 
prompt,  and  Avithout  reluctance  :  having  had  notice  at  night,  he  did  not  delay  his  de 
parture  until  the  light  of  morning  began  to  break.  Generous  and  full  of  confidence  in 
Providence,  he  starts  Avithout  preparation  or  provisions. 

He  was  poor  in  earthly  goods,  yet,  possessing  Jesus  and  Mary,  Iioav  rich  ! 

(16)  We  do  not  exactly  knoAv  Avhat  time  Jesus  Christ  passed  in  Egypt.  FolloAving 
the  most  authorized  calculations,  he  cannot  possibly  have  dwelt  there  less  than  foui 


.n  - . 


38  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART- 1. 

Herod;  that  it  might  be  fulfilled  which  the  Lord  spoke  by  the 
prophet,  saying  :  Out  of  Egypt  (17)  have  I  called  my  son.  Herod, 
perceiving  that  he  was  deluded  by  the  wise  men,  was  exceeding 
angry  ;  and  sending,  killed  all  the  men-children  that  were  in  Beth¬ 
lehem,  and  in  all  the  borders  thereof,  from  two  years  old  and  under, 
according  to  the  time  which  he  had  diligently  inquired  of  the  wise 
men.  Then  was  fulfilled  that  which  was  spoken  by  Jeremias  the 
prophet,  saying  :  A  voice  in  Kama  was  heard,  lamentation,  and  great 
mourning  :  Rachel  bewailing  her  children,  and  would  not  be  com 
forted,  because  they  are  not.  When  Herod  was  dead,  behold,  an 
angel  of  the  Lord  appeared  in  sleep  to  Joseph  in  Egypt,  saying: 
Arise,  and  take  the  child  and  his  mother,  and  go  into  the  land  of 
Israel,  for  they  are  dead  that  sought  the  life  of  the  child.  He  arose, 
took  the  child,  and  came  into  the  land  of  Israel.  But,  hearing  that 
Archelaus  reigned  in  Judea,  in  the  room  of  Herod  his  father,  he 
was  afraid  to  go  thither  ;  and  being  warned  in  sleep,  retired  into 
the  quarters  of  Galilee,  and  dwelt  in  a  city  called  Nazareth  (18)  : 


years  nor  more  than  seven.  We  must  regard  as  apociyphal  the  statements  of  miracles 
wrought  there  by  him.  One  alone  is  founded  on  a  tradition  rendered  respectable  by  its 
antiquity.  Yet  there  is  no  clear  evidence  of  this  tradition  resting  upon  any  historical 
monument  ;  and  it  may,  indeed,  have  no  other  foundation  than  this  prophecy  of  Isaiah, 
which  several  interpreters  have  thought  applicable  to  other  times  and  other  events  :  Th» 
Lord  shall  mount  upon  a  slight  cloud,  and  he  shall  enter  into  Egypt,  and  the  idols  of 
Egypt  shall  be  shctken  before  his  face. 

(1*7)  These  words  are  read  in  Osee,  chap,  ii.,  v.  1.  The  prophet  spoke  of  the  depart¬ 
ure  from  Egypt,  when  God  broke  the  fetters  of  his  people,  whom  he  here  calls  his  son, 
to  mark  how  much  dearer  to  him  this  was  than  all  other  people.  The  name  of  son  is  so 
inapplicable  to  this  people,  and  so  very  applicable  to  Jesus  Christ,  that  we  plainly  see 
that  this  text  can  be  applied  to  Jesus  Christ  alone,  in  its  natural  and  literal  meaning. 

The  entire  ancient  Testament  is  figurative  of  the  new.  What  was  greater  in  the  first 
than  the  captivity  of  the  people  of  God  in  Egypt,  and  their  miraculous  delivery  ?  What 
more  apparently  inconsiderable  in  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ  than  the  particular  spot  whither 
he  retires  to  screen  himself  from  the  pursuit  of  Herod  ?  Still  the  first  was  merely  a  fig¬ 
ure  of  the  second.  On  the  other  side,  what  more  interesting  in  the  life  of  J esus  Christ 
than  his  passion,  and  every  thing  connected  with  the  same  ?  and  in  the  eating  of  the 
Pascal  lamb,  what  less  considerable  than  the  prohibition  of  breaking  the  bones  ?  Yet 
this  observance,  so  trifling  if  considered  by  itself  alone,  was  prophetic  and  figurative  of 
one  of  the  principal  circumstances  of  our  Saviour’s  passion. 

(18)  Should  not  Joseph,  of  his  own  accord,  and  without  admonition  from  the  angel, 
have  returned  hack  to  Nazareth,  supposing  he  had  left  this  city  to  go  into  Egypt?  He 
had  there  his  house,  his  furniture,  with  all  the  implements  of  his  trade,  which  he  might 


j 

1 

’  '  ■  i 

1 

(  'n tv 

idj  -- 

'/•)  \VS 


CHAP.  IV.]  OF  OUR  LOKD  JESUS  CHEIST.  -  39 

that  it  might  he  fulfilled  which  was  said  by  the  prophets  :  He  shall 
be  called  a  Nazarite.” 

(a)  “  Meantime  the  child  full  of  wisdom  grew  and  waxed  strong, 
and  the  grace  of  God  was  in  him.  His  parents  went  every  year  to 
Jerusalem  at  the  solemn  day  of  the  pasch.  And  when  he  was  twelve 
years  old,  they  going  up  unto  Jerusalem  according  to  the  custom 
of  the  feast,  having  fulfilled  the  days,  when  they  returned,  the  child 
Jesus  remained  in  Jerusalem,  and  his  parents  knew  it  not.  Think¬ 
ing  that  he  was  in  the  company,  they  came  a  day’s  journey,  and 
sought  him  among  their  kinsfolks  and  acquaintances  ;  not  finding 
him,  they  returned  into  Jerusalem  seeking  him.  After  three  days 
they  found  him  in  the  temple  sitting  in  the  midst  of  the  doctors, 
hearing  them  and  asking  them  questions.  And  all  that  heard  him 
were  astonished  at  his  wisdom  and  his  answers.  Seeing  him  they 
wondered,  and  his  mother  said  to  him  :  Son,  why  hast  thou  done 
so  to  us  ?  behold,  thy  father  and  I  have  sought  thee  sorrowing. 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ii.  40-52. 


expect  to  find  there.  Or  if  Joseph  were  to  have  established  himself  elsewhere  than  at 
Nazareth,  where  else  could  that  be  than  at  Bethlehem,  whence  he  originated,  and  where 
he  might  presume  that  God,  who  made  his  son  be  there  born,  should  wish  him  to  be 
there  educated  ;  the  more  so,  inasmuch  as  the  birth  of  the  Messiah  at  Bethlehem,  which 
would  be  better  known  if  he  continued  to  dwell  there,  was  one  of  the  marks  that  should 
serve  to  make  him  known.  This  observation  led  us  to  fancy  an  arrangement  differing 
from  what  has  just  been  seen.  After  the  purification,  which  must  be  placed  before  the 
Epiphany,  Joseph  returns  with  Mary  and  the  infant  to  Nazareth,  as  stated  by  Saint  Luke  ; 
but  he  only  returns  there  to  settle  his  affairs,  and  to  have  his  effects  brought  to  Bethle¬ 
hem,  where  he  was  going  to  establish  himself  and  his  family.  The  Magi  arrive,  and  find 
at  Bethlehem  the  infant  and  his  mother  ;  not  a  few  days,  but  several  months  after  his  birth, 
as  many  interpreters  have  thought.  For  it  struck  them,  that  the  order  given  by  Herod, 
to  kill  all  male  children  in  Bethlehem  and  the  environs,  from  two  years  old  and  under,  ac¬ 
cording  to  the  time  which  he  had  diligently  inquired  of  the  wise  men,  could  not  be  other¬ 
wise  explained.  Thus  every  thing  is  arranged,  and  all  harmonized.  The  purification  took 
place  after  the  forty  days  prescribed  by  the  law  of  Moses  ;  the  holy  family  return  immedi¬ 
ately  to  Nazareth,  conformably  to  Saint  Luke’s  recital,  and  at  Bethlehem,  as  Saint  Mat¬ 
thew  states,  directly  after  the  departure  of  the  Magi,  Joseph  receives-  orders  to  fly  into 
Egypt.  For  this  view,  the  supposition  of  the  establishment  of  the  holy  family  at  Bethle¬ 
hem  is  quite  enough — a  supposition  the  more  likely,  inasmuch  as  Joseph,  on  his  return 
from  Egypt,  would  naturally,  and  of  his  own  accord,  return  to  the  spot  where  he  was 
established  before  his  departure.  Yet  as  all  this  is  only  conjecture,  I  did  not  think  it  a 
sufficient  reason  to  change  the  common  arrangement. 


40 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

How  is  it  that  you  sought  me  ?  said  he  to  them  ;  did  you  not  know 
that  I  must  be  about  my  Father’s  business  (19)?  And  they  under¬ 
stood  not  the  word  that  he  spoke  unto  them.  He  then  went  down 
with  them,  and  came  to  Nazareth,  and  was  subject  to  them  (20). 
As  'to  his  mother ,  she  kept  all  these  words  in  her  heart  (21).  And  J e- 
sus  advanced  in  wisdom  and  age  and  grace  with  God  and  man  (22).” 


CHAPTER  V. 

MANIFESTATION  OF  JOHN  THE  BAPTIST  AND  HIS  PREACHING. - BAPTISM  OF  JESUS 

CHRIST. - FASTING  AND  TEMPTATION  OF  JESUS  CHRIST  IN  THE  DESERT. - TESTIMO¬ 
NY  OF  JOHN  THE  BAPTIST. - ANDREW  AND  PETER  CALLED  FOR  THE  FIRST  TIME. - 

VOCATION  OF  PHILIP  AND  NATHANIEL. 

Jesus  thus  dwelt  concealed  until  nearly  his  thirtieth  year.  His 
precursor  being  six  months  older  than  he,  might  have  completed 
that  term.  We.  have  seen  that  John,  from  his  infancy,  inhabited 
the  desert,  whither  divine  inspiration  had  conducted  him.  Des¬ 
tined  for  a  ministry  the  most  sublime  to  which  mortal  man  had  yet 
been  called,  God  disposed  him  for  it  by  retirement  and  austerity  of 


(19)  The  will  of  the  Heavenly  Father  should  be  preferred  to  all  human  considerations 
and  to  all  the  ties  of  blood.  The  apparent  rigor  which  Jesus  Christ  here  displays  might 
be  designed  to  impress  us  with  this  great  lesson.  If  to  Mary  a  subject  of  mortification, 
she  was  well  indemnified  for  this  moment  by  thirty  years  of  the  most  tender  and  sub¬ 
missive  respect. 

(20)  These  words  comprise  the  history  of  thirty  years  of  the  most  precious  of  all  lives. 
Rejoice,  ye  humble  who  cherish  obscurity,  and  exult  in  your  lowliness. 

(21)  Mary  did  not  at  first  conceive  his  meaning,  hut  she  treasured  up  the  saying  in 
her  memory.  It  is  written  that  she  kept  all  these  words  in  her  heart  :  undoubtedly  she 
succeeded  in  getting  at  their  meaning.  She  was  led  to  understand  them  by  meditation  ; 
by  what  other  means  can  we  venture  to  hope  for  proper  understanding  ? 

(22)  All  the  treasures  of  grace,  as  well  as  those  of  wisdom  and  science,  were  shut  up  in 
Jesus  Christ,  so  as  to  be  concealed.  As  he  advanced  in.  years  he  disclosed  them  in  a 
way  proportioned  to  the  age  he  attained.  The  indications  of  them  he  gave  at  twenty 
years  of  age  were,  therefore,  as  different  from  those  he  evinced  at  twelve  years  of  age, 
as  the  difference  which  exists  between  both  these  ages.  The  saying  here,  he  advanced 
in  wisdom,  and  age,  conveys  both  these  meanings. 


life,  (a)  “  He  had  his  garment  of  camel’s  hair,  a  leathern  girdle 
about  his  loins,  and  his  meat  was  locusts  (1)  and  wild  honey.”  Thus 
he  awaited,  and  no  doubt  he  hastened  by  his  aspirations  the  day  of 
his  manifestation,  which  was  to  be,  as  it  were,  the  dawn  of  the  great 
luminary  that  was  about  to  enlighten  the  world.  This  moment  so 
longed  after  arrived,  and  whilst  heaven  and  earth  were  in  expecta¬ 
tion  of  the  wonders  which  God  was  going  to  bring  about,  at  last 
(h)  “  in  the  fifteenth  year  of  the  reign  of  Tiberius  Cesar,  Pontius 
Pilate  being  governor  of  Judea,  and  Herod  being  tetrarch  of  Gali¬ 
lee,  and  Philip  his  brother  tetrarch  of  Iturea  and  the  country  of 
Trachonitis,  and  Lysanias  tetrarch  of  Abilina,  under  the  high  priests 
Annas  and  Caiphas  (2),  the  word  of  the  Lord  was  made  unto  John, 
the  son  of  Zachary,  in  the  desert,  (c)  as  it  is  written  in  Isaias  the 
prophet  :  I  send  my  angel  before  thy  face,  who  shall  prepare  the 
way  before  thee.  John  commenced ,  therefore ,  in  the  desert  of  Ju¬ 
dea,  and  ( d )  he  came  into  all  the  country  about  the  Jordan  bap¬ 
tizing  (3)  and  preaching  the  baptism  ( e )  of  penance  for  the  remis, 
sion  of  sins,  saying  :  Do  penance  ;  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at 
hand  (4).  For  this  is  he  that  was  spoken  of  by  Isaias  the  prophet,  say¬ 
ing  :  A  voice  shall  be  heard  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness  :  (/)  Pre- 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  iii.  4. 

(b)  St.  Luke,  iii.  1,  2. 

(c)  St.  Mark,  i.  2-4. 


(d)  St.  Luke,  iii.  3. 

(e)  St.  Mark,  i.  4  ;  St.  Matt.  iii.  2,  3. 
(/)  St.  Luke,  iii.  3,  5,  6. 


(1)  Pliny  and  other  ancient  authors' speak  of  a  species  of  locusts  which  the  lower  or¬ 
ders  among  Eastern  nations  used  for  food. 

(2)  Annas  and  Caiphas  his  son-in-law  exercised  by  turns  the  sovereign  pontificate,  each 
during  one  year,  by  an  agreement  seemingly  approved  of  by  the  Romans,  who  at  that 
time  had  the  control  of  every  thing  in  Judea.  This  explanation  is  confirmed  by  the 
expression  of  Saint  John  when  speaking  of  Caiphas,  who  was  the  high  priest  of  that  year, 
ch.  xviii.  ver.  13. 

(3)  The  baptism  of  John  was  a  religious  ceremony  by  which  a  profession  of  penance 
was  embraced.  It  did  not  confer  the  remission  of  sins  ;  but  disposed  towards  the  re¬ 
mission  by  penance  which  should  ensue,  and  which  became  the  next  disposition  to  the 
baptism  of  Jesus  Christ,  in  which  alone  is  to  be  found  the  remission  of  sins.  John’s  bap¬ 
tism  preceded  penance  ;  the  baptism  of  Jesus  Christ  followed  penance.  Do  penance,  and 
be  baptized  every  one  of  you — Peter,  Acts  ii.  38.  The  first,  properly  speaking,  belonged 
neither  to  the  ancient  law  nor  the  new  law  ;  a  medium  between  both  ;  this  baptism  par¬ 
ticipated  of  both  one  and  the  other,  as  twilight  participates  of  both  day  and  night. 

(4)  Heaven,  closed  until  this  hour,  is  now  to  be  thrown  open.  Saint  John  begins  by 
disabusing  the  Jews  of  the  prejudice  about  a  temporal  kingdom. 


I 


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pare  ye  the  way  of  the  Lord,  make  straight  his  paths  (5).  Every 
valley  shall  be  filled,  every  mountain  and  hill  shall  be  brought 
low,  the  crooked  shall  be  made  straight,  and  the  rough  ways  plain  ; 
and  all  flesh  shall  see  the  salvation  of  God.” 

When  this  first  preaching  was  noised  about,  the  people  thronged 
in  crowds  ;  (a)  “  then  went  out  ( b )  to  him  Jerusalem,  and  all  Judea, 
and  all  the  country  about  J ordan,  and  were  baptized  by  him  in  the 
(c)  Jordan,  confessing  their  sins.  He  said  to  the  multitudes,  and 
many  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  coming  to  his  baptism  with 
the  people  :  Ye  brood  of  vipers,  who  hath  shewed  you  to  flee  from 
the  wrath  to  come  ?  Bring  forth,  therefore,  fruit  worthy  of  penance, 
and  think  not  to  say  within  yourselves:  We  have  Abraham  for  our 
father  ;  for,  I  tell  you,  that  God  is  able  of  these  stones  to  raise  up 
children  to  Abraham  (6).  The  axe  is  now  laid  to  the  root  of  the 
trees  ;  every  tree,  therefore,  that  doth  not  yield  good  fruit,  shall  be 
cut  down  and  cast  into  the  fire.  (cT)  And  the  people  asked  him  : 
What  then  shall  we  do  ?  He,  answering,  said  to  them  :  Let  he  that 
hath  two  coats  give  to  him  that  hath  none,  and  he  that  hath  meat, 
let  him  do  in  like  manner  (7).  Publicans  also  came  to  be  baptized, 
and  said  to  him  :  Master,  what  shall  we  do  ?  Do  nothing  more 
than  that  which  is  appointed  you,  said  he  to  them  (8).  Soldiers 
also  asked  him  :  And  what  shall  we  do  ?  He  said  to  them  :  Do 
violence  to  no  man,  neither  calumniate  any  man,  and  be  content 
with  your  pay.” 

Yet  as  the  people  were  of  opinion,  “and  all  were  thinking  in 


(а)  St.  Matthew,  iii.  5,  6. 

(б)  St.  Luke,  iii.  7. 


(c)  St.  Matthew,  iii.  7-10. 

(d)  St.  Luke,  iii.  10-16. 


(5)  A  metaphorical  expression,  taken  from  the  custom  of  levelling  and  even  decorating 
the  roads  over  which  kings  were  to  pass. 

(6)  The  true  children  of  Abraham  are  the  imitators  and  inheritors  of  his  faith,  and 
these  God  could  produce  from  other  sources.  The  vocation  of  the  Gentiles  is  insinuated 
by  these  words. 

(7 )  Each  profession  has  its  particular  duties  ;  almsgiving  is  a  universal  precept  obliga¬ 
tory  on  all  who  can  fulfil  it. 

(8)  He  does  not  mean  to  say  this  is  enough  for  salvation  ;  but  he  spoke  with  refer¬ 
ence  to  the  profession  of  those  who  asked  advice.  Moreover,  Saint  John  might  think 
they  would  easily  abstain  from  other  sins,  if  they  abstained  from  the  one  to  which  they 
were  most  subject. 


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CHAP.  V.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


48 


their  hearts  of  John,  that  perhaps  he  might  be  the  Christ,  John 
Ça)  said  to  all  :  I  indeed  baptize  you  in  water  unto  penance  (9), 
but  he  that  shall  come  after  me  is  mightier  than  I,  whose  shoes  I 
am  not  worthy  to  bear.”  No,  said  he,  impressed  with  the  great¬ 
ness  of  him  whose  arrival  he  announced — no,  (&)“the  latchet  of 
whose  shoes  I  am  not  worthy  to  loose  ;  he  shall  ( c )  baptize  you  in 
the  Holy  Ghost  and  in  fire  (10).  Whose  fan  is  in  his  hand;  he 
will  purge  his  floor,  and  will  gather  the  wheat  into  his  barn,  but 
the  chaff  he  ( d )  will  burn  with  unquenchable  fire.  And  exhorting, 
he  preached  many  other  things  to  the  people.” 

( e )  “  He  that  knew  no  sin,  for  us  he  hath  made  sin  :”  having  taken 
upon  himself  the  entire  debt,  Jesus  was  willing  to  mingle  in  the  sin¬ 
ful  throng,  and  enter  along  with  them  into  the  career  of  penance. 
Çf)  “He  came  in  those  days  from  Nazareth  of  Galilee  unto  John, 
to  be  baptized  by  him  in  the  Jordan.  But  John  stayed  him,  say¬ 
ing,  I  ought  to  be  baptized  by  thee,  and  comest  thou  to  me  !  Jesus 
answered  to  him:  Suffer  it  to  be  so  Çg)  now,  for  so  it  becometh  us 
to  fulfil  all  justice.  Then  he  suffered  him  (11),  and  Jesus  was  bap¬ 
tized  by  John  in  the  Jordan.  And  forthwith  coming  up  out  of  the 
water,  he  saw  the  heavens  opened,  and  the  Spirit  as  a  dove  descend¬ 
ing,  and  remaining'  on  him,  and  there  came  a  voice  from  heaven 
which  said:  Thou  art  my  beloved  Son  (12),  in  thee  I  am  well 
pleased.”  We  have  already  said  that  Çh)li  Jesus  was”  then  “be- 


'h-  d 


.-fonfr  • 


(а)  St.  Matthew,  iii.  11. 

(б)  St.  Mark,  i.  7. 

(c)  St.  Matthew,  iii.  11,  12. 

(d)  St.  Luke,  iii.  17. 


(e)  II.  Corinthians,  v.  21. 

(/)  St.  Mark,  i.  9  ;  St.  Matthew,  iii.  13. 
(</)  St.  Mark,  i.  9,  10,  11  ;  St.  Luke,  iii. 
21,  22  ;  St.  Matthew,  iii.  16. 


(h)  St.  Luke,  iii.  23. 


(9)  An  inordinate  attachment  to  a  preacher  or  to  a  spiritual  director  has  been  more 
than  once  an  occasion  of  error  and  of  heresy. 

(10)  This  is  the  fire  which  descended  upon  the  apostles  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  the 
same  by  which  the  Holy  Ghost  continues  to  purify  the  hearts  of  the  truly  faithful. 

(11)  True  humility  at  first  resists  God  himself,  when  he  wishes  elevation  to  honorable 
ministers  ;  yet  should  God  persist  in  wishing,  humility  obeys,  because,  if  not  obedient,  it 
would  no  longer  be  true  humility. 

(12)  ’Tis  thus  the  expression  is  reported  by  Saint  Mark  and  Saint  Luke.  Saint  Mat¬ 
thew  makes  the  voice  say,  this  is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well  pleased.  The  lat¬ 
ter  likely  rendered  the  sense,  and  the  other  two  the  very  words. 


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ginning  about  the  age  of  thirty  years,  being  (as  it  was  supposed) 
the  son  of  Joseph.” 

The  baptism  which  Jesus  just  received  was  not  a  ceremony  of  no 
consequence  to  him  ;  it  was,  as  has  been  said,  a  profession  of  pen¬ 
ance.  He  wished  to  exercise  its  rigors  upon  himself,  and  show  be¬ 
forehand  to  his  Church  the  penance  which  she  should  prescribe  for 
her  children  in  all  future  ages,  (a)  “He  returned  from  the  Jordan, 
full  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  was  led  by  the  Spirit  into  the  desert, 
to  be  tempted  by  the  devil  (13).  He  was  there  for  the  space  of 
forty  days  and  forty  nights,  during  which  he  ate  nothing.  He  was 
tempted  by  Satan  (14);  he  lived  with  beasts.  When  those  days 
were  ended,  he  was  hungry.  Then  the  tempter  coming,  said  to 
him  :  If  thou  be  the  Son  of  God,  command  that  these  stones  be 
made  bread.  Jesus  answered  him:  It  is  written  ( Deut .  viii.  3): 
That  man  liveth  not  by  bread  alone  (15),  but  by  every  word  that 
proceedeth  from  the  mouth  of  God.”  He  avails  himself  of  Scrip¬ 
ture  to  repel  the  enemy,  and  the  text  which  he  employs  expresses 
the  confidence  in  Providence  which  we  ought  to  entertain  in  all  the 
emergencies  of  life.  Satan,  on  his  side,  endeavored  to  turn  these 
same  weapons  against  the  Son  of  God  ;  and  after  having  attacked 
him  at  what  he  thought  to  be  his  weak  point,  that  is  to  say,  the 
hunger  which  he  was  then  enduring,  he  attacked  him  in  his  strong¬ 
hold,  that  is  to  say,  by  confidence  in  God,  and  by  Scripture.  ( h )  “He 


(a)  St.  Luke,  iv.  1,  2  ;  St.  Matthew, 
iv.  1,  3,  4  ;  St.  Mark,  i.  13. 


( b )  St.  Matthew,  iv.  5  ;  St.  Luke,  iv. 
10. 


(13)  He  who  was  the  author  of  all  strength  might  advance  to  meet  the  enemy:  those 
who  arc  weakness  itself  cannot  do  better  than  shun  the  encounter.  Jesus  is  here  merely 
the  model  of  resistance,  when  we  cannot  avoid  the  combat. 

(14)  The  expression  is  taken  from  Saint  Mark,  and  is  usually  understood  to  mean  temp¬ 
tations  which  Jesus  Christ  endured  after  his  fast.  Some  understand  this  to  mean  a  se¬ 
ries  of  temptations  which  lasted  during  forty  days,  three  of  which  are  reported  and  con¬ 
stituted  the  last  and  most  vigorous  assault. 

(15)  God  does  not  require  bread  in  order  to  support  man;  he  can  do  so  with  any 
thing,  since  by  manna,  which  was  only  a  species  of  condensed  dew,  he  nourished  an  en¬ 
tire  people  during  forty  years.  For  it  was  written,  with  reference  to  manna,  Deuterono¬ 
my,  viii.  3  :  “  He  afflicted  thee  with  want,  and  gave  thee  manna  for  thy  food,  which  nei¬ 
ther  thou  nor  thy  fathers  knew  :  to  shew  that  not  in  bread  alone  doth  man  live,  but  in 
every  word  that  proceedeth  from  the  mouth  of  God.” 


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OP  O  UE  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


took  liim  up  into  the  lioly  city  ;  set  kirn  upon  the  pinnacle  of  the 
temple,  and  said  to  him  :  If  thou  be  the  Son  of  God,  cast  thyself 
down;  for  it  is  written  (Psalm  xc.):  He  hath  given  his  angels 
charge  over  thee,  that  they  keep  thee,  and  in  their  hands  they  shall 
bear  thee  up,  lest  thou  dash  thy  foot  against  a  stone.  It  is- written 
again,  said  Jesus  to  him  (Peut,  vi.)  :  Thou  shalt  not  tempt  the  Lord 
thy  God.” 

After  this  reply  Satan  thought  there  was  nothing  now  left  for 
him  but  one  last  effort  ;  he  set  in  motion  the  most  violent  of  all  temp¬ 
tations,  or  rather  all  temptations  concentrated  into  one.  ( a )  “  He 
took  Jesus  up  into  a  very  high  mountain,  and  shewed  to  him  in  a 
moment  of  time  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world,  and  the  glory  of 
them  (16),  and  said  to  him  :  To  thee  will  I  give  all  these  things,  all 
this  power,  and  glory  ;  for  they  are  delivered  to  me,  and  to  whom 
I  will  I  give  them  (1 7);  if  thou,  therefore,  wilt  adore  me,  all  shall 
be  thine.  Jesus  answered  to  him:  Begone,  Satan  (18),  for  it  is 
written  thou  shalt  adore  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  him  only  shalt 
thou  serve.  Then  the  devil,  when  all  the  temptation  was  ended, 
departed  from  him  for  a  time  (19),  and  behold  an  angel  came  and 
ministered  to  him  (20).” 

It  seems  that  when  quitting  the  desert  Jesus  passed  the  Jordan, 
and  that  John  had  also  crossed  over  to  the  other  side  of  the  river. 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  iv.  8-11  ;  St.  Luke,  iv.  5-8,  13. 


(16)  This  expression  has  induced  the  opinion  that  Satan,  clever  in  the  art  of  trickery, 
started  up  before  him,  as  it  were  in  a  miniature,  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world,  with 
every  thing  connected  with  them  most  capable  of  dazzling  the  eyes  and  tempting  to 
covetousness. 

(17)  This  feature  alone  was  enough  to  unmask  the  father  of  lies.  Perfidious,  he 
promises  every  thing,  yet  disposes  of  nothing.  Still,  if  in  point  of  fact  he  did  dispose 
of  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world,  give  them  he  would  for  a  single  soul  :  he  knows  then- 
value  better  than  we  do. 

(18)  This  is  the  proper  tone  for  an  answer  to  the  proposal  of  crime. 

(19)  Whether  it  be  that  he  in  person  attacked  Jesus  Christ  again,  or  whether  this  be 
said  of  the  persecutions  which  Jesus  Christ  had  to  suffer  from  those  who,  as  we  have  said, 
were  in  this  point  ministers  of  Satan.  F  or  Satan  and  his  agents  are  never  at  rest  ;  and 
this  is,  perhaps,  the  surest  mark  by  which  we  may  recognize  them. 

(20)  This  repast  is  the  image  of  the  feast  which  God  serves  up  to  the  soul  which  has 
vanquished  the  enemy.  The  moment  which  follows  the  victory  over  a  great  temptation 
is  the  most  delicious  of  all  moments. 


v 

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X  Cl, 
«M.  ,v% 


.V 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[pari  I. 


Perhaps  John  was  forced  to  do  so  by  the  persecutions  which  he  en¬ 
dured  from  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  whom  he  had  not  spared  in 
his  preaching.  For  the  manner  in  which  Jesus  Christ  speaks  of 
him  on  more  than  one  occasion  leaves  no  room  to  doubt  that  the 
holy  precursor  encountered  much  persecution,  which  we  must  not 
confound  with  what  he  subsequently  suffered  on  the  part  of  Herod 
Still,  whether  they  had  changed  their  sentiments  with  regard  to 
him — whether  they  wished  to  undeceive  the  people  already  prepos¬ 
sessed  with  the  idea  that  John  might  be  the  Messiah — or  because 
of  the  testimony  he  had  rendered  to  another,  they  sought  to  inter¬ 
dict  his  preaching  and  baptism,  as  having  no  title  to  authorize  him 
in  his  functions  ;  or  finally,  supposing  he  should  declare  himself  the 
Messiah,  to  make  the  declaration  a  crime  and  a  cause  of  condemna¬ 
tion,  as  they  did  afterwards  to  Jesus  Christ  ;  whatever  was  their 
motive,  (»)“they  sent  from  Jerusalem  priests  and  Levites  to  him 
to  ask  him  :  Who  art  thou  ?  He  confessed,  and  did  not  deny,  and 
he  confessed  :  I  am  not  the  Christ.  What,  then,  they  asked  him, 
art  thou  Elias  (21)?  He  said:  I  am  not.  Art  thou  a  prophet? 
No,  he  answered.  They  said,  therefore,  unto  him  :  Who  art  thou, 
that  we  may  give  an  answer  to  them  that  sent  us  ?  what  sayest  thou 
of  thyself?  He  said:  I  am  the  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilder¬ 
ness,  Make  straight  the  way  of  the  Lord,  as  said  the  Prophet  Isaias. 
They  that  were  sent  were  of  the  sect  of  Pharisees.  They  asked  him 
another  question:  Why,  then,  dost  thou  baptize,  if  thou  be  not 
Christ,  nor  Elias,  nor  the  prophet?  John  answered  them:  I  bap¬ 
tize  with  water,  but  there  hath  stood  one  in  the  midst  of  you  whom 
you  know  not.  He  is  the  same  that  shall  come  after  me,  who  is  pre¬ 
ferred  before  me,  the  latchet  of  whose  shoes  I  am  not  worthy  to 

(a)  St.  John,  i.  19-51. 


(21).  John' was  not  Elias  in  person,  but  he  was  such  in  the  sense  of  having  his  spirit 
and  virtue .  He  was  not  a  prophet,  meaning  the  foreteller  of  future  events  ;  but  he  an¬ 
nounced  and  he  showed  the  Messiah  actually  present,  whom  he  knew  by  the  revelation 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  in  this  sense  he  was  a  prophet,  and  more  than  a  prophet.  John 
says  he  is  not  Elias,  nor  a  prophet,  in  that  sense,  in  which  neither  is  he.  Jesus  Christ 
says  that  John  is  Elias,  and  is  a  prophet,  in  the  sense  in  which  he  is  both  one  and  the 
other.  By  this  difference  they  do  not  contradict  each  other  ;  and  we  are  taught  by  Je¬ 
sus  Christ  how  to  speak  of  our  neighbor,  by  John  how  to  speak  of  ourselves. 


nm — «ipw wpipif — i" . T  'I'M  wi 


CHAP  V.J  OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  47 

loose.  These  tilings  were  done  in  Bethania  (22)  beyond  tlie  Jor¬ 
dan,  where  John  was  baptizing.” 

“Next  day  John  saw  Jesus  coming  to  him,  and  he  saith  :  Behold 
the  Lamb  of  God  (23),  behold  him  who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the 
world.  This  is  he  of  whom  I  said  :  After  me  there  cometli  a  man 
who  is  preferred  before  me,  because  he  was  before  me  ;  and  I  knew 
him  not,  but  that  he  may  be  made  manifest  in  Israel,  therefore  am 
I  come  baptizing  with  water.  And  John  gave  testimony,  saying: 
I  saw  the  Spirit  coming  down  as  a  dove  from  heaven,  and  he  re¬ 
mained  upon  him.  I  knew  him  not ,”  this  he  said  to  remove  any 
idea  of  collusion  ;  “  but  he  who  sent  me  to  baptize  with  water  said 
to  me  :  He  upon  whom  thou  shalt  see  the  Spirit  descending  and  re¬ 
maining  upon  him,  he  it  is  that  baptizeth  with  the  Holy  Ghost  (24). 
I  saw,  and  I  gave  testimony  that  this  is  the  Son  of  God. 

“  The  next  day  John  and  two  of  his  disciples  stood,  and  behold¬ 
ing  J esus  walking,  he  saith  :  Behold  the  Lamb  of  God.  And  the 
two  disciples  heard  him  speak,  and  they  followed  Jesus  (25):  Jesus 
turning,  and  seeing  them  following  him,  saith  to  them  :  What  seek 
you  (26)?  They  said  to  him,  Rabbi  (which  is  interpreted  master), 
where  dwellest  thou  ?  Come,  he  saith  to  them,  and  see.  They 


(22)  Different  from  another  Bethania  a  short  distance  from  Jerusalem,  where  Lazarus 
resided  with  his  two  sisters,  Mary  and  Martha. 

(23)  Lamb  by  his  meekness  :  Lamb  of  God,  because  the  victim  God  gives  to  us,  and 
the  only  one  he  will  accept  for  the  remission  or  the  expiation  of  sins. 

(24)  The  Holy  Ghost  did  not  visibly  descend  upon  Jesus  Christ  until  after  he  had  re¬ 
ceived  baptism.  John,  who  refused,  through  humility,  to  baptize  him,  therefore  knew 
him  previously  by  revelation  ;  yet  he  does  not  speak  of  this  revelation  which  might  be 
contested,  and  he  merely  alleges  the  descent  of  the  dove,  which  was  the  sign  that  God 
had  given  to  himself,  that  thoroughly  assured  him  of  the  truth  thus  revealed  to  him  ;  a 
truth  made  so  strikingly  sensible,  having  had  as  many  witnesses  as  there  were  men  actu¬ 
ally  present,  who  had  come  to  receive  John’s  baptism. 

(25)  Jesus  was  condescending  enough  to  be  indebted  for  his  first  disciples  to  his  pre¬ 
cursor,  whose  testimony  was,  as  it  were,  at  once  the  supplement  of  our  Saviour’s  mira¬ 
cles.  This  was  to  honor  the  ministry  of  John,  for  thenceforth  Jesus  Christ  no  longer 
required  that  ministry,  and  he  made  this  be  well  understood,  when  at  the  same  time  he 
attached  Philip  to  his  person  by  these  sole  words,  follow  me. 

(26)  Jesus  doth  not  interrogate  to  get  instruction  upon  a  point  unknown  to  him,  but 
to  accommodate  himself  to  our  manner  of  conversing,  and  to  give  those  whom  lie  inter¬ 
rogates  the  occasion  of  saying  what  was  opportune  for  them  to  say.  This  remark  is  ap¬ 
plicable  in  all  cases  similar  to  the  present. 


48 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

came,  and  saw  where  he  abode  (27).  It  was  about  the  tenth  hour 
that  day”  (which  corresponds  with  our  four  o’clock  in  the  after¬ 
noon).  “Andrew  the  brother  of  Simon  Peter  was  one  of  the  two 
who  had  heard  of  John,  and  followed  Jesus.  He  findeth  first  his 
brother  Simon,  and  saith  to  him  :  We  have  found  the  Messias  (which 
is  interpreted  the  Christ).  He  brought  him  to  Jesus.  Jesus  look¬ 
ing  upon  him,  said  :  Thou  art  Simon  the  son  of  Jona  ;  thou  shalt  be 
called  Cephas,  which  is  interpreted  Peter. 

“  On  the  following  day  Jesus  would  go  forth  into  Galilee  :  he  find¬ 
eth  Philip,  and  saith  to  him  :  Follow  me.  Philip  was  of  Bethsaida, 
the  city  of  Andrew  and  Peter:  he  findeth  Nathaniel,  and  saith: 
We  have  found  him  of  whom  Moses  in  the  law  and  the  prophets 
did  write  ;  Jesus  the  son  of  Joseph  of  Nazareth.  Nathaniel  said  to 
him:  Can  anything  of  good  come  from  Nazareth  (28)?  Come  and 
see,  saith  Philip  to  him.  Jesus  saw  Nathaniel  coming  to  him,  and 
saith  of  him  :  Behold  an  Israelite  indeed,  in  whom  there  is  no  guile. 
Whence  knowest  thou  me  ?  saith  Nathaniel  to  him.”  Perhaps  he 
knew  me  by  the  report  of  Philip,  was  apparently  the  current  of 
Nathaniel’s  thoughts;  for  “Jesus  answered  him:  I  saw  thee  when 
thou  wast  under  the  fig-tree,  before  that  Philip  called  thee.  Rabbi, 
replied  Nathaniel  to  him,  thou  art  the  Son  of  God,  thou  art  the 
King  of  Israel.  Jesus  answered  him  :  Because  I  saw  thee  under  the 
fig-tree,  thou  believest.  Greater  things  than  these  shalt  thou  see. 
And  he  added  :  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you  :  you  shall  see  the  heaven 
opened  upon  the  Son  of  man  (29),  and  the  angels  of  God  ascending 
and  descending  (30).” 


(27)  Jesus  Christ  had  a  retreat  in  the  neighborhood,  but  he  had  no  house  -which  was 
his  own  ;  he  could,  therefore,  say  with  truth  :  The  Son  of  man  hath  not  where  to  rest 
his  head. 

(28)  Not  merely  on  account  of  the  smallness  of  the  place,  but  also  on  account  of  the 
bad  character  of  its  inhabitants,  which  bordered  on  brutality,  as  appears  by  their  treat¬ 
ment  of  Jesus  Christ. 

(29)  The  Son  of  man  properly  signified  man,  or  the  posterity  of  Adam.  This  expres¬ 
sion  has  no  other  meaning  in  all  the  texts  of  Scripture  wherein  it  is  employed,  and  it 
would  be  useless  to  seek  any  other  meaning  for  it  when  uttered  by  Jesus  Christ. 

(30)  ’Tis  hard  to  find  out  in  Scripture  the  accomplishment  of  this  magnificent  prom¬ 
ise,  but  ’tis  enough  to  know  that  all  is  not  written. 


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MARRIAGE  OF  CANA. - SOJOURN  AT  CAPHARNAUM. - SECOND  VOCATION  OF  PETER 

AND  OF  ANDREW,  FOLLOWED  BY  THAT  OF  JAMES  AND  JOHN. - JOURNEY  TO  JERU 

SALEM  FOR  THE  FEAST  OF  THE  PASSOVER. - SELLERS  DRIVEN  FROM  THE  TEMPLE. 

(a)  “  The  third  day  after  there  was  a  marriage  in  Cana  of  Galilee, 
and  the  mother  of  Jesus  was  there  (1).”  Jesus,  who  had  spent  these 
three  days  coming  from  the  shores  of  the  Jordan,  “was  invited  to 
the  marriage  with  his  disciples.  The  wine  failing,  the  mother  of  Je¬ 
sus  saith  to  him:  They  have  no  wine.  Jesus  saith  to  her:  Woman, 
what  is  that  to  me  and  to  thee  (2)?  my  hour  is  not  yet  come  (3). 
His  mother  saith  to  the  waiters  :  Do  ye  whatsoever  he  shall  say  to 
you.  Now  there  were  set  there  six  water-pots  of  stone,  according 
to  the  manner  of  the  purifying  of  the  Jews,  containing  two  or  three 
measures  apiece.  Jesus  saith  to  them  :  Fill  the  water-pots  with  wa¬ 
ter  ;  and  they  filled  them  up  to  the  brim.  Jesus  added:  Draw  out 

(a)  St.  John,  ii.  1-12. 

(1)  Saint  Joseph  is  no  longer  mentioned.  The  common  opinion  is,  that  he  had  died 
before  Jesus  Christ  commenced  his  evangelical  life  ;  and  the  remark  has  been  very  ju¬ 
diciously  made,  that  it  was  highly  proper  he  should  be  no  longer  of  this  world.  For, 
since  Jesus  Christ  must  frequently  have  to  speak  of  his  father  as  of  a  person  living,  the 
Jews  would  not  have  failed  to  refer  to  Joseph  every  thing  he  should  say  on  the  subject, 
and  to  substitute  him  in  the  place  of  the  eternal  Father — a  perplexing  ambiguity,  which 
would  extend  to  all  the  discourses  of  Jesus,  and  could  not  fail  to  confuse  all  the  ideas  of 
the  Jews. 

(2)  Jesus  Christ  wishes  to  teach  that  he  should  not  work  miracles,  from  considerations 
of  flesh  and  blood  ;  I  say  he  wishes  to  teach  that  truth,  not  to  Mary,  who  was  not  igno¬ 
rant  of  this,  but  to  his  disciples)  to  whom  he  was  one  day  to  communicate  the  power  of 
working  miracles,  and  perhaps  to  his  brethren,  that  is  to  say,  his  kindred,  who,  seeing 
such  power  in  the  hands  of  a  man  whom  they  called  their  relative  and  their  brother, 
might  think  he  could  dispose  of  it  as  family  property. 

(3)  The  time  when  he  had  resolved  to  work  miracles.  Still  he  anticipated  the  time  in 
consideration  of  Mary,  and  the  exception  confirms  the  rule.  If  the  answer  seems  severe, 
the  act  is  obliging  ;  perhaps,  too,  this  answer  was  made  with  an  air  and  a  tone  which  con¬ 
siderably  softened  down  what  appears  to  us  rather  blunt.  Certain  it  is,  that  Mary,  after 
having  heard  this,  had  no  hesitation  in  believing  that  her  prayer  had  been  heard,  since  she 
said  directly  to  the  waiters  :  Do  ye  whatsoever  he  shall  say  to  you. 

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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 


dow,  and  carry  to  the  chief  steward  of  the  feast,  and  they  carried  it. 
Alien  the  chief  steward  had  tasted  the  water  made  wine,  and  knew 
not  whence  it  was  (but  the  waiter  knew  who  had  drawn  the  water), 
he  calleth  the  bridegroom,  and  saith  to  him  :  Every  man  at  first  set- 
teth  forth  good  wine  ;  and  when  men  have  ivell  drunk,  then  that 
which  is  worse  ;  but  thou  hast  kept  the  good  wine  until  now.  Je¬ 
sus  did  this  beginning  of  miracles  in  Cana  of  Galilee.  He  thus  mani¬ 
fested  his  glory,  and  his  disciples  believed  in  him  (4).  After  this 
he  and  his  mother,  his  brethren,  and  his  disciples  went  down  to  Ca- 
pharnaum  ;  they  remained  there  not  many  days.” 

This  town  was  subsequently  his  usual  dwelling-place,  and,  as  it 
were,  the  centre  of  his  missions.  Capharnaum  was  a  very  opulent 
city,  and  thickly  inhabited.  It  was  situate  upon  the  confines  of  the 
tribes  of  Zabulon  and  Nephthalim,  at  the  influx  of  the  Jordan  into 
the  sea  of  Galilee  or  of  Tiberias.  His  coming  there,  and  the  great 
light  which  thence  sprung  up  (Isaias  ix.),  fulfilled  that  which  was 
said  by  Isaias  the  Prophet  :  (a)  “  The  land  of  Zabulon  and  land  of 
Nephthalim,  the  way  of  the  sea  beyond  the  Jordan,  Galilee  of  the 
Gentiles  (5).  The  people  that  sat  in  darkness  hath  seen  great  light  ; 
and  to  them  that  sat  in  the  region  of  the  shadow  of  death,  light  is 
sprung  up.”  This  light  was  announced  by  that  truth  which  must 
ever  be  first  presented  to  the  eyes  of  sinful  men,  the  necessity  of 
penance,  which  Jesus  began  to  preach  and  to  say,  like  his  precursor  : 
( b )  “  The  time  is  accomplished  ;  the  kingdom  of  God  is  at  hand  :  re¬ 
pent,  and  believe  the  Gospel.”  This  is  the  discourse  which  an  Evan¬ 
gelist  terms  preaching  “  the  Gospel  of  the  Kingdom  of  God.”  Mean¬ 
time  Jesus,  who  was  never  more  to  cease  preaching  it  until  his  death, 
began  to  seek  his  co-operators,  and  quickly  found  them.  His  disci¬ 
ples,  who  as  yet  were  not  inseparably  attached  to  him,  had  left  him, 
to  return  to  their  work.  He  attached  them  more  closely  to  his  per¬ 
son  in  the  manner  we  are  now  going  to  state,  by  blending,  on  ac- 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  iv.  14-17. 


(b)  St.  Mark,  i.  15. 


(4)  That  is  to  say,  they  were  confirmed  in  the  faith  they  had  in  him  ;  for  they  must 
have  already  believed,  since  they  became  his  disciples. 

(5)  So  called  on  account  of  the  vicinity  of  the  Gentiles,  perhaps  also  on  account  of  the 
amalgamation  of  these  people  with  the  tribes  of  Aser,  of  Zabulon,  and  of  Nephthalim. 


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CHAP.  VI.] 

count  of  tlie  similarity  of  facts,  two  things  which  some  separate  and 
others  unite.  It  cannot  well  be  decided  whether  in  point  of  fact 
there  were  two  different  vocations,  or  whether  there  was  but  one 
single  vocation,  recorded  by  the  sacred  authors,  with  different  cir¬ 
cumstances,  some  of  which  are  not  recounted  by  the  two  other  Evan¬ 
gelists. 

( a )  “  Jesus  passing  by  the  sea  of  Galilee,  saw  Simon  and  Andrew 
his  brother  casting  nets  into  the  sea  (for  they  were  fishermen),  and 
he  said  to  them  :  Come  after  me,  and  I  will  make  you  to  become 
fishers  of  men.  Going  on  from  thence  a  little  farther,  he  saw  James 
the  son  of  Zebedee,  and  John  his  brother,  who  also  were  in  the  ship 
mending  their  nets,  and  forthwith  he  called  them.  (/>)  It  came  to 
pass  that  multitudes  to  hear  the  word  of  God,  pressed  upon  him 
when  he  stood  by  the  sea.  He  saw  two  ships  standing  ;  the  fisher¬ 
men  were  gone  out  of  them,  and  were  washing  their  nets.”  In  or¬ 
der  to  join  this  circumstance  with  the  preceding  one,  we  must  sup¬ 
pose  these  fishermen  (whom  Jesus  had  just  called),  after  alighting 
from  their  ships,  were  still  washing  their  nets  either  from  habit  or 
for  the  service  of  those  who  were  afterwards  to  use  them.  “  Jesus 
going  into  one  of  the  ships  that  was  Simon’s,  desired  him  to  draw 
back  a  little  from  the  land  ;  and  sitting,  he  taught  the  multitudes 
out  of  the  ship  (6).  When  he  had  ceased  to  speak,  he  said  to  Si¬ 
mon  :  Launch  out  into  the  deep,  and  let  down  your  nets  for  a 
draught.  Master,  said  Simon  to  him,  we  have  labored  all  the  night, 
and  have  taken  nothing  :  but  at  thy  word  I  will  let  down  the  net. 
When  they  had  done  this,  they  enclosed  a  very  great  multitude  of 
fishes,  and  their  net  broke  (7),  and  they  beckoned  to  their  partners, 


(a)  St.  Mark,  i.  16,  lY,  19. 


(b)  St.  Luke,  v.  1-11. 


(6)  The  Ship  of  the  Church  which  the  Lord  ascends  is  no  other  than  that  one  of  which 
Peter  was  established  the  pilot,  when  the  Lord  said  to  him  :  Thou  art  Peter,  and  upon 
this  rock  I  shall  build  my  Church. — Ambr.  Serm.  ii. 

(Y)  This  miraculous  fishing  is  the  figure,  or  rather  the  prophetic  history,  of  what  was 
to  happen  to  the  Church.  The  prophets  had  labored  almost  without  any  finit  under  the 
Old  Law,  which  was  a  state  of  shade  and  obscurity.  At  last  the  great  day  of  grace  hav¬ 
ing  appeared,  Peter,  on  the  word  of  Jesus  Christ,  casts  the  net  of  the  Gospel.  All  na¬ 
tions  enter  there  in  throngs  :  both  ships,  that  is  to  say,  the  two  Churches  of  the  East  and 
West,  are  filled.  This  gathering  occasions  the  rupture  of  the  net,  whose  integrity  marks 


É 


A 


4T- 
æ 

t  ei 

X^gyjk-’ 


« 


>- 


•mm* 


that  were  in  the  other  ship,  that  they  should  come  and  help  them. 
They  came,  and  filled  both  the  ships,  so  that  they  were  almost  sink¬ 
ing  ;  which,  when  Simon  Peter  saw,  he  fell  down  at  Jesus’  knees, 
saying:  Depart  from  me,  O  Lord  (8),  for  I  am  a  sinful  man.  For 
he  was  wholly  astonished,  and  all  that  were  with  him,  at  the  draught 
of  the  fishes  which  they  had  taken,  and  so  were  also  James  and  John 
the  sons  of  Zebedee,  who  were  Simon’s  partners.  But  Jesus  saith  to 
Simon  :  Fear  not,  from  henceforth  thou  shalt  catch  men  ;  and  having 
brought  their  ships  to  land,  leaving  all  things,  they  followed  him. 
(«)  Simon  and  Andrew  left  their  nets  ;  James  and  John,”  not  only 
“  their  nets  they  were  mending,  but  their  father,  Zebedee,  ( b  )  in  the 
ship  with  his  hired  men.” 

FIRST  PASSOYER. 

We  have  said  that  this  first  sojourn  which  Jesus  made  at  Caphar- 
naum  was  but  for  a  few  days.  (<?)  “  The  pasch  of  the  Jews  was  at 
hand,”  and  the  time  was  come  when  Jesus  should  make  known  to  all 
Israel  its  Messiah  and  its  King.  “He  went  up”  then  with  his  new 
disciples  “to  Jerusalem,”  whither  the  festival  had  gathered  together 
Jews  from  all  nations  under  the  sun.  He  made  himself  remarkable 
there  at  the  outset,  by  an  action  which  attracted  all  eyes  towards 
him.  “  He  found  in  the  temple  them  that  sold  oxen,  sheep,  and 
doves,  and  the  changers  of  money  (9),  sitting.  When  he  had  made, 
as  it  were,  a  scourge  of  little  cords  (10),  he  drove  them  all  out  of 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  iv.  20,  21.  (Jj)  St.  Mark,  i.  20.  (c)  St.  John,  ii.  13-25. 


the  unity  of  the  Church  ;  and  whose  rapture  the  schisms  and  the  heresies  by  which  she 
loses  part  of  her  fishing,  if  we  can  call  a  loss  a  circumstance  which  delivers  her  from  those 
cruel  children  who  only  were  fostered  in  her  bosom  to  tear  her  asunder. 

(8)  The  same  humility  that  makes  the  centurion  say  :  Lord,  I  am  not  worthy  that  thou 
shouldst  enter  under  my  roof,  made  Peter  say  here:  Depart  from  me,  0  Lord,  for  I  am 
a  sinful  man.  Some  have  wished  to  give  a  different  meaning  to  this  saying  ;  but  the 
reason  which  Peter  adds,  because  I  am  a  sinful  wan,  seems  to  exclude  them,  and  fixes 
the  sense  to  our  construction. 

(9)  The  money-changers  gave  small  change  in  exchange  for  large  coin,  and- drew  a 
profit  from  this  sort  of  traffic. 

(10)  In  order  that  the  weakness  of  the  instrument  should  make  more  apparent  the  power 


£'fV\yv 


CHAP.  VI 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


tlie  temple,  tlie  sheep,  and  also  tlie  oxen  ;  the  money  of  the  changers 
he  poured  out,  and  the  tables  he  overthrew.  To  those  who  sold 
doves  he  said  :  Take  these  things  hence  (11),  and  make  not  the  house 
of  my  Father  (12)  a  house  of  traffic.  His  disciples  remembered  that 
it  was  written  :  The  zeal  of  my  house  hath  eaten  me  up.  The  Jews 
said  to  him  :  What  sign  dost  thou  shew  unto  us,  seeing  thou  dost 
these  things  (13)?  Jesus  answered:  Destroy  this  temple,  and  in 
three  days  I  will  raise  it  up.  The  Jews  then  said  :  Six-and-forty 
years  was  this  temple  in  building,  and  wilt  thou  raise  it  up  in  three 
days  ?  But  he  spoke  of  the  temple  of  his  body.  When,  therefore, 
he  was  risen  again  from  the  dead,  his  disciples  remembered  that  he 
had  said  this,  and  they  believed  (14)*the  Scripture,  and  the  word 
that  Jesus  had  said.  1  When  he  was  at  Jerusalem  at  the  pasch,  upon 
the  festival  day,  many  believed  in  his  name,  seeing  his  signs  which 
he  did.  But  Jesus  did  not  trust  himself  unto  them,  for  that  he  knew 
all  men,  and  he  needed  not  that  any  should  give  testimony  of  man  ; 
for  he  knew  what  was  in  man.” 


of  him  who  employed  it.  This  miracle  seemed  to  Saint  Jerome  the  most  surprising  of 
all  those  which  Jesus  Christ  performed. 

(11)  Had  he  acted  towards  these  as  with  the  others,  the  pigeons  would  have  flown  off, 
and  be  lost  to  the  owners.  Jesus,  who  wishes  to  frighten  all,  wishes  to  wrong  none  of 
them  ;  and  in  an  action  so  calculated  to  excite,  he  further  teaches  us  that  zeal  should  ever 
be  regulated  by  prudence  and  tempered  by  charity. 

(12)  An  expression  till  then  unheard  of.  Who,  therefore,  is  this  man  who  calls  the 
house  of  God  the  house  of  my  father,  and  who  exhibits  himself  there  with  all  the  author¬ 
ity  of  a  master  ? 

(13)  Jesus  Christ  never  worked  miracles  when  either  curiosity  or  malignity  was  the  mo¬ 
tive  which  made  them  be  sought  after. 

(14)  They  then  comprehended  the  sense  of  this  expression,  which  they  had  not  at  first 
understood  ;  they  saw  its  conformity  with  those  passages  of  Scripture  where  the  resur¬ 
rection  of  Jesus  Christ  is  so  clearly  figured,  and  they  were  corroborated  in  their  faith. 

What  seiwed  to  establish  the  faith  of  the  disciples  furnished  matter  to  the  Jews  for 
calumniating  the  Savioui.  The  same  results  follow  from  the  word  of  Jesus  Christ  as 
from  the  flesh  of  Jesus  Christ  ;  both  one  and  the  other  are  a  bread  of  life  for  the  good, 
and  a  mortal  poison  for  the  wicked.  Mors  est  malis,  v~ta  bonis. 


v<- 

My,. 


A  \ 


& 


C'Ç< 


DISCOURSE  WITH  KICODEMÜS. 

This  regards  tliose  who  at  first  believed  in  him,  but  whose  incon¬ 
stancy,  known  clearly  to  him  before  whose  eyes  all  is  naked  and  un¬ 
covered,  obliged  him  to  take  certain  precautions  with  them.  Others 
had  even  then  openly  declared  against  him,  and  his  miracles  and 
doctrine  had  already  produced  the  double  effect  always  produced 
by  great  merit  when  signalized  by  great  actions,  viz.:  esteem  and 
veneration  in  upright  hearts  ;  in  perverse  hearts,  envy  and  hatred. 
These  two  passions  ever  persecuting,  and  at  last  accomplishing  the 
death  of  the  Saviour,  were  inflamed  at  the  sight  of  his  first  successes, 
and  thenceforth  menaced  those  who  ventured  to  declare  themselves 
in  his  favor.  This  appears  by  the  conduct  (a)  “  Of  a  man  then  of 
the  Pharisees,  named  Nicodemus,  a  ruler  of  the  Jews  already  faith¬ 
ful,  yet  timid,  anxious  for  instruction,  still  dreading  persecution, 
“  He  came  to  Jesus  by  night,  and  said  to  him  :  Rabbi,  we  know  that 
thou  art  come  a  teacher  from  God,  for  no  man  can  do  these  signs 
which  thou  dost,  unless  God  be  with  him.” 

This  introduction  expressed  the  object  of  his  visit  ;  he  came  to  be 
instructed.  Jesus  stated  to  him  in  a  few  words  the  entire  plan  of 
Christianity,  and  commencing  by  regeneration,  which  is  the  ground¬ 
work,  “  Answered  him  :  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  thee,  unless  a  man  be 
born  again,  he  cannot  see  the  kingdom  of  God.”  This  reply  sur¬ 
prised  Nicodemus,  who,  aware  of  but  one  way  of  being  born,  could 
imagine  no  other.  “  How  can  a  man  be  born,  saith  he,  when  he  is 
old  ?  Can  he  enter  a  second  time  into  his  mother’s  womb,  and  be 
born  again  ?”  He  asked  for  an  explanation,  which  Jesus  immediate¬ 
ly  gave  him.  “  Amen,  amen,  he  answered,  I  say  to  thee,  unless  a 
man  be  born  again  of  water  (1)  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  he  cannot  en- 

( a )  St.  John,  iii.  1-13. 

(1)  This  water  is  that  of  baptism  ;  for  it  is  not  allowable  to  seek  here  for  another  mean- 


CHAP,  vn.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


55 


ter  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  That  which  is  born  of  the  flesh  is 
flesh,  and  that  which  is  born  of  the  spirit  is  spirit.  Wonder  not 
that  I  said  to  thee  :  You  must  be  born  again.  The  spirit  breatheth 
where  he  will  (2)  ;  and  thou  hearest  his  voice  ;  but  thou  knowest 
not  whence  he  cometh,  and  whither  he  goeth  :  so  is  every  one  that 
is  born  of  the  Spirit.”  Which  is  tantamount  to  the  known  maxim  : 
Every  thing  produces  its  kind.  The  production  of  the  spirit  is, 
therefore,  spiritual,  like  its  principal,  wherefore  it  falls  not  under 
the  senses.  Yet  it  has  effects  which  hinder  us  from  doubting  its 
reality,  like  the  air  or  wind,  which,  though  n€>t  perceptible  to  the 
eyes  of  the  body,  is  known  by  sound  or  other  peculiar  effects. 

The  mystery  had  been  explained  as  clearly  as  it  could  be  :  still 
“  Nicodemus  answered  :  How  can  these  things  be  done  ?  Art  thou, 
said  Jesus  to  him,  a  master  in  Israel,  and  knowest  not  these  things  ! 
Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  thee,  that  we  speak  what  we  know,  and  we 
testify  what  we  have  seen,  and  you  receive  not  our  testimony.  If  I 
have  spoken  to  you  earthly  things,  and  you  believe  not,  how  will 
you  believe  when  I  speak  to  you  heavenly  things  ?  No  man  hath 
ascended  into  heaven  but  he  that  descended  from  heaven — the  Son 
of  man  who  is  in  heaven  (3).” 

These  words,  all  full  of  depth,  signify,  1st,  That  faith  in  mysteries 

ing  after  the  decision  of  the  Council  of  Trent,  Sess.  7,  Can.  2  :  Should  any  one  say  that 
very  and  natural  water  is  not  necessary  in  baptism,  and  consequently  if  he  gives  a  meta¬ 
phorical  sense  to  those  words  of  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  Unless  a  man  be  born  again 
of  water  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  dec.,  let  him  be  anathema. 

(2)  This  expression  signifies  here  properly  either  the  breath  or  the  wind.  This  does 
not  hinder  an  appropriate  application  of  the  expression  to  the  free  and  independent  opera¬ 
tion  of  the  Holy  Ghost  in  our  souls. 

(3)  Yet  the  humanity  of  the  Saviour  had  not  descended  from  heaven,  but  only  ascend¬ 
ed  there  on  the  day  of  the  ascension.  This  is  explained  by  the  personal  union  of  the 
Word  with  human  nature.  By  this  ineffable  union,  the  Sovereign  God  who  reigns  in  the 
highest  heavens  is  truly  the  Son  of  man  ;  in  this  sense  he  could  have  said  that  the  Son  of 
man  hath  ascended  into  heaven,  since  lie  who  is  in  heaven  became  the  Son  of  man,  which 
he  was  not  previously.  He  might  also  have  said  that  he  descended  from  heaven,  because 
this  Son  of  man,  who  conversed  on  earth  with  man,  was  the  same  person  with  the  Sover¬ 
eign  God  who  reigns  in  the  highest  heaven.  He  could  have  added  that  he  was  still  in 
heaven,  because  his  immensity  renders  him  present  everywhere,  and  his  persevering 
union  with  humanity  makes  him  who  is  everywhere  present  be  everywhere  and  always 
with  the  character  of  Son  of  man,  although  his  humanity  be  not  everywhere  present,  as 
the  Lutherans  say,  by  an  error,  the  absurdity  of  which  equals  at  least  its  impiety. 


\t 


ftW'AI 
issir 

rîiii,, ,  •  , 

jf-'ü",,  :  it 

yii-!  • 


r* 

s> 

1 

î  et 
\à! 


/T  \ 


t\ 


-%  'Il 


p. 


M 


is  not  grounded  on  the  evidence  of  the  object,  but  on  the  authority 
of  the  testimony  of  Jesus  Christ,  a  proposition  which  Nicodemus 
could  not  gainsay,  he  having  just  recognized  the  divinity  of  a  mis¬ 
sion  proved  manifestly  by  miracles  ;  2d,  that  the  explanation  just 
given  to  him  was  the  most  proper  to  make  him  comprehend  the 
mystery  which  J esus  Christ  had  proposed  to  him  ;  I  say,  to  make 
him  comprehend  it  in  such  a  way  as  it  can  be  comprehended,  at  least 
in  this  life,  he  clothed  it  in  sensible  and  corporal  images,  such  as 
birth,  the  wind,  and  its  effects.  Whence  the  Saviour  concluded 
that,  if  he  did  not  place  faith  in  him  when  speaking  such  language 
as  he  calls  earthly,  because  proportioned  to  the  human  intellect  ever 
cleaving  to  that  earth  to  which  it  is  bound,  much  less  would  he  be¬ 
lieve  had  expressions  been  used  as  sublime  as  the  things  themselves 
that  were  proposed,  viz.:  such  expressions  as  no  mortal  man  could 
understand,  and  such  apparently  as  human  language  could  not  fur¬ 
nish.  What  Jesus  Christ  adds,  “No  man  hath  ascended  unto  heaven 
but  he  that  descended  from  heaven,”  relates  to  two  parts  of  his  an¬ 
swer,  and  signifies  that,  both  as  to  mysteries  and  the  manner  of  pro¬ 
posing  them,  we  must  refer  alone  to  him  who,  having  descended 
from  that  heaven  which  he  always  continues  to  inhabit,  and  having 
alone  seen  them  in  their  origin,  is  the  only  person  who  knows  them, 
and  who  is  in  a  position  to  speak  of  them  ;  which  wre  find  similarly 
expressed  in  these  words  of  the  first  chapter  of  Saint  John  :  (a)  “No 
man  hath  seen  God  at  any  time  :  the  only  begotten  Son,  who  is  in 
the  bosom  of  the  Father,  he  hath  declared  him.” 

Nicodemus,  thus  disposed,  was  prepared  to  listen  with  docility  to 
the  other  truths  in  which  Jesus  Christ  was  going  to  instruct  him  ; 
the  Saviour  continued  in  these  terms  :  ( b )  “  As  Moses  lifted  up  the 
serpent  in  the  desert,  so  must  the  Son  of  man  be  lifted  up,  that  who¬ 
soever  believeth  in  him  (4)  may  not  perish,  but  may  have  life  ever- 


(a)  St.  John,  i.  18. 


(b)  St.  John,  iii.  14-21. 


(4)  Here  faith  alone  is  spoken  of  :  Doth  faith,  then,  suffice,  without  works  ?  No  more 
than  good  works  can  suffice  without  faith,  although  in  many  places  of  Scripture  salvation 
is  attributed  to  works,  without  mention  being  at  all  made  of  faith.  Join  these  texts,  and 
in  their  union  you  will  find  the  Catholic  truth  ;  separate  them,  or  merely  consider  them 
in  their  apparent  opposition,  and  you  evidently  come  in  collision  with  one  of  these  two 


CHAP.  VH.  | 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


57 


lasting.  For  God  so  loved  tlie  world  as  to  give  liis  only  begotten 
Son  (5),  that  whosoever  believeth  in  him  may  not  perish,  but  may 
have  life  everlasting  :  for  God  sent  not  his  Son  into  the  world  to 
judge  the  world,  but  that  the  world  may  be  saved  by  him.  He 
that  believeth  in  him  is  not  judged  ;  but  he  that  doth  not  believe 
is  already  judged,  because  he  believeth  not  in  the  name  of  the  only 
begotten  Son  of  God.  And  this  is  the  judgment  ;  because  the  light 
is  come  into  the  world,  and  men  have  loved  darkness  rather  than 
the  light,  for  their  works  were  evil  :  for  every  one  that  doth  evil 
hateth  the  light,  and  cometh  not  to  the  light,  that  his  works  may 
not  be  reproved  ;  but  he  that  doth  truth  (6)  cometh  to  the  light,  that 
his  works  may  be  made  manifest,  because  they  are  done  in  God.” 

Such  is  the  discourse  which  the  Saviour  made  to  this  learned  mail 
of  the  synagogue.  It  comprises,  as  I  have  said,  the  entire  plan  of 
Christianity,  and  its  principal  mysteries  are-  here  clearly  proposed. 
We  see  here  the  three  persons  of  the  adorable  Trinity,  and  the  part 
which  each  of  them  condescended  to  take  upon  himself  in  the  re¬ 
demption.  The  Father  gives  his  only  Son  ;  the  Son  consents  to  be 
immolated  ;  and  the  regenerating  Spirit,  uniting  with  the  water  of 
baptism  his  all-mighty  action,  transforms  the  old  man  into  a  new 
creature,  gives  brothers  to  the  Son,  and  adopted  children  to  the 
Father.  The  motive  of  so  great  a  gift  is,  on  the  part  of  the  Father, 
immense,  we  may  say,  excessive  love,  actuating  him  to  deliver  up 
his  only  Son,  the  object  of  all  his  complacency,  for  the  salvation  of 
an  impious  and  perverse  world  •  in  the  Son  there  is  a  voluntary  im¬ 
molation  upon  the  tree  of  the  cross  ;  and  in  regenerated  man  a  live¬ 
ly  faith  replete  with  confidence  in  him  whose  charity  was  so  extreme 


stumbling-blocks  :  You  will  think  that  works  suffice  without  faith,  which  annihilates  all 
religion  ;  or  with  some  Protestant  sects,  that  faith  suffices  without  works,  which  opens 
the  road  to  every  crime. 

(5)  A  Jew  might  think  that  God  had  only  given  his  Son  for  the  salvation  of  Jews. 
Jesus  Christ  anticipates  this  error,  by  declaring  that  the  Son  was  given  for  the  salvation 
of  the  world,  and  of  every  man,  saith  elsewhere  the  beloved  disciple,  I.  John,  22. 

(6)  It  may  be,  as  some  have  thought,  that  the  original  believers  in  Jesus  Christ  were 
the  best  class  among  the  Jews,  although  this  was  not  without  exception;  or  it  may  be 
that  the  expression  he  that  doth  truth,  or  to  do  truth,  signifies  in  sinners  the  knowledge 
and  detestation  of  sin,  according  to  this  thought  of  Saint  Augustine  :  the  confession  of 
crime  is  the  beginning  of  virtue. 


58  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PARTT. 

as  to  suffer  for  him  torment  and  death.  The  brazen  serpent  is  given 
here  as  a  figure  of  the  Old  Testament,  representing  in  the  most  nat¬ 
ural  manner  many  wonderful  things  therein  detailed.  It  resembles 
the  serpent,  though  without  its  venom,  thus  shadowing  him  forth 
who,  himself  without  a  blemish,  assumed  the  semblance  of  sin  ;  its 
elevation  in  the  desert  typifies  the  cross  raised  on  high,  and  exposed 
to  all  eyes.  Faith  in  Him  crucified,  which  may  be  called  the  glance 
of  the  soul,  produces  an  effect  in  souls  similar  to  that  produced  in 
bodies  on  corporeally  beholding  the  brazen  serpent.  Yet,  as  the 
brazen  serpent,  although  salutary  to  many,  and  injurious  to  none, 
hindered  not  those  from  perishing  who,  when  mortally  wounded  by 
the  serpents  of  fire,  refused  thus  to  seek  recovery  by  so  easy  a  rem¬ 
edy,  so  also  those  who  shall  be  saved  are  to  be  saved  by  him  alone 
whom  the  serpent  prefigured,  and  the  damned  shall  be  condemned 
by  their  own  fault.  The  Saviour  goes  so  far  as  to  declare  that  the 
latter  are  already  condemned,  inasmuch  as,  in  the  sin  of  their  first 
father  and  their  own  personal  iniquities,  they  carry  with  them  the 
manifest  cause  of  their  condemnation  ;  as  the  Israelites  stung  by  the 
serpents  carried,  in  the  venom  which  they  had  received,  the  impend¬ 
ing  cause  of  inevitable  death.  Those  who  perish,  therefore,  perish 
merely  because  they  choose  to  do  so  ;  and  from  themselves  alone 
originates  the  judgment  which  condemns  them.  The  Messiah’s  first 
coming  had  salvation,  not  the  condemnation,  of  the  world  for  its 
object.  But  this  fearful  and  eternal  condemnation  only  comes  upon 
them  for  having  shunned  another  transient  and  salutary  condemna¬ 
tion,  that  which  they  themselves  should  have  passed  upon  their 
own  crimes,  had  they  wished  to  open  their  eyes  to  the  startling 
light  which  disclosed  to  them  their  enormity.  Still  the  same  fund 
of  corruption  which  wedded  them  to  their  vices  made  them  love 
the  darkness  which  concealed  their  enormity,  and  hate  the  light 
which  would  have  revealed  it  to  them  ;  that  light  which  is  earnest¬ 
ly  sought  after  and  beheld  with  joy  by  those  who  are  pure  in  heart 
and  of  virtuous  life.  An  upright  mind  is  always  cheered  by  the 
light  which  irradiates  it,  and  virtue  must  always  experience  the 
highest  satisfaction  from  the  favorable  testimony  of  such  a  witness. 
The  grace  with  which  the  Saviour  accompanied  the  instruction  he 
imparted  to  Nicodemus  made  that  proselyte  a  faithful  disciple. 


4  , 

wr 


/> 


\ 


H' 


cnAP.  ym.] 

Though  he  measured  cautiously  his  first  advances,  yet  Nicodemus 
never  betrayed  his  conscience.  True  it  is,  he  did  not  as  yet  openly 
declare  himself  for  Jesus  Christ,  but  far  from  being  implicated  in 
the  unjust  conspiracy  of  his  enemies,  he  knew  well,  whèn  the  occa¬ 
sion  presented  itself,  how  to  make  them  feel  the  whole  extent  of 
their  injustice.  Cured  of  his  timidity  after  he  had  viewed  the  mys¬ 
terious  serpent  elevated  upon  the  mountain,  when  the  apostles  were 
flying  in  all  directions,  this  prince  of  the  synagogue  joined  wdth  Jo¬ 
seph  of  Arimathea  in  rendering  to  his  divine  Master  the  rites  of  bu¬ 
rial  ;  and  lavished  upon  him  the  most  costly  perfumes  with  a  liber¬ 
ality  worthy  of  his  opulence  and  his  piety.  He  persevered  till 
death  in  the  confession  of  the  faith,  and  in  the  practice  of  every 
Christian  virtue;  and  the  Church  has  placed  him  in  the  rank  of 
the  saints  to  be  invoked. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

JESUS  CHRIST  PREACHES  AND  BAPTIZES. - NEW  TESTIMONY  OF  SAINT  JOHN. - IMPRIS¬ 
ONMENT  OF  THE  HOLY  PRECURSOR. - RETURN  OF  JESUS  TO  GALILEE  THROUGH  SA¬ 

MARIA. 

(a)  “  Jesus,”  after  having  made  this  conquest,  “  came  into  the 
land  of  Judea;”  that  is  to  say,  he  quitted  the  capital  to  travel  over 
the  country  “  with  his  disciples.  There  he  abode  with  them,  and 
baptized  (though  Jesus  himself  did  not  baptize,  ( b )  but  his  disci¬ 
ples).”  A  very  remarkable  difference  between  him  and  John.  The 
former  baptized  by  himself  alone,  because,  being  merely  the  minis¬ 
ter  of  his  baptism,  he  could  not  substitute  instead  of  himself  any 
other  minister  ;  whereas  Jesus,  author  of  his  own  baptism,  could 
appoint  any  administrator  he  wished,  and  preserve  to  the  rite  its 
entire  virtue,  no  matter  by  what  hand  it  was  administered.  Yet 
the  baptism  of  John  was  not  immediately  abolished,  after  the  in- 


(6)  St.  John,  iv.  2. 


60 


THE  HISTOKY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PABT  I. 

troduction  of  Christ’s  baptism.  Every  thing  is  gradually  shaded 
in  the  works  of  God  ;  and  until  the  precursor’s  imprisonment,  the 
baptism  of  water  subsisted  at  the  same  time  with  the  baptism  of 
the  Holy  Ghost  and  of  fire,  as  the  Jewish  practices  subsisted  side 
by  side  with  infant  Christianity,  until  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem. 
While,  therefore,  Jesus  was  conferring  baptism  by  the  hands  of  his 
disciples,  accustoming  the  world  from  thenceforth  (a)  “  to  account 
them  his  ministers,  and  the  dispensers  of  the  mysteries  of  God, 
( 'b )  John  also  was  baptizing  in  Ennon,  near  Salim,  because  there 
was  much  water  there,  and  they  came,  and  were  baptized  ;  for  John 
was  not  yet  cast  into  prison.  There  arose  a  question  between  some 
of  John’s  disciples  and  the  Jews  (1)  concerning  purification  (2),” 
which  here  must  be  understood  to  mean  baptism.  The  Jews  who 
had  declared  themselves  in  favor  of  Jesus  Christ,  maintained  that 
their  new  Master  being  much  superior  to  John  (Aug.  tract.  13  in 
Joan.),  his  baptism  should  be  preferred  to  that  of  the  precursor. 
Whereupon  “  John’s  disciples  came  to  him,  and  said  :  Rabbi,  he  that 
was  with  thee  beyond  the  Jordan,  to  whom  thou  gavest  testimony, 
behold,  he  baptizeth,  and  all  men  come  to  him*” 

The  disciples  disputed  ;  but  the  masters  were  of  the  same  mind. 
“  John,”  who  never  had  attributed  any  merit  to  himself,  and  who 
always  returned  back  to  Jesus  the  glory  due  to  him,  “  answered  and 
said  :  A  man  cannot  receive  any  thing  unless  it  be  given  him  from 
heaven.  You  yourselves  do  bear  me  witness  that  I  said:  I  am  not 
Christ,  but  that  I  am  sent  before  him.  He  that  hath  the  bride  is 
the  bridegroom  (3)  ;  but  the  friend  of  the  bridegroom  who  stand- 
eth,  and  heareth  him,  rejoiceth  with  joy,  because  of  the  bride- 

(a)  I.  Corinthians,  iv.  1.  (J)  St.  John,  iii.  23-36. 


(1)  Apparently  the  disciples  of  John  were  mostly  Galileans,  whereas  those  who  had 
just  received  the  baptism  of  Jesus  Christ  were  from  Judea,  properly  speaking.  For 
which  reason  the  latter  are  called  Jews  in  this  passage  ;  although,  in  a  more  comprehen¬ 
sive  sense,  the  name  also  belongs  to  the  disciples  of  John. 

(2)  Baptism  might  be  called  by  the  name  of  purification,  as  purifications  elsewhere  go 
under  the  name  of  baptism. 

(3)  The  bride  is  the  Church,  composed  of  the  multitude  of  those  who  believe  in  Jesus 
Christ.  Its  formation  was  commenced,  and  the  disciples  of  John  brought  him  the  intel¬ 
ligence.  Thus,  while  seeking  to  excite  his  jealousy,  they  ravished  him  with  joy. 


<£03  sm 


1*, ^OïBSIf  ;'Î»T  3ÏÏHÏÏS  Œ^STOliÊS 


CHAP.  VIH.J 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


61 


groom’s  voice  ;  this  my  joy,  therefore,  is  fulfilled  (4).  He  must  in¬ 
crease,  but  I  must  decrease  (5).”  The  difference  of  origin  is  the 
reason  which  John  assigns  for  this  extreme  difference  between  Jesus 
Christ  and  himself.  “  He,  said  John,  that  cometh  from  above  is 
above  all.  He  that  is  of  the  earth,  of  the  earth  he  is,  and  of  the 
earth  he  speaketh  (6).  He  that  cometh  from  heaven  is  above  all, 
and  he  testifieth  what  he  hath  seen  and  heard  (7 ),  and  no  man  re- 
ceiveth  his  testimony  (8).  He  that  hath  received  his  testimony  (9) 


(4)  Comparisons  only  extend  to  a  certain  point.  John  did  not  actually  see  Jesus  Christ, 
nor  did  he  hear  his  voice  ;  but  he  knew  him  to  be  near  at  hand,  and  preaching,  and  he 
heard  the  rumor  of  his  first  successes.  This  it  is  that  inspires  him  with  joy  comparable 
to  that  caused  by  the  voice  of  the  person  we  love  most,  which  is  said  to  be  the  sweetest 
of  all  music. 

(o)  In  public  estimation.  For,  in  reality,  there  neither  was  increase  in  Jesus  Christ 
nor  diminution  in  Saint  John. 

(6)  When  he  speaks  from  himself.  For,  by  inspiration,  he  can  know  and  utter  heavenly 
things,  and  John  himself  is  proof  of  this.  But  those  heavenly  things  which  the  Son  ut¬ 
tered  had  been  taught  him  by  no  one  ;  he  spoke  them  from  his  own  will.  Others  con¬ 
sider  Saint  John  to  term  earthly  those  things  which  he  said  himself,  in  opposition  to  the 
more  sublime  truths  which  Christ  Jesus  came  to  reveal  to  the  world. 

(7)  These  words,  and  those  which  close  the  discourse,  are  sufficiently  explained  in  the 
preceding  discourse  of  our  Lord  with  Nicodemus. 

(8)  Passion  ever  exaggerates.  Envy  made  John’s  disciples  state,  all  men  come  to  him, 
because  several  did  go  ;  and  an  affectionate  zeal  for  the  glory  of  Jesus  Christ  made  John 
say,  no  man  receiveth  his  testimony,  because  all  men  did  not  receive  it. 

(9)  To  believe  his  word,  who  is  sent  by  God,  is  to  believe  the  word  of  God  ;  and  to 
believe  the  word  of  God  is  an  authentic  declaration  that  God  is  incapable  of  a  lie,  and 
that  he  always  speaks  the  truth.  Faith  is  wholly  and  entirely  comprised  in  these  few 
words. 

God  has  sent  his  Son  ;  the  Son  has  sent  his  apostles.  These,  by  his  order,  have  com¬ 
municated  their  mission  to  their  successors,  who  have  transmitted  it  to  us,  and  who  will 
transmit  it  from  age  to  age,  until  the  end  of  the  world.  To  believe  these,  therefore,  is 
to  believe  the  apostles,  who  have  transmitted  the  mission  to  them  ;  the  Son,  who  hath 
sent  the  apostles  ;  and  God,  who  hath  sent  the  Son.  The  simple-minded  enter  without 
trouble  and  without  diffidence  the  road  that  lies  open  before  them  :  the  road  which  is 
straight,  level,  spacious,  trodden  by  the  Christian  throng,  and  in  which  they  see  their 
guides  marching  before  them.  Those  who  combine  great  abilities  with  superior  judg 
ment,  seeing  the  natural  inability  of  the  masses  to  conduct  themselves,  agree  that  they 
could  not  be  conducted  by  another  course  ;  that  there  must  be  a  course  marked  out  for 
them,  since  they  are  not  excluded  from  salvation  ;  that  it  was  natural  that  this  road, 
which  suffices  for  all,  should  be  the  same  for  all.  The  more  so,  as  when  they  recollected 
the  great  wanderings  in  which  men  of  eminent  talents  frequently  indulge,  they  deemed 
this  road  at  least  as  necessary  for  those  who  reason  with  over-subtlety  as  for  those  who 


,/f 


\1\  X 


W 


K\ 


'71^ 


's-N  * 


liatli  set  to  liis  seal  that  God  is  true  :  For  he  whom  God  hath  sent 
speaketh  the  words  of  God,  for  God  doth  not  give  the  Spirit  by 
measure.  The  Father  loveth  the  Son,  and  he  hath  given  all  things 
into  his  hand.  He  that  believeth  in  the  Son  hath  life  everlasting  ; 
but  he  that  believeth  not  the  Son  shall  not  see  life  ;  the  wrath  of 
God  abideth  on  him.” 

The  imprisonment  of  the  holy  precursor  quickly  followed  this 
magnificent  testimony  which  he  had  just  rendered  to  Jesus  Christ. 
The  country  which  he  then  inhabited,  if  not  actually  part  of  the  di¬ 
vision  allotted  to  Herod  the  tetrarch,  at  least  bordered  on  his  do¬ 
minions.  John  had  occasion  to  see  and  to  speak  to  him.  (a)  “  Her¬ 
od  was  reproved  by  him  for  Herodias,  his  brother’s  wife,  and  for  all 
the  evils  he  had  done.  He  added  this  also,  above  all,  and  shut  up 
John  in  prison.  ( [b )  When  Jesus  had  heard  that  John  was  delivered 
up,  (g)  and  understood  that  the  Pharisees  had  heard  that  he  maketh 
more  disciples,  and  baptizeth  more  than  John,  ( d )  he  left  Judea,  and 
returned,  in  the  power  of  the  Spirit,  into  Galilee,  preaching  the  Gos¬ 
pel  of  the  kingdom  of  God.” 


(а)  St.  Luke,  iii.  19,  20. 

(б)  St.  Matthew,  iv.  12. 


(c)  St.  John,  iv.  1-3. 

( d )  St.  Luke,  iv.  14  ;  St.  Mark,  i.  14. 


do  not  reason  enough.  Still  there  exist  subtle  minds,  who  cannot  sympathize  with 
what  is  simple  :  men  of  a  curious  turn  of  mind,  which  disdains  every  thing  that  is  ancient, 
for  the  sole  reason  that  it  is  not  new  ;  singular  characters,  who  ever  try  to  distinguish 
themselves  from  the  multitude  ;  presumptuous  men,  who  wish  to  lead  themselves,  and 
show  the  way  to  their  very  guides  ;  wrangling  dispositions,  who  could  scarce  live  if  they 
did  not  find  matter  for  contradiction.  Such  characters  quit  the  high-road,  band  them¬ 
selves  together,  seek  for  crooked  by-ways,  thrust  themselves  into  them,  and  there  wan¬ 
der — that  is  to  say,  become  heretics — for  the  same  reasons  which  produce  in  the  world 
blunderers,  originals,  the  headstrong,  bad  reasoners,  bad  debaters,  and  bad  lawyers. 


y/t 


liMrr**. 


A  Mi! 


m 


Wtm 

<0  <3 


.a  a  3  o  q  o  a  ■ 


m 


CHAP.  IX J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


63 


CHAPTEE  IX. 

THE  SAMARITAN  WOMAN. 

(a)  “  He  was  of  necessity  to  pass  through  Samaria.  He  cometh, 
therefore,  to  a  city  of  Samaria  which  is  called  Sichar  (1),  near  the 
land  which  Jacob  gave  to  his  son  Joseph.  Jacob’s  well  was  there. 
Jesus,  therefore,  being  wearied  with  his  journey,  sat  thus  on  the  well. 
It  was  about  the  sixth  hour  (2).  There  cometh  a  woman  of  Sama¬ 
ria  (3)  to  draw  water.  Jesus  saith  to  her  :  Give  me  to  drink  (for 
his  disciples  were  gone  into  the  city  to  buy  meats).  Then  that  Sa¬ 
maritan  woman  saith  to  him  :  How  dost  thou,  being  a  Jew,  ask  of 
me  to  drink,  who  am  a  Samaritan  woman  ?  for  the  Jews  do  not  com¬ 
municate  with  the  Samaritans.”  To  this  reply,  which  perhaps  sa¬ 
vored  more  of  a  jest  than  of  a  refusal,  “Jesus  answered:  If  thou 
didst  know  the  gift  of  God,  and  who  is  he  that  saith  to  thee  :  Give 

(a)  St.  John,  iv.  4-30. 


(1)  The  same  which  is  called  Sichem  in  Scripture.  It  was  situated  near  the  mountain 
of  Garizim. 

(2)  About  noonday. 

(3)  These  Samaritans  were  originally  a  Chaldean  colony,  sent  by  Salmanasar  to  inhabit 
the  country,  which  remained  a  desert  in  consequence  of  the  transportation  of  the  ten 
tribes  into  the  States  of  this  prince.  These  Chaldeans  carried  along  with  them  their  idol¬ 
atrous  worship.  God  sent  lions,  which  committed  fearful  ravages  over  the  country.  To 
he  delivered  from  this  scourge,  they  brought  from  Assyria  a  priest  of  the  race  of  Aaron, 
who  was  to  instruct  them  in  the  religion  of  the  God  of  the  country  ;  such  was  the  title 
they  first  gave  him.  They  acknowledged  revelation  ;  but  they  only,,  received  the  five 
books  of  Moses,  and  they  altered  even  them  in  several  passages.  But  what  most  of  all 
contributed  to  make  them  be  regarded  as  schismatics  by  the  Jews,  was  the  temple,  which 
Sanabelleth,  one  of  their  governors,  caused  to  be  built  on  the  mountain  of  Garizim.  They 
constantly  preferred  it  to  the  temple  of  Jerusalem,  the  only  place  on  earth  where  it  was 
then  allowable  to  offer  sacrifice  to  God.  This  hatred  still  exists  between  the  Jews  and 
Samaritans,  although  the  latter  arc  reduced  to  almost  nothing,  and  are  sunk  in  the  most 
Drofound  ignorance. 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


me  to  drink,  thou  perhaps  (4)  wouldst  have  asked  of  him,  and  he 
would  have  given  thee  living  water  (5).” 

So  far,  if  this  discourse  did  not  render  this  woman  faithful,  it  made 
her  at  least  respectful.  “Sir,  she  saith  to  him,  thou  hast  nothing 
wherein  to  draw,  and  the  well  is  deep  :  from  whence,  then,  hast  thou 
living  water  ?  Art  thou  greater  than  our  father  Jacob  (6),  who  gave 
us  the  well,  and  drank  thereof  himself,  and  his  children,  and  his  cat¬ 
tle  ?  J esus  answered  to  her  :  Whosoever  drinketh  of  this  water 
shall  thirst  again  ;  but  he  that  shall  drink  of  the  water  that  I  will 
give  him  shall  not  thirst  for  ever,  and  the  water  that  I  will  give  him 
shall  become  in  him  a  fountain  of  water  springing  up  into  life  ever¬ 
lasting.” 

She  seemed  then  to  place  faith  in  him  ;  but  not  understanding 
what  was  the  nature  of  this  wonderful  water,  “  Sir,  she  saith  to  him, 
give  me  this  water,  that  I  may  not  thirst,  nor  come  hither  to  draw. 
Go,  saith  Jesus,  to  her,  call  thy  husband,  and  come  hither.  I  have 
no  husband,  the  woman  answered,”  whether  she  wished  to  speak  sin¬ 
cerely,  or  that  the  ardor  of  her  desire  made  her  deny  every  thing  that 


(4)  Jesus  Christ  was  not  ignorant  of  what  she  would  do  had  she  this  knowledge. 
This  perhaps  should  therefore  be  understood,  according  to  the  interpreters,  to  refer  to 
the  power  she  would  have  still  retained  then  to  ask,  or  not  to  ask.  The  amazing  pre¬ 
rogative  of  grace,  and  that  which  most  strikingly  displays  its  power,  is  this  triumph  over 
hearts,  leaving  them  at  the  same  time  the  actual  power  of  resistance.  If  it  were  neces¬ 
sary  to  deprive  hearts  of  this  power  of  resistance,  grace  would  no  longer  be  almighty, 
since,  being  disabled  from  triumphing  over  hearts  actually  vested  with  this  power,  there 
would  be  a  something  that  grace  was  unable  to  do. 

(5)  This  gift  of  God  and  this  living  water  are  nothing  else  hut  the  Holy  Ghost,  who 
extinguishes  in  souls  the  thirst  after  the  pleasures  of  sense  and  perishable  goods,  who 
deadens  the  ardors  of  concupiscence,  who  waters  the  aridity  of  the  heart  by  refreshing 
sentiments  of  piety,  and  who  renders  the  soul  fertile  in  good  works  :  truly  living  water 
both  in  itself  and  in  its  effects,  inasmuch  as  the  Holy  Ghost,  being  life,  gives  life  to  those 
souls  who  receive  him. 

(6)  The  Samaritans  were  not  descendants  of  Jacob.  Yet  there  is  nothing  to  hinder 
us  from  believing  that  in  their  district  several  families  of  Israelites  resided  ;  whether  or 
not,  they  remained  there  during  the  transmigration,  or  came  and  established  themselves 
there  with  the  Chaldeans,  the  latter  associating  with  them  in  their  form  of  worship. 
Such  families  would,  when  speaking  of  Jacob  and  the  patriarchs,  call  them  their  fathers. 
Chaldeans  might  also  descend  from  him  by  alliances  with  Israelitish  women  ;  and  sup¬ 
posing  none  of  these  reasons  existed,  the  mere  habit  of  hearing  the  Jews  repeat  Our 
Father  Jacob,  might  have  introduced  that  fashion  of  speech  into  the  Samaritan  tongue. 


i 


O  3  ■»  O  O  ? 


m 


CHAP.  IX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


might  retard  its  accomplishment.  “Jesus  said  to  her:  Thou  hast 
said  well,  I  have  no  husband  :  for  thou  hast  five,  and  he  whom  thou 
now  hast  is  not  thy  husband.  This  thou  hast  said  truly.”  If  this 
was  not  naturally  a  good  woman,  she  must  have  become  so  already 
during  the  interview  she  had  with  Jesus  Christ;  for,  instead  of  giv¬ 
ing  him  the  lie,  as  many  others  would  have  done,  and  with  greater 
assurance  the  more  foundation  there  was  for  the  reproach,  “  she  saith 
to  him,”  respectfully,  but  with  shame,  “  Sir,  I  perceive  that  thou  art 
a  prophet:”  an  expression  which  comprises  the  double  confession 
which  she  made  of  Jesus  Christ’s  quality  of  prophet,  and  of  her  own 
sinful  life.  This  last  avowal  was  so  humiliating  that  she  could  not 
dwell  upon  it,  but  takes  advantage  of  the  other  to  turn  the  conver¬ 
sation  upon  the  controversy  which  divided  the  two  classes  of  people 
inhabiting  Palestine.  “  Our  fathers  (7),”  added  she,  “  adored  (8)  on 
this  mountain,  and  you  say  that  at  Jerusalem  is  the  place  where  men 
must  adore.” 

This  question  has  given  occasion  more  than  once  for  regarding  the 
Samaritan  as  an  inquisitive  woman,  forward  in  entering  on  discus¬ 
sions  beyond  her  reach.  It  seems,  nevertheless,  that  having  had  the 
happiness  to  meet  a  prophet,  she  acted  wisely  in  asking  him  to  in¬ 
form  her  upon  a  point  of  religion  deemed  of  capital  importance. 
Do  not  let  us,  therefore,  blame  what  Jesus  Christ  himself  has  not 
blamed.  Nay,  perhaps  he  himself  inspired  the  question,  that  he 
might  take  occasion  therefrom  to  instruct  the  woman  in  that  per¬ 
fect  worship  which  he  came  to  establish  upon  the  ruins  of  all  the  an¬ 
cient  systems,  not  even  excepting  that  which,  though  true  in  itself, 
was  merely  preparatory.  Therefore  he  thus  spoke  to  her:  “Wo¬ 
man,  believe  me,  that  the  hour  cometh  when  you  shall  neither  on 
this  mountain  nor  in  Jerusalem  adore  the  Father  (9).  You  adore 


(7)  Our  ancestors,  if  we  prefer  to  say  that  the  Samaritans  were  under  the  impression 
that  the  patriarchs  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  had  offered  sacrifices  on  the  mountain  of 
Garizim,  which  left  the  question  at  issue  still  undecided  ;  for  the  place  where  sacrifices 
must  be  offered  was  not  wherever  the  patriarchs  had  sacrificed,  but  wherever  God  had 
chosen,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  otùer  places. 

(8)  To  adore  signifies  here  to  sacrifice.  Simple  adoration  was  never  forbidden  in  any 
place. 

(9)  My  father,  or  he  who,  by  adopting  you,  is  going  to  become  yours,  or  better  still, 

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that  which  you  know  not  (10)  ;  we  adore  that  which  we  know:  for 
salvation  is  of  the  Jews  (11).  But  the  hour  cometh,  and  now  is, 
when  the  true  adorers  shall  adore  the  Father  in  spirit  and  in 
truth  (12);  for  the  Father  also  seeketh  such  to  adore  him.  God  is 
a  spirit,  and  they  that  adore  him  must  adore  him  in  spirit  and  in 
truth.  The  woman  saith  to  him  :  I  know  that  the  Messias  cometh 
who  is  called  Christ.  Therefore  when  he  is  come  (13)  he  will  tell 
us  all  things.”  In  the  mean  time  she  was  still  obliged,  by  the  dec¬ 
laration  of  him  whom  she  recognized  for  a  prophet,  to  acknowledge 
the  superiority  of  the  Jewish  worship  over  the  Samaritan — a  truth 
which  she  seems  inclined  to  elude.  As  to  what  regards  the  new 
worship  which  the  Messiah  alone  could  establish,  she  very  properly 
said  they  should  wait  for  the  Messiah.  “  I  am  he,-  who  am  speaking 
with  thee,  saith  Jesus  to  her.  Immediately  his  disciples  came,  and 
they  wondered  that  ( contrary  to  Ms  custom )  he  talked  with  the 
woman.  Yet  no  man  said:  What  seekest  thou?  or,  Why  talkest 
thou  with  her?  The  woman,  therefore,  left  her  water-pot,  went 
her  way  into  the  city,  and  saith  to  the  men  there  :  Come  and  see 
a  man  who  has  told  me  all  things  whatsoever  I  have  done  ;  is  not 
he  the  Christ  ?”  Such  was,  in  regard  of  this  woman,  the  conduct  of 
Jesus  Christ,  and  such  was  its  success.  Few  examples  can  be  found 
of  so  prompt  a  conversion,  and  of  one  whose  several  degrees  are  so 


both  together,  that  is  to  say,  ray  father  and  yours.  The  two  meanings  are  true — both 
suit  the  text  ;  and  Scripture,  according  to  the  remark  of  Saint  Augustine,  frequently 
comprises  more  than  one  sense  in  a  single  word. 

(10)  Whether  it  be  that  the  Samaritans  had  blended  with  the  idea  of  God  some  gross 
error,  or  whether  these  words  signify  that  they  could  not  tell  upon  what  grounds  they 
worshipped,  their  worship  having,  in  point  of  fact,  no  divine  institution. 

(11)  It  was  proper  that  God  should  more  highly  instruct  that  people,  from  whom  sal¬ 
vation,  or  the  Saviour,  was  to  issue. 

(12)  Truth  is  going  to  succeed  shadows,  spiritual  objects  those  of  sense.  Both  forms 
of  worship  are  opposed  in  what  forms  their  leading  quality  ;  for  the  new  worship  is  in 
some  things  addressed  to  the  senses,  while  the  old  must  have  contained  much  that  was 
spiritual. 

(13)  Although  the  Jews  were  unwilling  to  acknowledge  the  fact,  every  one,  even  the 
Samaritans,  expected  the  Messiah,  and  expected  him  at  no  distant  period.  For  to  refer 
the  decision  of  an  essential  point  of  religion  to  a  Messiah  who  was  only  to  come  at  some 
distant  and  indefinite  period,  would  have  been  as  senseless  a  proceeding  as  to  refer  now- 
a-days  a  similar  decision  to  the  coming  of  Elias. 


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CHAP.  IX.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


distinctly  marked.  We  see  her  pass  successively  from  respect  of  the 
virtuous  man  who  speaks  to  her,  to  the  desire  of  obtaining  that  which 
he  promises  her,  although  as  yet  she  is  ignorant  of  its  nature.  Next 
she  recognizes  him  for  a  prophet,  and  in  this  very  avowal  which  she 
makes  admits  herself  to  be  a  sinner.  She  wisely  profits  by  the  oc¬ 
casion  to  get  instruction  ;  she  listens  witli  docility,  and,  when  once 
enlightened,  she  burns  with  the  desire  of  communicating  to  her  fel¬ 
low-citizens  the  light  which  has  just  sparkled  before  her  eyes.  She 
leaves  her  pitcher,  as  the  apostles  left  their  nets  :  she  runs  to.  the 
city,  which  she  immediately  fills  with  the  rumor  of  the  wonderful 
discovery  she  had  just  made.  Her  zeal  for  the  glory  of  him  whom 
she  announces  goes  to  the  extent  of  .prompting  her  to  sacrifice  her 
own  fame,  by  adducing,  to  prove  that  he  was  a  prophet,  her  own 
misdeeds,  which  he  could  have  known  only  by  a  supernatural  light. 
She  invites  all  the  inhabitants  to  come  and  satisfy  themselves  as  to 
the  truth  of  the  things  she  recounts  ;  and,  with  a  success  which  we 
may  compare  to  that  of  the  first  preaching  of  St.  Peter,  she  succeed¬ 
ed  in  as  short  a  time  in  gaining  over  to  him  an  entire  people.  In¬ 
comprehensible  effect  of  grace,  which  in  a  moment  makes  a  sinner  a 
penitent,  and  a  penitent  an  apostle.  But  whilst  no  better  illustra¬ 
tion  can  be  given  of  the  efficacy  of  divine  grace,  where  else  is  to  be 
found  a  more  affecting  picture  of  its  soothing  operation,  or  where 
can  we  find  a  better  instance  of  that  admirable  art  which  shrouds, 
as  it  were,  with  the  veil  of  chance,  the  designs  of  God,  and  the  most 
maturely  reflected  projects  of  his  mercy?  Jesus  returns  from  Jeru¬ 
salem  to  Galilee  ;  he  traverses  Samaria,  which  happens  to  be  upon 
his  route  ;  he  halts  about  mid-day,  while  his  disciples  were  gone  in 
search  of  provisions  to  a  neighboring  city:  he  is  tired,  and  he  sits 
down  near  a  well.  A  woman  comes  there  to  draw  water  ;  he  is 
thirsty,  and  he  asks  her  for  a  drink  ;  she  refuses,  or  seems  to  refuse 
it,  under  pretence  of  the  division  which  exists  between  the  two  na¬ 
tions.  What  have  we  here  that  does  not  appear  the  effect  of  pure 
chance  ?  Yet  all  this  is  nothing  else  but  the  execution  of  the  de¬ 
crees  of  the  Almighty.  God,  from  all  eternity,  had  determined  to 
inspire  the  woman  with  a  wish  to  come  to  this  spot  on  the  day  and 
at  the  hour  when  she  actually  came  there.  She  came  there  of  her 
own  free  will  ;  but  there  she  must  have  come  inevitably.  Heaven 


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and  earth  must  have  perished  ere  she  missed  the  appointment.  The 
discourse  which  Jesus  Christ  held  with  her,  and  which  seemed  en¬ 
tirely  occasioned  by  the  good  or  bad  things  which  she  said — that 
discourse  was  also  preconcerted  in  the  councils  of  the  Most  High  ; 
and  that  portion  of  knowledge  which  was  to  be  communicated  to 
her  had  been  weighed  in  the  eternal-  scale.  Before  she  was  in  the 
world,  yea,  before  the  world  existed,  it  was  settled  that  Jesus  Christ 
should  originate  in  her  mind  the  idea  of,  and  the  thirst  for,  a  water 
which  should  forever  quench  thirst,  and  whose  inexhaustible  source 
gushed  forth  unto  life  everlasting.  Also,  that  in  order  to  give  her 
at  the  same  time  both  faith  and  penance,  he  should  disclose  to  her 
both  what  he  was,  and  what  she  herself  was,  that  he  should  enlisdit- 
en  her  on  the  errors  of  Samaritan  worship  and  the  imperfection  of 
the  Jewish  ;  that  thereupon  he  should  elevate  her  to  the  knowledge 
of  a  universal  and  eternal  worship,  which  should  extend  itself  over 
all  times  and  every  people,  making  truth  succeed  to  figures,  spirit  to 
the  letter,*  and  the  homage  of  the  heart  to  legal  ceremonies.  More¬ 
over,  it  was  also  settled  from  eternity  that  she  should  be  informed 
at  the  time  of  which  we  speak,  that  this  interior  and  spiritual  wor¬ 
ship,  alone  capable  of  worthily  honoring  God  who  is  a  spirit,  was 
going  to  be  established  ;  nay,  that  it  actually  was  established,  inas¬ 
much  as  he  who  was  to  be  its  author  and  its  object — this  Messiah 
whose  coming  she  expected — he  himself  now  spoke  to  her,  and  she 
heard  his  voice.  All  these  great  truths,  I  say,  it  was  settled  that 
Jesus  Christ  should  reveal  unto  her,  and  that  independently  of  hei 
own  voluntary  effusions,  although  he  said  nothing  to  her  that  did 
not  seem  to  flow  naturally  from  her  own  discourse.  Nothing  is 
chance  in  the  eye  of  God.  Nothing  happens  in  the  universe  but 
what  he  has  foreseen,  but  what  he  has  wished,  and  what  has  its  first 
cause  in  his  decrees  ever  free,  yet  eternal  and  eternally  immutable. 
I  except  sin,  which,  like  all  the  rest,  he  hath  foreseen,  but  which  he 
can  only  permit,  and  which  he  makes  subservient  to  the  execution 
of  his  designs.  I  return  to  what  immediately  followed  the  discourse 
that  gave  rise  to  these  reflections. 

The  following  is  the  instruction  which  Christ  gave  to  his  disciples. 
As  they  found  him  exhausted  with  fatigue  and  hunger,  (a)  “  They 

(a)  St.  John,  iv.  31-43. 


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CHAP.  IX. J 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


prayed  liim,  saying  :  Rabbi,  eat.”  Every  occurrence  presented  to 
Jesus  an  occasion  of  instruction  and  edification:  water  bad  been 
such  for  the  Samaritan  ;  here  food  was  so  for  those  who  offered  it 
him.  “  I  have  meat  to  eat,  he  said  to  them,  vdiich  you  know  not. 
The  disciples  said  one  to  another  :  Hath  any  man  brought  him  to 
eat?  Jesus  saith  to  them  :  My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of  him  that 
sent  me,  that  I  may  perfect  his  work.”  He  then  added,  to  teach 
them  what  that  work  was  in  which  they  were  incessantly  to  co-op¬ 
erate  with  him  :  “  Do  not  you  say  there  are  yet  four  months,  and 
then  the  harvest  cometh  (14)?  Behold,  I  say  to  you  :  Lift  up  your 
eyes,  and  see  the  countries,  for  they  are  white  already  to  harvest.” 
The  apostles  did  not  say  what  Jesus  supposes  them  to  say.  These 
words,  “  there  are  yet  four  months,  and  then  the  harvest  cometh,” 
was  a  proverbial  way  of  saying  that  there  was  no  pressing  hurry, 
and  that  there  was  still  time  for  rest.  The  disciples  so  understood 
it  with  reference  to  the  functions  of  their  ministry.  Jesus  unde¬ 
ceives  them  by  showing  them  the  countries  all  yellowing  into  ripe¬ 
ness,  figurative  of  those  people  who  were  ready  to  receive  the  Gos¬ 
pel,  and  of  the  Samaritans  in  particular,  who,  at  the  moment  he  was 
speaking,  thronged  to  him  in  crowds.  Yet,  as  the  apostles  might 
have  said  to  him,  the  harvest  doth  not  come  till  after  seed-time, 
Jesus  Christ  informs  them  that  the  seed  was  already  sowed  by  the 
prophets  their  predecessors,  whose  toil,  though  at  first  sight  un¬ 
productive,  was  now  going  to  yield  a  harvest  that  should  glad¬ 
den  both  sowers  and  reapers  :  this  is  what  the  Saviour  meant  to 
convey  by  the  following  words:  “He  that  reapetli  receiveth  wa¬ 
ges,  and  gatheretli  fruit  unto  life  everlasting,  that  both  he  that 
soweth  and  he  that  reapetli  may  rejoice  together.  For  in  this  is 
the  saying  true  :  That  it  is  one  man  that  soweth,  and  it  is  another 
that  reapeth  (15).  I  have  sent  you  to  reap  that  in  which  you  did 


(14)  They  then  were  between  Easter  and  Pentecost,  and  it  is  known  that  Pentecost  is 
the  time  when  harvest  is  reaped  in  Palestine  :  a  proof  of  what  we  presently  state,  that 
this  was  a  proverb  of  the  country,  and  not  a  saying  of  the  apostles. 

(15)  This  proverb  only  has,  in  the  circumstances  in  which  used  by  Jesus  Christ,  half 
its  application.  It  signifies,  in  the  ordinary  application,  that  one  has  all  the  trouble,  an¬ 
other  all  the  profit.  Jesus  Christ  wishes  merely  to  convey  that  the  reaper  is  different 
from  the  sower,  although  one  and  the  other  were  equally  to  share  the  crop. 


7  0  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  1. 

not  labor:  others  have  labored,  and  you  have  entered  into  their 
labors  (16).” 

“  Now  many  of  the  Samaritans  of  that  city  believed  in  him  for 
the  word  of  the  woman  giving  testimony  (17):  He  told  me  all  things 
whatsoever  I  have  done.  So  when  the  Samaritans  were  come  to 
him,  they  desired  that  he  would  tarry  there,  and  he  abode  there 
two  days  ;  and  many  more  believed  in  him,  because  of  his  own 
word.  They  said  to  the  woman  (18):  We  now  believe  not  for  thy 
saying,  for  we  ourselves  have  heard  him,  and  know  that  this  is  in¬ 
deed  the  Saviour  of  the  world  (19).” 

After  the  two  days  which  Jesus  had  granted  to  the  earnest  so¬ 
licitations  of  the  Samaritans,  “he  departed  thence,  and  went  into 
Galilee.  For  Jesus  himself  gave  testimony  that  a  prophet  (20)  hath 


(16)  Have  not,  then,  the  apostles  toiled  as  much  as  the  prophets?  Yes,  but  when 
toiling  they  had  the  consolation  of  reaping  the’  fruit  of  their  labors.  Theirs  was  the  toil 
of  the  harvest-time,  wherein  pain  is  mingled  with  joy,  and  the  joy  exceeds  the  pain. 

Sow  always,  ye  laborers  in  the  field  of  the  Lord  :  the  seed  will  be  productive  at  the 
time  when  your  hopes  are  at  the  lowest  ;  or,  if  it  produce  nothing,  your  reward  is  not 
the  less  assured  by  a  Master  who  recompenses  the  toil,  and  not  the  success. 

(17)  It  is  strange  to  see  them  crediting  so  easily  the  testimony  of  a  lewd  woman. 
This  has  induced  some  to  believe  that  she  had  contrived  to  save  appearances,  and  pre¬ 
serve  the  reputation  of  a  decent  widow.  Whatever  weight  there  is  in  this  conjecture, 
grace  might  give  sufficient  force  to  the  word  of  a  disgraced  woman  to  make  her  find 
credence  in  people’s  minds,  and  to  make  this  trust  in  her  neither  precipitate  nor  impru¬ 
dent. 

(18)  This  woman,  according  to  Origen,  represents  the  Church.  We  believe  at  the 
present  day  on  her  testimony  ;  but  when  we  shall  have  the  happiness  to  see  Jesus  Christ 
face  to  face,  we  shall  say  with  the  Samaritans  :  We  believe  now  not  for  thy  saying,  for 
we  ourselves  have  heard  him,  and  know  that  this  is  indeed  the  Saviour  of  the  world. 

(19)  This  was  the  first  people  who  recognized  in  Jesus  Christ  the  amiable  character  of 
Saviour  of  the  world.  There  is  no  doubt  but  Jesus  Christ  declared  unto  them  who  he 
was,  and  we  see  here  what  faith  they  reposed  in  his  words  ;  but,  moreover,  they  who 
were  not  Jews,  and  who  expected  the  Messiah,  could  not  be  fettered  by  the  prejudice  of 
those  who  regarded  him  as  the  Saviour  of  the  Jews  merely  ;  wherefore  they  could  only 
expect  him  as  Saviour  of  the  world,  and  this,  therefore,  disposed  them  towards  the  be¬ 
lief  of  this  article  of  Christian  faith. 

(20)  Elsewhere  wc  shall  explain  this  sentence,  which  seemingly  Jesus  Christ  did  not 
advance,  but  Saint  John  gives  as  the  motive  of  the  journey  he  made  into  Galilee.  This 
forms  a  very  embarrassing  difficulty.  For  the  little  welcome  that  a  prophet  receives  in 
his  country  was  a  reason  for  Jesus  to  remain  in  Samaria,  where  he  was  so  well  received, 
and  not  to  leave  it  and  return  to  Galilee,  which  to  him  was  that  ungrateful  country, 
whose  disgraceful  proceedings  made  him  say  that  a  prophet  enjoys  no  consideration  in 


CHAP.  X.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  7l 

no  honor  in  his  own  country.  When  he  was  come  into  Galilee,  the 
Galileans  received  him,  having  seen  all  the  things  he  had  done  at 
Jerusalem  on  the  festival  day  ;  for  they  also  went  to  the  festival 
day.  (a)  And  the  fame  of  him  went  out  through  the  whole  coun¬ 
try.  He  taught  in  the  synagogues,  and  was  magnified  by  all.” 


CHAPTER  X.. 

AN  OFFICER’S  SON  HEALED. - CURE  OF  ONE  POSSESSED,  AND  OF  THE  MOTHER-IN-LAW 

OF  SAINT  PETER. - THREE  MEN  REPROVED. 

(b)  “  Jesus  came  again,  therefore,  into  Cana  of  Galilee,  where  he 
made  the  water  wine.  And  there  was  a  certain  ruler,  whose  son 
was  sick  at  Capharnaum.  He  having  heard  that  Jesus  was  come 
from  Judea  into  Galilee,  went  to  him,  and  prayed  him  to  come 
down  and  heal  his  son,  for  he  was  at  the  point  of  death.”  Since  he 
thus  had  recourse  to  Jesus  Christ,  he  may  have  some  time  previously 
commenced  believing  ;  but  his  incipient  faith  was  as  yet  merely  a 

(a)  St.  Luke,  iv.  14,  15.  (Z>)  St.  John,  iv.  46-54. 


his  country  and  among  his  kindred.  This  is  explained  by  saying  that  what  was  called 
the  Saviour’s  countiy  is  not  entire  Galilee,  but  solely  the  city  of  Nazareth,  whither  he 
did  not  wish  to  return,  for  the  reason  assigned  by  the  Evangelist,  choosing  rather  to  dwell 
at  Capharnaum  or  in  other  parts  of  Galilee.  This  explanation,  which  appeared  to  me 
more  satisfactory  than  five  or  six  others  given  by  the  interpreters,  is  still  far  from  being 
satisfactoiy.  Those  who  will  not  content  themselves,  may  consider  this  passage  as  not 
explained  :  what  inconvenience  can  resnlt  from  this  ?  There  are  enough  of  matters  clear 
in  Scripture  to  support  faith  and  maintain  piety.  Those  who  -wish  to  understand  every 
thing  are  not  aware  that  intelligence  of  every  thing  is  not  granted  to  all  ;  what  you  can¬ 
not  understand  another  does  understand,  and  the  latter  in  his  turn  does  not  understand 
what  you  do.  Besides,  the  explanations  which  are  not  satisfactoiy  to  me  are  so  to  others, 
and  there  is  no  decision  whether  they  or  I  judge  the  best.  Whatever  be  the  case,  let  us 
seek  and  ask  for  light  ;  yet  let  us  respect  the  obscurity  which  should  not  at  all  weaken 
the  faith  and  veneration  due  to  the  divine  Scriptures,  because,  as  I  have  said,  there  re¬ 
main  enough  of  things  so  clear  as  incontestably  to  assure  both  one  and  the  other.  And 
reason  alone  teaches  us  that  we  are  to  judge,  not  what  is  clear  by  what  is  obscure,  but 
what  is  obscure  by  that  which  is  clear. 


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doubt  to  be  resolved  into  true  faith,  once  he  had  seen  or  experi¬ 
enced  himself  the  truth  of  those  things  which  he  had  heard  con- 
cerning  the  Saviour.  Jesus,  aware  of  his  disposition,  reproached 
him  for  it  by  these  words  :  “  Unless  you  see  signs  and  wonders,  yoi 
believe  not.”  The  father,  who  was  entirely  engrossed  with  his  son’s 
danger,  “  saith  to  Jesus  :  Come  down,  Lord,  before  that  my  son  die. 
Go  thy  way,  saith  Jesus  to  him  ;  thy  son  liveth.”  This  efficacious 
expression  operated  simultaneously  upon  the  son’s  body  and  the 
father’s  soul.  “  He  believed  the  word  which  Jesus  said  to  him,  and 
went  his  way.”  The  next  day,  “  as  he  was  going  down,  his  servants 
met  him,  and  they  brought  him  word  that  his  son  lived.  He  asked 
therefore  of  them  the  hour  wherein  he  grew  better,  and  they  said 
to  him  :  Yesterday  at  the  seventh  hour  the  fever  left  him  (1).  The 
father  therefore  knew  that  it  was  at  the  same  hour  that  Jesus  said 
to  him  :  Thy  son  liveth  ;  and  himself  believed,  and  his  whole  house. 
This  is  again  the  second  miracle  (2)  that  Jesus  did,  when  he  was 
come  out  of  Judea  into  Galilee.” 

It  has  been  said  already  that  (a)  “  Jesus,  leaving  the  city  of  Naz¬ 
areth,  came  and  dwelt  in  Capharnaum  on  the  sea-coast,  in  the  bor¬ 
ders  of  Zabulon  and  of  Nephthalim.”  He  went  there  after  the  mir¬ 
acle  at  the  marriage  of  Cana,  (Z>)  “  he  and  his  mother,  his  brethren 
and  his  disciples.”  But  as  “  the  pasch  of  the  Jews  was  at  hand,  they 
remained  there  not  many  days,”  during  which  they  scarcely  had 
time  to  do  more  than  prepare  their  place  of  abode.  Jesus  returned 
thither  again  from  Cana,  (<?)  “  and  forthwith,”  when  he  had  arrived 
there,  “  upon  the  Sabbath-day,  going  into  the  synagogue,  he  taught 


(а)  St.  Matthew,  iv.  13. 

(б)  St.  John,  ii.  12,  13. 


(c)  St.  Mark,  i.  21-26  ;  St. 
Luke,  iv.  35. 


(1)  One  hour  after  mid-day. 

(2)  The  second  which  he  wrought  in  this  journey  from  Judea  to  Galilee  ;  or  the  second 
which  he  wrought  in  Galilee,  counting  as  the  first  the  miracle  at  the  marriage  feast  of 
Cana,  which  he  wrought  in  like  manner  after  arriving  from  Judea  ;  or  perhaps  the  Evan¬ 
gelist  merely  remarks  those  which  Jesus  wrought  under  the  special  circumstances  of  his 
return,  because  they  signalized  his  arrival  in  the  country,  and  disposed  the  people  to  re¬ 
ceive  him  and  hearken  to  him.  The  interpreters  are  divided  upon  these  different  expla¬ 
nations,  among  which  it  is  optional  to  choose  whichever  we  find  best,  without  being 
fearful  of  falling  into  any  prejudicial  error. 


CHAP.  X.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


73 


them.  They  were  astonished  at  his  doctrine  ;  for  he  was  teaching 
them  as  one  (3)  having  power,  and  not  a3  the' Scribes.  There  was 
in  their  synagogue  a  man  with  an  unclean  spirit  ;  he  cried  out,  say¬ 
ing:  What  have  we  to  do  with  thee,  Jesus  of  Nazareth?  art  thou 
come  to  destroy  us  ?  I  know  who  thou  art,  the  Holy  One  of  God.” 
It  is  hard  to  say  what  motive  made  him  speak  thus  ;  but,  whether 
he  hoped  to  soften  Jesus  Christ  by  flattery,  or  whether  his  design 
was  to  spite  him  in  some  manner  by  divulging  his  divinity,  which 
the  Saviour  wished  to  make  known  by  degrees  only,  still  it  is  quite 
certain  that  his  intention  was  bad.  Wherefore  Jesus  Christ,  who 
did  not  wish  to  be  at  all  indebted  to  such  evidence,  imposed  silence 
upon  him  (4),  “  and  threatened  him,  saying  :  Speak  no  more,  and  go 


(3)  Jesus  spoke  as  a  lawgiver,  and  the  Scribes  merci}-  as  interpreters  of  the  law.  He 
had  the  power  of  working  miracles,  and  they  had  not.  In  these  two  respects  he  had 
an  advantage  which  they  could  neither  contest  nor  assume  to  themselves.  But  there 
were  others  in  which  they  might  have  imitated,  if  not  equalled  him  ;  and  failing  in  these, 
their  ministry  was  stripped  of  dignity,  and  their  word  of  efficacy.  Jesus  Christ  prac¬ 
tised  what  he  taught,  while  the  acts  of  the  Scribes  notoriously  belied  their  doctrines. 
Jesus  Christ  had  only  in  view  the  glory  of  his  Father,  and  the  salvation  of  men,  while 
the  Scribes  sought  nothing  but  their  own  glory  and  the  spoils  of  the  widow,  whose 
house  they  devoured,  after  having  insinuated  themselves,  by  their  hypocrisy,  into  esteem 
and  respect.  The  zeal  of  Christ  was  authorized  by  example,  and  ennobled  by  that 
perfect  devotedness  which,  forgetful  of  self,  seeks  only  the  salvation  of  those  for  whom 
it  is  exercised.  What  tone  may  not  such  zeal  assume? — of  who  can  resist  the  power 
which  both  reason  and  nature  confer  upon  it  ?  That  of  the  Scribes  being,  on  the  con¬ 
trary,  inspired  by  pride  and  self-interest,  could  not  be  made  to  appear  natural,  when  it 
was  only  artificial  ;  nor  dignified,  since  it  must  have  been  changeful  as  the  chameleon — 
having  to  pass  incessantly  from  severity  to  indulgence,  from  censure  to  adulation.  Nor 
could  it  have  authority,  because  through  all  its  grimaces  were  seen,  at  one  time  the 
shifts  and  artifices  of  inordinate  vanity,  and  at  another  the  selfish  schemes  of  interest, 
these  being  the  evident  springs  of  action,  determining  and  guiding  its  course. 

He  who  acts  not,  but  only  talks,  is  a  babbler.  He  who  speaks  for  the  love  of  praise 
is  a  declaimer.  He  who  speaks  only  for  vile  profit  might  be  called  a  buffoon,  if  his 
abuse  of  the  divine  word,  by  employing  it  for  his  own  base  purpose,  did  not  aggravate 
his  crime  into  sacrilege. 

(4)  The  disciples  have  imitated  their  Master  in  this  point.  When  the  demon  said  by 
the  mouth  of  the  girl  having  a  pythonioal  spirit  :  These  men  are  the  servants  of  the  most 
high  God,  who  preach  unto  you  the  way  of  salvation  ;  Paul,  being  grieved,  turned  and 
said  to  the  spirit  :  I  command  thee,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  to  go  out  from  her 
(Acts,  xvi.)  Coming  from  the  father  of  lies,  every  thing,  even  truth,  should  be  sus¬ 
pected.  When  he  speaks  truth,  he  does  so  to  make  it  subservient  to  lying. 

Like  father,  like  sons,  Luther  zealously  defended  the  dogma  of  the  real  presence 


1 


y/t 


w—j - T  T niw 


74 


THE  HISTORY  OF  TIIE  LIFE 


LPART  L 


out  of  the  man.  The  unclean  spirit  tearing  him,  had  thrown  him 
into  the  midst,  and,  crying  out  with  a  loud  voice,  went  out  of  him, 
and  hurt  him  not  at  all.”  This  impotent  rage  was,  for  those  who 
might  have  doubted  the  fact,  proof  of  the  possession,  and  of  the  di¬ 
vine  strength  of  him  before  whom  all  the  powers  of  hell  are  sheer 
weakness,  (a)  “  There  came  fear  upon  all”  present,'  at  this  prodigy, 
and  all  “  were  amazed  (5),  insomuch  that  they  questioned  among 
themselves  :  What  thing  is  this  ?  What  is  this  new  doctrine  (6)  ? 
For  with  authority  he  commancleth  even  the  unclean  spirits,  and 
they  obey  him.  And  the  fame  of  him  was  spread  forthwith  into  all 
the  country  of  Galilee.” 

Jesus,  after  this  miracle,  might  have  chosen  a  residence  in  any  of 
the  principal  houses  in  the  city  ;  for  it  would  have  been  considered 
a  high  honor  to  receive  and  splendidly  entertain  him.  He  gave  the 
preference  to  that  house  whither  friendship  called  him,  and  whose 
poverty  attracted  instead  of  repelling  him.  (b)  “  Immediately 
rising  up  out  of  the  synagogue  they  came,  Jesus  with  James*  and 
John,  into  the  house  of  Simon  and  Andrew.”  The  occasion  which 
Jesus  there  found  for  exercising  his  charity  was  a  further  reason  for 
his  visit.  “  Simon’s  wife’s  mother  lay  in  a  fit  of  fever.  Forthwith 
they  tell  him,  and  they  besought  him  for  her.  (c)  Coming  to  her, 
he  lifted  her  up,  taking  her  by  the  hand  :  and  immediately  the 
fever  left  her,  and  she  ministered  unto  them.”  Many  other  sick 
persons  desired  and  hoped  for  the  like  favor.  But  they  must  be 
brought  to  him,  and  the  repose  of  the  Sabbath-day,  which  it  is  well 
known  was  scrupulously  observed  by  the  Jews,  had  hindered  their 

(a)  St.  Luke,  iv.  36  ;  St.  Mark,  (c)  St.  Mark,  i.  31  ;  St.  Luke, 

i.  27,  28.  iv.  39. 

( b )  St.  Mark,  i.  29,  30  ;  St.  Luke,  iv.  38. 


against  the  Sacramentarians.  This  seeming  zeal  imposed  upon  the  simple,  and,  by  com¬ 
bating  the  Zuinglians,  he  created  Lutherans. 

(5)  What  caused  this  great  astonishment  was,  that  this  possessed  is  the  first  whom 
Jesus  Christ  had  delivered.  He  soon  familiarized  the  Jews  to  this  prodigy,  one  of  these 
which  he  worked  most  frequently  ;  and  his  disciples  subsequently  accustomed  the 
universe  to  it.  This  power  has  remained  in  the  Church,  who  employs  it  with  efficacy 
in  incontestable  cases  of  possession.  Yet  they  are  become  rare. 

(6)  Who  is  this  new  teacher  who  speaks  such  new  and  such  wonderful  things  ? 


/F 

«  ^4 

^  Ci 


1 


4  4 


ra- 


CHAP.  X.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


neighbors  from  rendering  them  this  charitable  office.  This  obliga¬ 
tion  ended  with  the  light  of  day,  in  accordance  with  that  law  of 
Leviticus  :  (a)  “  It  is  a  Sabbath  of  rest,  and  you  shall  afflict  your 
souls  beginning  on  the  ninth  day  of  the  month  :  from  evening  until 
evening  you  shall  celebrate  your  Sabbaths.”  (1>)  “  It  was,”  there¬ 
fore,  only  “  when  it  was  evening,  after  sunset,  they  brought  to  Jesus 
all  that  wrere  ill  and  that  were  possessed  with  devils,  (c)  All  the 
city  was  gathered  together  at  the  door.  Jesus,  laying  his  hands  on 
every  one  of  them,  healed  many  (7)  that  were  troubled  with  divers 
diseases  :  he  cast  out  many  devils  with  his  word,  and  all  that  were 
sick  he  healed,  that  it  might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken,”  of  the 
evils  of  the  body  as  well  as  those  of  the  soul,  “by  the  prophet 
Isaias:  He  took  our  infirmities  and  bore  our  diseases,  (d)  The 
devils  went  out  of  many,  crying  out  and  saying  :  Thou  art  the  Son 
of  God.  Rebuking  them,  he  suffered  them  not  to  speak,  for  they 
knew  that  he  was  Christ.” 

But  he  was  not  to  confine  his  instructions  or  his  bounties  to  a 
single  city,  and  he  foresaw  the  efforts  that  would  be  made  here  to 
arrest  him.  On  which  account,  (<?)  “  rising  very  early,  going  out, 
he  went  into  a  desert  place,  and  there  he  prayed.”  'This  was  appa¬ 
rently  the  spot  agreed  upon,  whither  “  Simon  and  they  that  were 
with  him  followed  after  Jesus.  And  when  they  had  found  him, 
they  said  to  him  :  All  seek  for  thee.  He  said  to  them  :  Let  us  go 
into  the  neighboring  towns  and  cities,  that  I  may  preach  there  also  ; 
for  to  this  purpose  am  I  come.”  In  the  mean  time,  the  inhabitants, 
who  became  apprised  of  his  departure,  rushed  out  of  the  city,  (  /) 
“  and  the  multitudes  sought  him.  They  came  unto  him  ;  and  they 
stayed  him  that  he  should  not  depart  from  them.  To  whom  he 
said,”  as  before  to  his  disciples  :  “  To  other  cities  also  I  must  preach 
the  kingdom  of  God  ;  for  therefore  am  I  sent.”  After  this  reply, 


(7)  All  were  healed,  as  is  narrated  subsequently,  and  the  word  many  is  employed 
here  to  signify  that  they  were  a  great  number. 


(a)  Leviticus,  xxiir.  32. 

(i)  St.  Mark,  i.  32. 

(c)  St.  Luke,  iv.  40  ;  St.  Mark,  i.  34  ; 
St.  Matthew,  viii.  16,  17. 


(d)  St.  Luke,  iv.  41. 

( e )  St.  Mark,  i.  35-38. 

(  /)  St.  Luke,  iv.  42.  43 


si;-  :a 

WM 

3 

•.Vi!'- 


r~m — ']  '  '*'£1  1  f”7 


TIIR  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


YG 

which,  whilst  it  informed  them  of  liis  resolution  to  leave  them  for  a 
time,  did  not  deprive  them  of  all  hope  of  seeing  him  again,  they  in¬ 
sisted  no  more.  («)  “  And  Jesus  went  about  all  Galilee,  teaching  in 
their  synagogues,  and  preaching  the  Gospel  of  the  kingdom  of  God , 
healing  all  manner  of  sickness  and  every  infirmity  among  the  peo¬ 
ple.  His  fame  went  throughout  all  Syria,  and  they  presented  to 
him  all  sick  people  that  were  taken  with  divers  diseases  and  tor¬ 
ments,  such  as  were  possessed  by  devils,  and  lunatics  (8),  and  those 
that  had  the  palsy,  and  he  cured  them  :  and  much  people  followed 
him  from  Galilee,  from  Decapolis  (9),  from  Jerusalem,  from  Judea, 
and  from  beyond  the  Jordan. 

(/>)  “  Jesus  seeing  great  multitudes  about  him,  gave  orders  to  pass 
over  the  water.”  After  he  had  reached  the  opposite  side,  (6)  “  as 
he  walked  in  the  way,  a  certain  Scribe  came  and  said  to  him  :  Mas¬ 
ter,  I  will  follow  thee  whithersoever  thou  shalt  go.  Jesus,”  to  teach 
him  by  what  sacrifices  he  should  merit  the  honor  of  being  his  fol¬ 
lower,  “saith  to  him:  The  foxes  have  holes,  and  the  birds  of  the 
air  nests,  but  the  Son  of  man  hath  not  where  to  lay  his  head  (10).” 
It  was  not  difficult  to  convince  .this  doctor  that  the  disciple  should 
not  expect  to  be  better  off  than  the  master,  and  he  must  have  found 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  iv.  23-25.  (c)  St.  Luke,  ix.  5 7  ;  St.  Matthew, 

( b )  St.  Matthew,  viii.  18.  viii.  19,  20. 


(8)  The  epileptic  and  fools  with  lucid  intervals  are  denominated  by  thie  term.  Their 
fits  were  anciently  attributed  to  lunar  influence  ;  and  from  this  they  derived  their  name. 
In  later  times  the  error  of  the  conjecture  was  ascertained,  yet  the  name  has  remained  ; 
and  because  the  name  remains,  the  error  is  still  prevalent  in  the  minds  of  the  multitude, 
who  easily  believe  things  to  be  what  they  are  called. 

(9)  This  word  signifies  the  country  of  ten  cities.  It  was  situated  to  the  north  and 
west  of  the  sea  of  Tiberias,  among  the  tribes  of  Zabulon  and  Nephthalim.  Writers  are 
not  perfectly  agreed  now-a-days  as  to  its  limits,  nor  upon  the  names  of  several  of  its 
cities. 

(10)  Poverty  has  several  degrees  among  men.  That  of  animals,  generally  speaking, 
surpasses  that  of  even  those  men  whom  we  reckon  poorest.  Among  animals,  those 
which  men  take  no  care  of,  and  which,  abandoned  to  themselves,  have  neither  park 
whither  they  may  retire,  nor  stable  wherein  to  shelter,  may  be  deemed  poorest  of  all. 
Yet  still  these  have,  some  of  them  their  nests,  others  their  dens  ;  and  in  that  respect 
they  have  more  than  Jesus  Christ.  Such  is  the  poverty  to  which,  for  us,  the  Son  of 
man  has  reduced  himself  ;  he  who,  at  the  same  time,  is  the  only  Son  of  the  Most  High 
If  this  comparison  wei'e  not  his  own,  should  we  dare  to  make  it  ? 


CHAP.  X.] 


OF  OUE  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


himself  far  indeed  from  his  expectations,  if  it  be  true,  as  is  generally 
thought,  that  when  tendering  himself  to  Jesus  Christ  with  such  ap¬ 
parent  generosity  of  purpose,  his  sole  aim  was  his  own  fortune, 
which  he  thought  to  make  by  attaching  himself  to  this  Messiah,  of 
whom  he  had  no  more  correct  ideas  than  the  bulk  of  his  nation. 
Another  truth,  of  which  he  seems  to  have  been  ignorant,  is,  that 
Jesus  Christ,  who  was  not  always  foEowecl  by  those  whom  he  called 
to  be  his  followers,  never  was  followed,  and  never  could  be  followed, 
except  by  those  whom  he  first  called,  (a)  “Jesus”  taught  him  this 
by  saying  “to  another”  in  the  throng:  “Follow  me.”  This  latter 
was  already  one  of  his  disciples,  but  yet  not  so  as  to  be  inseparably 
attached  to  him.  Having  now  received  such  a  special  call  by  this 
second  vocation,  (IS)  “  he  said  to  Mm  :  Lord,  suffer  me  first  to  go  and 
bury  my  father.”  He  meant  by  this  to  assist  his  father  in  his  ex¬ 
treme  old  age,  and  not  to  quit  him  until  he  had  closed  his  eyes. 
For  if,  as  some  have  thought,  he  had  received  recent  intelligence  of 
the  death  or  extremity  of  his  father,  it  is  natural  to  suppose  that 
this  man,  who  had  not  as  yet  fettered  himself  by  final  engage¬ 
ments  with  Jesus  Christ,  would  have  hurried  off  on  the  spot,  and  if 
he  weje  in  the  act  of  asking  permission  from  Jesus  Christ,  even  sup¬ 
posing  he  had  asked  him,  he  never  would  have  calmly  tarried  until 
the  Lord  issued  the  unexpected  order  to  follow  him.  (o)  “  Jesus 
said  to  him  :  Follow  me  :  Let  the  dead  bury  their  dead  (11).”  That 
is  to  say,  let  the  children  of  the  world  take  care  of  the  things  of  the 
world  (12).  “  But  ho  thou,”  he  added  to  him,  “  and  preach  the  king¬ 
dom  of  God.” 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ix.  59.  (6)  St.  Matthew,  viii.  21.  (c)  St.  Matthew,  viii.  22. 


(11)  Let  the  dead  of  soul  take  the  care  of  burying  those  who  are  dead  both  in  soul 
and  body.  The  world  is  full  of  dead,  and  those  who  are  mourned  for  are  not  more  to 
be  pitied  than  the  other  class,  because  death  of  the  body,  which  is  the  only  subject  of 
tears,  impresses  the  last  seal  upon  the  death  of  the  soul,  for  which  we  never  think  of 
shedding  tears,  although  it  is  only  by  the  latter  that  the  former  death  is  rendered  truly 
deplorable. 

(12)  This  saying  of  our  Saviour  still  serves  to  strengthen  the  constancy  of  those 
whom  God  calls  to  a  perfect  state  against  the  efforts  which  the  world  makes  to  retain 
them.  The  world  even  adopts  it  in  worldly  concerns,  and  would  be  the  first  to  treat 
as  a  rebel  or  a  coward  whoever  would  oppose  to  an  order  for  marching  in  the  service 


'VAu.m 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIEE 


To  these  two  transactions  which  are  reported  in  the  same  way  by 
Saint  Matthew  and  by  Saint  Luke,  the  latter  adds  a  third,  supposed 
not  to  have  taken  place  upon  this  same  day,  yet  which  the  Evan¬ 
gelist  thought  proper  to  place  here,  on  account  of  the  resemblance 
it  bears  to  the  two  preceding,  (a)  “  Another  (man  also )  said  :  I 
will  follow  thee,  Lord,  but  let  me  first  take  my  leave  of  them  that 
are  at  my  house.”  It  does  not  appear  by  his  request  that  he  sought 
to  pursue  a  different  course  of  action  from  that  which  was  subse¬ 
quently  by  Jesus  Christ  himself  recommended  to  the  young  man  to 
whom  he  said:  (Jj)  “Go,  sell  what  thou  hast;  give  to  the  poor  ;  and 
come,  follow  me.”  But  apparently  the  renunciation  he  was  project¬ 
ing  was  one  requiring  a  very  long  discussion,  for  (<?)  “Jesus  said  to 
him  :  No  man  putting  his  hand  to  the  plough,  and  looking  back,  is 
fit  for  the  kingdom  of  God  ;”  giving  him  to  understand  by  these 
words,  that  if  there  are  in  the  world  certain  professions,  requiring 
from  those  who  pursue  them  connected  and  uninterrupted  attention, 
such  as  that  of  a  laborer  wdio  never  could  plough  a  furrow  straight, 
if  he  amused  himself  looking  behind,  and  let  the  horses  tread  off 
right  and  left  as  they  pleased  ;  such  for  a  much  stronger  reason  is 
the  apostleship,  the  most  laborious,  as  well  as  the  most  sublime  of 
all  ministries,  and  one  that  requires  imperatively  the  entire  man, 
which  is  tantamount  to  the  saying  of  Saint  Paul  (13)  :  (d)  “  No 


(a)  St.  Luke,  ix.  60,  61. 

( b )  St.  Matthew,  xix.  21. 


(c)  St.  Luke,  ix.  62. 

(i d )  II.  Timothy,  ii.  4. 


of  a  prince,  the  most  pressing  duties  of  nature.  Yet  the  world  chafes  with  indignation 
when  hearing  the  words  applied  to  the  service  of  God  ;  and  cruelty  is  the  mildest  term 
which  is  then  given  to  piety.  Then,  is  the  world  in  contradiction  with  itself?  No; 
for  it  thinks,  and,  if  you  press  the  matter  a  little,  will  tell  you  that  a  prince  is  of  more 
consequence  than  God,  the  earth  is  of  more  value  than  heaven,  and  that  care  of  the 
body  is  preferable  to  the  salvation  of  souls. 

(13)  Perhaps  Jesus  Christ  only  wished  to  give  this  man  notice  to  weigh  maturely 
the  step  he  was  desirous  of  taking,  and  thus  to  anticipate  the  regret  which  might  be 
caused  by  the  reminiscence  of  those  goods  he  had  too  inconsiderately  renounced.  Such 
a  result  would  be  doubly  mischievous  to  him,  since,  when  stripped  of  every  thing  by  a 
sacrifice  he  might  repent,  his  repenting  thereof  would  render  him  unworthy  of  the  per¬ 
fect  state  for  which  he  had  sacrificed  every  thing.  The  explanation  inserted  in  the 
text  is  that  of  the  majority  of  interpreters.  This,  which  is  not  so  followed  by  the 
learned,  seems  to  be  the  popular  interpretation.  For  when  it  is  said,  that  when  put- 


V'l 

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J'k 


man,  being  a  .soldier  to  God,  entangletli  liimself  with  secular  busi¬ 
nesses  (14).” 


CHAPTER  XI. 


TOE  TEMPEST  STILLED. - TWO  DEMONIACS  CURED. - SWINE  PRECIPTIATED  INTO  THE 

SEA. - PARALYTIC  CURED. — VOCATION  OF  SAINT  MATTHEW. - JESUS  EATS  AMONGST 

SINNERS. - DISPUTE  RELATIVE  TO  FASTING.  ' 


On  that  same  day  (a)  “  Jesus,  when  evening  was  come,  saith  to 
his  disciples:  Let  us  pass  over  to  the  other  side.  And,  sending 
away  the  multitude,  he  went  into  a  little  ship  with  them.  They 
launched  forth,  and  there  were  other  ships  with  him.  When  they 
were  sailing,  Jesus  slept.  Behold,  a  great  tempest  arose  in  the  sea  : 
there  came  down  a  storm  of  wind  upon  the  lake,  and  the  waves  beat 
into  the  ship,  so  that  it  was  covered.  The  ship  was  filled,  and  they 
were  in  danger.  ( b )  Jesus  was  in  the  hinder  part  of  the  ship,  sleep¬ 
ing  upon  a  pillow  (1).  His  disciples  came  to  him  and  awaked  him. 


(a)  St.  Mark,  iv.  35  ;  St.  Luke, 
viii.  22,  23. 


( b )  St.  Matthew,  viii.  25,  26  ; 
St.  Mark,  iv.  38-40. 


ting  hand  to  the  plough  no  man  should  look  back  again,  the  common  meaning  is,  that 
when  once  a  first  step  has  been  taken,  we  must  support  it  with  constancy,  and  not  re¬ 
trace  our  steps. 

(14)  Of  these  three  men,  it  is  thought  that  only  the  second  followed  Jesus  Christ. 
The  conclusion  is  probable  enough,  from  the  fact  of  his  being  the  only  one  to  whom 
Jesus  Christ  said,  and  that  even  twice:  Follow  me.  He  therefore  had  a  vocation, 
which  the  two  others,  who  came  to  offer  themselves,  had  not.  Moreover,  the  difficulty 
which  he  made  for  the  present  moment  sprang  from  a  good  principle,  and  apparently 
from  the  persuasion  he  was  under,  that  the  assistance  he  meant  to  give  his  father  was 
to  him  a  duty  from  which  he  could  not  dispense  himself  without  crime.  And,  in 
point  of  fact,  before  the  great  maxims  of  the  Gospel  had  appeared  to  the  world,  what 
obligation  could  be  more  binding  ? 

(1)  This  sleep  was  not  counterfeit,  as  some  have  unreasonably  contended.  Jesus 
Christ  truly  slept,  and  had  assumed  this  weakness  of  our  nature  with  all  the  others. 
Yet  there  was  this  difference,  that  sleep  which  suspended  the  use  of  the  senses  in  the 
rest  of  mankind,  never  deprived  him  of  knowledge.  His  mind  actually  knew  every 
thing,  and  thought  of  every  thing  ;  but  he  saw  nothing,  and  lie  heard  nothing,  with  the 
eyes  or  ears  of  the  body.  He  might  say  of  himself,  and  to  the  letter  :  I  sleep  ;  but  my 
heart  (and  mind)  watcheth  (Cant.  5). 


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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


Lord,  say  they  to  him,  save  us,  or  we  perish.  Doth  it  not  concern 
thee  that  we  perish?  Jesus,”  who  chose  to  see  in  this  reproach  only 
the  effect  of  their  terror,  merely  “  saitli  to  them”  the  following  words  : 
“  Why  are  you  fearful,  O  ye  of  little  faith  ?  Then,  rising  up,  he  re¬ 
buked  the  wind,  and  said  to  the  sea  :  Peace,  be  still.  And  the  wind 
ceased,  and  there  was  made  a  great  calm  ;  and  he  said  to  them”  a 
second  time,  but  in  a  milder  tone  than  at  first,  when  it  required  a 
firm  tone  to  quiet  their  apprehensions  ;  (a)  “  Why  are  you  fearful  ? 
Have  you  not  faith  ?  yet  they  feared  exceedingly  ;”  but  their  fear 
was  now  of  a  very  different  sort  ;  “  and  they  said  one  to  another  : 
Who  is  this,  thinkest  thou,  that  he  commandeth  both  the  winds  and 
the  sea  ;  and  both  wind  and  sea  obey  him  ?” 

It  has  been  thought  that  the  demons  had  excited  the  frightful 
tempest  we  have  just  spoken  of.  The  following  narrative,  by  in¬ 
forming  us  what  interest  they  had  in  thwarting  this  journey,  gives 
ground  to  the  conjecture: — W7hen  the  calm  returned,  they  continued 
to  sail  onward,  (Z>)  “  and  they  came  over  the  strait  of  the  sea,  on  the 
other  side  of  the  water,  to  the  country  of  the  Gerasens,  which  is 
over  against  Galilee.  As  Jesus  went  out  of  the  ship,  there  met  him 
two  that  were  possessed  until  devils,  coming  out  of  the  sepulchres, 
exceeding  fierce,  so  that  none  could  pass  by  that  way.”  One  of  the 
two,  apparently  the  best  known,  and,  for  this  reason,  the  only  one 
spoken  of  by  two  of  the  three  Evangelists  who  recount  this  fact, 
(o')  “  had  a  devil  now  a  very  long  time,”  and  that  in  a  very  violent 
manner.  “  He  wore  no  clothes  ;  neither  did  he  abide  in  a  house, 
but  in  the  sepulchres.  Ho  man  now  could  bind  him,  not  even  with 
chains.  For  having  been  often  bound  with  fetters  and  chains,  he 
had  burst  the  chains  and  broken  the  fetters  in  pieces,  and  no  one 
could  tame  him.  He  was  always  day  and  night  in  the  monu¬ 
ments  (2),  and  in  the  mountains,  crying,  and  cutting  himself  with 

(a)  St.  Mark,  iv.  40  ;  St.  Luke,  (b)  St.  Mark,  v.  1  ;  St.  Luke,  viii.  26,  27  ; 

viii.  35.  St.  Matthew,  viii.  28. 

(c)  St.  Luke,  viii.  27  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  3-6. 


(2)  The  sepulchres  of  the  Jews  were  outside  the  towns.  They  were  grottoes  built 
of  stone  and  brick,  like  our  cellars,  or  hewn  out  of  the  rock,  as  was  that  of  Jesus  Christ  ; 
which  shows  that  they  were  spacious  enough  for  a  living  man  to  dwell  therein.  We 


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f2 


CHAP. 


OUR  LORD 


stones,  (a)  Seeing  Jesus  afar  off,  lie  ran,  and  adored  him  ;  and  they 
loth  cried  out,”  at  the  same  time,  or  rather  the  demons,  by  their 
organ  :  “  What  have  we  to  do  with  thee,  Jesus,  Son  of  the  Most  High 
God?  Art  thou  come  hither  to  torment  us  before  the  time (3)? 
I  adjure  thee  by  God  that  thou  torment  me  not,”  added  the  devil 
who  possessed  the  unfortunate  man  we  have  just  been  speaking  of. 
“For  Jesus  commanded  the  unclean  spirit  to  go  out  of  the  man,  and 
said  unto  him  :  Go.  out  of  the  man,  thou  unclean  spirit.”  When  the 
unclean  spirit  still  lingered,  “Jesus,”  who  desired  to  make  manifest 
the  splendor  of  his  victory  over  the  powers  of  hell,  (b)  “  asked  him  : 
What  is  thy  name  ?  My  name  is  Legion,  he  said,  for  we  are  many. 
Because  [in  reality]  many  devils  were  entered  into  him.  The  de¬ 
mons,”  forced  by  the  word  of  Jesus  to  depart  thence,  (c)  “  besought 
him  much  that  he  would  not  drive  them  out  of  the  country,  and 
that  he  would  not  command  them  to  go  into  the  abyss.  There  was 
then  a  herd  of  many  swine  feeding  on  the  mountain.  The  devils 
besought  him,  saying  :  If  thou  cast  us  out  hence,  send  us  into  the 
swine,  that  we  may  enter  into  them  (4).  Jesus  immediately  gave 
leave  to  them  ;  and  the  unclean  spirits  going  out,  entered  into  the 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  viii.  29  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  *7  ;  ( b )  St.  Luke,  viii.  30,  31,  32  ;  St. 

St.  Luke,  viii.  29  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  8.  Mark,  v.  9,  10. 

(c)  St.  Matthew,  viii.  31  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  12,  13. 


also  read  of  the  sepulchre  of  Jesus  Christ,  that  Peter  and  John  entered  there,  as  well  as 
the  holy  women  who  came  to  embalm  the  body  of  the  Saviour. 

(3)  This  saying  induced  several  ancient  interpreters  of  respectable  authority  to  believe 
that  the  demons  were  not  as  yet  tormented,  and  that  they  should  not  commence  their 
torments  until  after  the  last  judgment.  This  opinion  is  now-a-days  abandoned,  and  the 
prevailing  one  now  in  the  Church  is,  that  the  demons  suffer,  and  have  suffered  from  the 
time  of  their  fall  ;  and  that,  wherever  they  go,  they  carry  their  hell  along  with  them. 
Yet  they  retain  a  relic  of  liberty,  and  the  pleasure  of  doing  injury.  Now,  they  will  lose 
both  one  and  the  other  when,  after  the  last  judgment,  they  shall  be  closed  up  in  the 
abyss,  whence  they  shall  never  more  be  permitted  to  emerge.  They  were  apprehensive 
lest  Jesus  Christ,  who  waged  against  them  so  terrible  a  war,  might  precipitate  them 
there  before  that  time.  Hence  their  complaints  and  their  entreaties  not  to  command  them 
to  go  into  the  abyss. 

(4)  vVmong  the  many  motives  which  are  supposed  to  have  induced  them  to  make 
such  a  demand,  the  most  likely  is,  that,  unable  any  longer  to  torment  men  in  their 
bodies  and  in  their  souls,  they  desired  to  be  allowed  to  cause  them  damage  in  their 
goods. 


M 


82  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I. 

swine.  Tlie  liercl,  being  about  two  thousand,  ran  violently  down 
a  steep  place  into  the  sea,  and  they  perished  in  the  waters  (5). 
(a)  Which  when  they  that  fed  them  saw  done,  they  fled,  and  told 
in  the  city  and  in  the  villages  every  thing  ;  and  concerning  them 
that  had  been  possessed  by  the  devil.  The  whole  city  went  out  to 
meet  Jesus,  to  see  what  was  done,  (h)  They  came  to  Jesus,  and 
found  the  man  out  of  whom  the  devils  were  departed  sitting  at  his 
feet,  clothed,  and  in  his  right  mind,  and  they  were  afraid.  They 
also  that  had  seen  told  them  in  what  manner  he  had  been  dealt 

(a)  St.  Luke,  viii.  34  ;  St.  Matthew,  ( b )  St.  Luke,  viii.  35  ;  St.  Mark, 

viii.  33,  34.  v,  15,  16. 


(5)  To  say  the  least,  it  would  be  very  improper  to  imagine  that,  in  granting  this  leave, 
Jesus  Christ  committed  a  wrong  towards  those  to  whom  the  flock  belonged.  The 
earth  is  the  Lord's,  and  the  fulness  thereof. — Psalm  xxiii.  Wherefore,  he  can  take  from 
us,  when  he  pleases,  those  goods  which  we  hold  from  his  pure  liberality  ;  and  the  reli¬ 
gious  man  says  then,  as  the  holy  man,  Job  :  The  Lord  hath  given,  the  Lord  hath  taken 
away  ;  blessed  be  the  name  of  the  Lord.  Yet  still,  we  are  surprised  that  Jesus  Christ, 
the  meekest  of  all  men,  whose  every  step  was  marked  by  so  many  benefits,  should  have 
caused,  or  at  least  permitted,  on  this  single  occasion,  a  species  of  damage.  The  answer 
given  is  1st.  That  in  transferring  the  swine  to  the  power  which  the  demons  exercised 
previously  over  men,  he  performed  a  much  greater  good  than  the  evil  which  he  permitted  ; 
for,  whatever  notions  on  the  subject  may  be  entertained  by  certain  modern  philosophers, 
two  men,  or  even  one  man,  is  of  more  value  than  two  thousand  swine.  2d.  Jesus  Christ 
punished  the  Gerasenians.  If  Jews,  they  deserved  this  ;  for  keeping,  as  they  did,  such 
a  great  quantity  of  these  animals,  the  use  of  which  was  interdicted  by  law,  was  furnish¬ 
ing  an  immediate  occasion  of  prevarication  to  all  the  people  of  the  surrounding  district. 
But  some  have  thought  the  inhabitants  of  Geresa  were  Greeks,  and  a  portion  of  the  col 
ony  of  Gadara,  an  adjacent  city,  where  the  emperors  had  granted  a  right  to  the  Greeks 
to  form  an  establishment.  In  this  case,  they,  too,  deserved  to  be  punished,  on  account 
of  their  excessive  attachment  to  these  vile  animals,  which  they  preferred  to  the  word  of 
God,  that  Jesus  Christ  came  to  announce  to  them.  This  is  apparent  by  the  prayer  they 
made  Jesus  Christ,  to  retire  from  them,  not  venturing  to  endeavor  to  force  him.  Now, 
not  to  prefer  God  to  those  goods  which  he  has  given  to  us,  deserves  that  he  should  take 
them  from  us.  May  we  not  add,  that  he  then  takes  them  away  in  point  of  fact  ?  or 
that  he  only  leaves  them  for  the  misfortune  of  those  who,  by  this  unworthy  preference, 
deserve  no  favor  on  his  part,  or  only  merit  those  goods,  the  possession  of  which  is  of 
greater  mischief  than  their  privation  ? 

The  permission  to  enter  into  the  swine,  which  was  asked  by  the  demons,  and  granted 
by  Jesus  Christ,  further  teaches  us,  that  the  demon  can  do  nothing,  in  the  whole  com¬ 
pass  of  nature,  which  God  does  not  wish  to  allow  him.  Let  us,  therefore,  fear  neither 
the  demon,  nor  all  the  powers  of  hell,  of  earth,  and  of  heaven  ;  but  Him  by  whom  alone 
all  the  powers  of  heaven,  of  earth,  and  of  hell  become  fearfuL 


chap. 


xi.J 


OF  OUE  LOKD  JESUS  CHEIST. 


83 


with  who  had  the  devil,  and  concerning  the  swine.  (a)  Then  all 
the  multitude  of  the  country  of  the  Gerasens  besought  him  to  de¬ 
part  from  them,  for  they  were  taken  with  great  fear  (6).”  Jesus 
punished  this  prayer,  by  acceding  to  it  ; — ■“  he,  going  up  into  the 
ship,  returned  back  again.  When  he  went  up  into  the  ship,  he  that 
had  been  so  highly  troubled  with  the  devil  besought  him  that  he 
might  be  with  him.”  It  is  not  mentioned  whether  gratitude  for 
such  a  great  blessing,  or  the  dread  of  a  second  possession,  inspired 
this  prayer.  It  may  have  sprung  ■  from  both  motives.  But,  what¬ 
ever  was  the  motive,  Jesus,  who  had  other  designs  upon  him,  “  ad¬ 
mitted  him  not  and,  substituting  another  sort  of  apostleship  for 
that  to  which  he  refused  him  admission,  (b)  “  saitli  to  him  :  Go  into 
thy  house,  to  thy  friends,  and  tell  them  how  great  things  the  Lord 
hath  done  for  thee,  and  hath  had  mercy  on  thee.  He  went  his  way, 
and  began  to  publish  in  Decapolis  how  great  things  Jesus  had  done 
for  him,  and  all  men  wondered. 

“  When  Jesus  had  passed  again  in  the  ship  over  the  strait,  a  great 
multitude  assembled  together  unto  him  :  for  they  were  all  waiting 
for  him.”  He  did  not  stop  long  among  them  ;  and  (o)  “  again, 
after  ”  an  absence  of  “  some  days,  he  entered  into  Capharnaum,” 
which  here  is  called  “  his  own  city,”  on  account  of  its  being  his  usual 
residence.  “  It  was  heard  that  he  was  in  the  house.”  W e  may 
presume  that  this  was  still  the  house  of  Peter  and  Andrew.  “  Many 
came  together,  so  that  there  was  no  room  ;  no,  not  even  at  the  door. 
(cl)  Jesus  spoke  to  them  the  word.  He  sat  teaching;  and  there 
were  also  ”  in  the  assemblv  “  Pharisees  and  doctors  of  the  law 


(a)  St.  Luke,  viii.  37;  St.  Mark, 
v.  IS. 

(&)  St.  Mark,  v.  19-21  ;  St.  Luke, 
viii.  40. 


(c)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  1  ;  St.  Mark, 

ii.  1,2. 

(d)  St.  Luke,  v.  17. 


(6)  Interest  had  truly  as  great  a  share  in  this  prayer  as  fear,  unless,  perhaps,  their  fear 
was  exclusively  produced  by  interest.  Thus,  under  all  the  circumstances  of  the  case, 
these  subtle  Gerasenians  concluded  that  the  herd  of  swine  was  much  more  useful  to  the 
State  than  was  Jesus  Christ  and  his  doctrine.  It  would  not  be  difficult  to  find  their 
apology  in  the  writings  of  some  of  our  good  patriots.  [Our  author  here  alludes  to  the 
utilitarians  of  the  old  French  School.] 


mrwu 


v  JV 


84 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


sitting  by,  tliat  were  come  out  of  every  town  of  Galilee,  and  Judea, 
and  Jerusalem  ;  and  the  power  of  the  Lord  was  to  lieal  them. 
(«)  Behold,  men  came  to  him,  bringing  one  sick  of  the  palsy,  who 
was  carried  by  four,  and  they  sought  means  to  bring  him  in,  and  to 
1  ly  him  before  Jesus.  When  they  could  not  find  by  what  way  they 
might  bring  him  in,  because  of  the  multitude,  they  went  upon  the 
roof,  uncovered  the  roof  where  he  was,  and,  opening  it,  let  him  down 
through  the  tiles,  with  his  bed,”  and  laid  him  “  in  the  midst”  of  the 
assembly  “  before  Jesus.  (Z>)  Jesus  seeing  their  faith,  said  to  the 
man  sick  of  the  palsy  (7)  :  Son,  be  of  good  heart,  thy  sins  are  for¬ 
given  thee.”  There  were,  as  we  have  said,  sitting  there  some  of  the 
Scribes,  or  doctors  of  the  law.  These  Scribes  and  the  Pharisees 
thought  and  said  within  themselves  :  (a)  “  Why  doth  this  man  speak 
thus  ?  He  blasphemeth.  Who  can  forgive  sins  but  God  only  (8)  ? 
Jesus  presently  knowing  in  his  spirit  (9)  that  they  so  thought 

(a)  St.  Mark,  ii.  3  ;  St.  Luke,  v.  IS,  19.  (r)  St.  Luke,  vi.  2  ;  St.  Mark,  ii.  6, 

(J>)  St.  Mark,  ii.  5,  6  ;  Sc.  Matthew,  i.\.  2.  7,  8  ;,St.  Mayhew,  ix.  4. 


(7)  The  cure  of  the  body  can  be  obtained  by  the  faith  of  another,  but  not  the  remis¬ 
sion  of  sins.  Yet  here  there  is  only  mention  made  of  the  faith  of  those  parties  who  had 
carried  the  patient  laboring  under  the  palsy;  and  it  is  when  seeing  their  faith,  that  Jesus 
Christ  said  to  him,  thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee.  This  raises  a  difficulty,  which  we  must 
resolve.  The  faith  of  the  paralytic,  which  here  is  not  spoken  of,  is  not,  nevertheless,  ex¬ 
cluded.  We  ought,  therefore,  to  think  he  had  this  faith,  and  with  it  contrition,  without 
which  no  adult  has  ever  obtained,  or  shall  ever  obtain,  the  remission  of  his  sins.  When, 
therefore,  this  remission  is  here  attributed  to  the  faith  of  the  hearers,  this  can  only  be, 
inasmuch  as  Jesus  Christ,  touched  by  this  faith,  had  given  to  the  paralytic  faith,  and  all 
the  other  dispositions  necessary  to  justification.  There  is  still  another  truth  insinuated 
in  these  words  of  Jesus  Christ,  viz.,  that  sin  is  often  the  cause  of  bodily  infirmity,  the 
cure  of  which  may  be  one  of  the  effects  of  conversion. 

(8)  Now,  Jesus  Christ  is  God:  wherefore  he  had  this  power,  and,  in  point  of  fact, 
be  exercised  it  at  this  moment.  Still,  let  us  remark  that  he  did  not  say  to  the  paralytic 
that  he  remitted  him  his  sins,  but  that  his  sins  were  remitted  ;  which  is  very  different. 
For,  supposing  that  Jesus  Christ  had  only  been  a  prophet,  he  might  have  known  by  rev¬ 
elation  that  God  had  remitted  the  sins  of  this  man  ;  and  his  declaring  this  to  the  man, 
as  he  did,  was  not  arrogating  to  himself  the  divine  right  of  remitting  them.  Hence,  no 
one  could  conclude  from  these  words  that  he  had  arrogated  this  right  to  himself,  and 
this  was  the  very  point  to  which  their  attention  should  have  been  directed,  since  they 
wished  to  censure  him  ;  but  malignity  does  not  reason  so  closely. 

(9)  The  Spirit  of  God  alone  can  fathom  souls,  and  penetrate  into  the  most  secret 


. 


. 


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D-  &  ■  / .  S'nr/7/rr 


CIIAP.  XI.] 


OF  OTIH  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


witliin  themselves,  saith  to  them  :  Why  do  you  think  evil  in  your 
Hearts  (10)  ?  Which  is  easier,  to  say  to  the  sick  of  the  palsy, 
Thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee  ?  or  to  say,  Arise,  take  up  thy  bed,  and 
walk  (11)?  But  that  you  may  know  that  the  Son  of  man  hath 
power  on  earth  to  forgive  sins,  I  say  to  thee,  said  he  to  the  man 
sick  of  the  palsy  :  Arise,  take  up  thy  bed,  and  go  into  thy  house. 
Immediately  the  man  arose,  in  the  sight  of  all,  and,  taking  up  his 
bed,  went  away  to  his  house,  glorifying  God.  (a)  The  multi¬ 
tudes,  seeing  it,  feared,  and  glorified  God  that  gave  such  power  to 
man  (12).”  And  they  testified  their  admiration,  some  by  saying, 
“  We  never  saw  the  like  ;”  others,  “  We  have  seen  wonderful  things 
to-day.” 

( b )  “  Jesus  after  these  things  went  forth  again  to  the  sea-side. 
All  the  multitude  came  to  him,  and  he  taught  them,”  according  to 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  S  ;  St.  Mark,  ii. 
12  ;  St.  Luke,  v.  2G,  27. 


(b)  St.  Mark,  ii.  13, 14  ;  St.  Mat¬ 
thew,  ix.  9. 


folds  of  the  heart  ;  and  he  is  God,  with  regard  to  whom  the  Spirit  of  God  is  termed 
his  Spirit. 

(10)  The  answer  was  easy  to  every  one  else  but  themselves.  They  were  Pharisees  ; 
and  it  is  not  more  natural  for  birds  to  fly,  and  for  fishes  to  swim,  than  it  is  for  Pharisees 
to  misinterpret  whatever  is  susceptible  in  the  slightest  degree  of  a  bad  interpreta¬ 
tion,  even  if  there  were  one  hundred  more  degrees  of  probability  for  the  favorable  con 
struction. 

(11)  ’Tis  not  more  difficult,  ’tis  even  easier  to  cure  a  paralytic,  than  to  remit  sins. 
Yet  is  it  much  more  difficult  to  impose  upon  the  people  as  to  the  cure  of  a  paralytic 
than  about  tire  remission  of  sins,  for  we  see  the  first  and  we  do  not  see  the  second. 
But  what  we  see  stands  as  a  proof  of  what  we  do  not  see.  Therefore,  if  Jesus  Christ 
does  not  impose,  Avhen  he  said  to  the  paralytic,  arise,  take  up  thy  bed,  and  <jo,  it  follows 
that  he  has  not  imposed,  when  he  said,  thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee.  The  second  is  as 
possible  to  him  as  the  first,  and  what  is  equally  possible  is  equally  easy  to  him.  All 
this  bears  upon  the  fundamental  principle  of  all  revealed  religion  :  He  incontestably 
speaks  the  truth,  who,  in  order  to  prove  the  truth  of  what  he  says,  works  incontestable 
inirucles. 

(12)  The  power  of  remitting  sins,  much  more  than  the  power  of  curing  maladies. 
This  was  the  end  of  the  Incarnation  of  the  Son  of  God — the  object  of  his  labors — the 
fruit  of  his  sufferings — and  the  most  necessary,  as  well  as  the  most  precious,  of  all  the 
favors  he  could  procure  for  human  nature.  From  thence  originates  the  surprise,  the 
admiration,  and  the  joy  of  mankind.  0,  ye  nations,  be  glad  and  rejoice  ;  never  cease 
praising  the  God  of  Mercy,  who  has  condescended  to  communicate  to  men  this  dhine 
prerogative,  which  seems  to  be  of  all  his  rights  the  most  incommunicable. 


41 

k  0ï 

'  J  t  y/^r 


his  custom.  “  When  lie  was  passing  on  from  thence,  he  saw  a  man 
named  Matthew,  otherwise  Levi,  the  son  of  Alpheus,  (a)  sitting  at 
the  receipt  of  custom,  in  the  custom-house,  and  saith  to  him  :  Fol¬ 
low  me.  He  arose  up,  and  leaving  all  things,  followed  him.”  Still 
he  wished  to  acknowledge  beforehand  his  gratitude,  after  the  fash¬ 
ion  of  a  converted  publican,  and  in  order  to  do  so,  “  he  made  him  a 
great  feast  in  his  own  house.  It  came  to  pass,  as  Jesus  was  sitting 
at  table  in  the  house  of  Levi,  there  was  a  great  company  of  publi¬ 
cans  and  sinners  sat  down  with  him  and  his  disciples,  for  they  were 
many,  who  also  followed  him.”  And  we  must  remark,  in  reference 
to  this,  a  fact  which  will  often  appear  in  this  history,  viz.,  that  Je¬ 
sus  was  constantly  cherished  by  sinners  and  hatêd  by  rigorists. 
These,  therefore,  that  is  to  say,  “the  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  seeing 
that  he  ate  with  publicans  and  sinners,  said  to  his  disciples  :  Why 
doth  your  Master  eat  and  drink  with  publicans  and  sinners  ?” 

They  addressed  themselves  to  these,  undoubtedly,  because  they 
deemed  them  less  capable  of  answering  than  their  Master.  Per¬ 
haps  they  still  hoped  that,  by  giving  them  a  bad  impression  of  Je¬ 
sus,  they  could  detach  them  from  him.  But  “Jesus  hearing  it,  saith 
to  them  :  They  that  are  in  health  need  not  a  physician,  but  they 
that  are  ill  (13).”  A  saying  which  should  have  made  them  feel 
that  there  wrns  no  more  sense  in  the  reproach  which  they  made 
him,  than  there  would  have  been  in  finding  fault  at  a  physician’s 
visiting  the  sick  or  those  affected  with  a  plague.  He  then  add¬ 
ed,  blending  his  usual  instruction  with  self-justification:  (Ih)  “  Go, 
then,  and  learn  what  this  meaneth  :  I  will  have  mercy,  and  not 
sacrifice  (14).  For  I  am  not  come  to  call  the  just,  but  sin- 


(a)  St.  Luke,  v.  28,  20;  St.  Mark,  ii.  15-17. 


(b)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  13. 


(13)  To  go  visit  persons  afflicted  with  contagious  diseases  is  temerity  in  those  Avho  can 
render  them  no  service  ;  it  is  charity  in  the  physician,  who  still  is  not  exempt  from  rash¬ 
ness,  if  he  visit  them  without  adopting  precautions  and  preventives.  One  man  alone  was 
exempted  from  this  mile  ;  that  was  the  Man- God. 

(14)  A  Hebrew  idiom,  meaning,  I  love  mercy  better  than  sacrifice,  which  was  com¬ 
manded,  instead  of  being  interdicted  ;  but  mercy  was  preferred  to  it.  But  if  mercy  ex¬ 
cels  sacrifice,  there  is  nothing,  therefore,  in  religion  over  which  it  should  not  take  prece¬ 
dence.  The  entire  morality  of  the  Gospel  is  hinged  on  this  maxim,  which  is  not  so  pe¬ 
culiar  to  Christianity  as  not  to  have  also  belonged  to  the  Old  Law,  since  this  text  to 


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CHAP.  XI.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


ners(15).”  Whence  it  followed  that  the  more  sinful  they  were, 
the  better  he  worked  out  his  mission  by  seeking  them  out,  and  as¬ 
sociating  with  them. 

The  Pharisees,  baffled  upon  this  point,  sought  to  renew  the  im¬ 
peachment  ;  but  to  give  greater  weight  to  the  fresh  reproach  which 
they  were  framing  against  Jesus  Christ,  they  took  the  precaution 
of  associating  themselves  with  the  disciples  of  John.  The  latter, 
as  well  as  the  Pharisees,  were  accustomed  to  practise  extraordinary 
fasting,  to  which  Jesus  Christ  had  not  subjected  those  who  profess¬ 
ed  to  follow  him.  These  fasts  were  not  prescribed  by  law  ;  they 
might,  therefore,  be  observed  or  omitted  at  pleasure.  But  although 
practices  of  devotion  are  matters  of  free  choice,  each  individual  is 
prepossessed  in  favor  of  his  own;  and  it  is  very  rare  for  this  preju¬ 
dice  to  stop  short  of  condemning  those  who  do  not  conform  to  those 
practices.  It  was  apparently  this  weakness  which  drew  the  disci¬ 
ples  of  John  into  the  plotting  of  the  Pharisees.  ( a )  “  They  came 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  14  ;  St.  Mark,  ii.  18  ;  St.  Luke,  v.  33,  34. 


which  Jesus  Christ  here  refers  the  Pharisees  is  from  the  Prophet  Osee.  These  men,  on 
the  contrary,  preferred  all  the  rest  of  religion  to  charity,  which  was,  accurately  speaking, 
turning  religion  upside  down,  by  placing  last  of  all  what  should  occupy  the  first  place. 

There  is  no  neglect  of  divine  worship  in  leaving  the  sacrifice  to  exercise  charity  to¬ 
wards  man.  This  is  rendering  to  God  the  worship  most  pleasing  to  him.  God  has  no 
need  of  our  sacrifice,  and  he  loves  men  :  these  two  truths  heighten  this  worship  into  a 
very  excellent  religion.  By  this  we  recognize  the  perfect  independence  and  infinite  good 
ness  of  God,  those  two  attributes  which  entitle  him  the  most  to  the  homage  of  our  minds 
and  of  our  hearts. 

This  maxim  has  given  rise  to  an  abuse,  viz.,  limiting  religion  to  doing  good  towards 
men.  It  is  only  in  the  competition  of  both  duties,  when  they  come  in  collision,  that  we 
should  prefer  the  service  of  our  neighbor  to  the  worship  of  God  ;  and  then  we  should 
merely  do  so  because  God  wishes  us  so  to  act.  To  prefer,  therefore,  the  external  duties 
of  .religion  to  charity  towards  our  neighbor  is  Pharisaical  ;  and  to  comprise  all  religion  in 
the  love  and  service  of  our  neighbor,  is  acknowledging  our  fellow-citizens,  and  disowning 
our  King — embracing  our  brethren,  and  denying  our  Father;  it  is  impiety — it  is  declared 
rebellion  against  the  greatest  and  best  of  all  kings  and  of  all  fathers. 

(15)  This  ought  not  to  hinder  us  from  believing  that  Jesus  Christ  came  to  save  all 
men  ;  for  all  have  sinned,  saith  Saint  Paul,  and  are  in  want  of  the  glory  of  God,  that  is 
to  say,  of  the  grace  of  the  Redeemer.  An  ironical  meaning  is  also  given  to  these  words, 
in  reference  to  the  Pharisees:  You  take  scandal  at  seeing  me  prefer  the  company  of  sin¬ 
ners  to  yours;  are  you  ignorant,  then,  that  I  am  come  to  call  sinners,  and  not  the  just, 
such  as  you  pretend  to  be  ? 


ii/.  m 


."ii'/. 


an — — 1 — ]■  -WW 


fll>i 


88 


THE  HISTORY  OE  TIIE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


and  said  to  Jesus  :  Why  do  the  disciples  of  John  and  of  the  Phari¬ 
sees  fast  often  and  make  prayers  ;  but  thine  eat  and  drink,  and 
do  not  fast  ?  He  said  to  them  :  Can  the  children  of  the  bride¬ 
groom  (16)  mourn,  and  can  you  make  them  fast  whilst  the  bride¬ 
groom  is  with  them  ?  But  the  days  will  come  when  the  bride¬ 
groom  shall  be  taken  away,  and  then  they  shall  fast  (17).” 

Therefore,  Jesus  did  not  dispense  his  disciples  from  fasting;  he 
merely  disposed  them  to  do  so  at  a  more  convenient  time  ;  and  in 
order  to  make  them  better  understand  that  in  acting  thus  he  did 
not  mean  to  flatter  their  passions,  but  to  accommodate  himself  to 
their  weakness,  (a)  “he  spoke  a  similitude  to  them.  No  man  put- 
tetli  a  piece  from  a  new  garment  upon  an  old  garment,  otherwise 
he  both  rendeth  the  new,  and  the  piece  taken  from  the  new  agreeth 
not  with  the  old.”  It  occurs  also  that  “  the  new  pieceing  taketh 
away  from  the  old,  and  there  is  made  a  greater  rent.  And  no  man 
putteth  new  wine  into  old  bottles  ;  otherwise  the  new  wine  will 
break  the  bottles,  and  it  will  be  spilled,  and  the  bottles  will  be  lost. 
But  new  wine  must  be  put  into  new  bottles,  and  both  are  preserved. 
And  no  man  drinking  old  hath  presently  a  mind  to  new  ;  for  he 
saith  :  The  old  is  better.”  This  means  that,  generally  speaking,  the 
more  excellent  things  are  in  themselves,  the  less  likely  are  they  to 
be  good  for  beginners.  We  should  proportion  ourselves  to  their 
weakness.  Perfection  should  only  be  presented  to  them  at  a  dis¬ 
tance,  and  as  if  it  were  rather  an  object  for  their  admiration  than 
for  their  imitation  ;  they  should  be  merely  invited,  and  not  seem¬ 
ingly  forced  to  approach  it,  lest,  by  endeavoring  to  form  perfect 

(a)  SI.  Luke,  v.  36-39  ;  St.  Mark,  ii.  21,  22. 


(16)  We  may  recollect  that  John,  in  one  of  the  testimonies  Ire  rendered  to  Jesus  Christ, 
designated  him  by  the  title  of  bridegroom.  The  disciples  of  John  could  not  have  forgot¬ 
ten  this  ;  and  Jesus  Christ,  in  making  use  of  the  same  expression,  gives  ground  for  be¬ 
lieving  that  they  introduced  the  expression  here. 

(17)  We  are  almost  tempted  to  smile  at  the  extravagance  of  heretics.  The  Calvinists 
rejected  the  fast  of  Lent,  because  Jesus  Christ  said  that  his  disciples  should  not  fast 
while  he  was  with  them,  although  he  added  that  they  should  fast  after  he  was  taken 
away.  And  because  he  said  that  they  should  fast  when  he  was  taken  away — that  is  to 
say,  if  you  will,  immediately  after  his  death — Montanus  and  Priscilla,  according  to  the 
report  of  Saint  Jerome,  placed  Lent  between  Easter  and  Pentecost. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


89 


cnAP.  xn.J 

men  of  those  who  have  but  recently  become  just,  relapsing  sinners 
may  be  the  result  of  such  mistaken  zeal.  Thus  Jesus  instructed  his 
Church  ;  and  whilst  he  seemed  merely  answering  an  ill-founded  re¬ 
proach,  he  gave  to  his  present  and  future  ministers  these  admirable 
lessons  of  mildness  and  of  condescension. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

A  WOMAN  HEALED  OF  AN  ISSUE  OF  BLOOD. - THE  DAUGHTER  OF  JAIRUS  RESUSCITA¬ 
TED. - THE  BLIND  SEE. - DEVILS  CAST  OUT. 

(a)  “As  he  was  speaking  these  things  unto  them  nigh  unto  the 
sea,  a  ruler  of  the  synagogue  (1)  named  Jairus  came  up,  and  seeing 
Jesus,  falleth  down  at  his  feet,  adored  him,  beseeching  him  that  lie 
would  come  into  his  house,  for  he  had  an  only  daughter,  about  twelve 
years  old,  and  she  was  dying.”  Perhaps  he  thought  that  Jesus,  who 
had  power  to  cure  the  sick,  had  not  that  of  raising  the  dead  ;  and 
he  may  also  have  been  one  of  those  who  considered  the  Saviour’s 
presence  necessary  for  a  miracle.  For  this  reason  ( h )  “he  besought 
him  much,  saying  :  My  daughter  is  at  the  point  of  death  ;  come  lay 
thy  hand  upon  her,  that  she  may  be  safe,  and  may  live.  Jesus  ris¬ 
ing  up,  went  with  him,  and  followed  him,  with  his  disciples.” 

(p)  “  It  happened  as  he  went  that  he  was  thronged  by  the  multi¬ 
tudes.  There  was  a  certain  woman  there  who  was  troubled  with  an 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  18  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  21,  ( b )  St.  Mark,  v.  23,  24  ;  St.  Matthew, 

22;  St.  Luke,  viii.  41.  ix.  10. 

(c)  St.  Luke,  viii.  42  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  25-27  ;  St.  Matthew,  ix.  20,  21. 


(l)  He  who  presided  at  the  meetings  of  the  Synagogue,  which  were  held  on  Sabbath 
days.  The  place  where  they  were  held  was  called  Synagogue,  a  Greek  word  meaning 
assembly.  At  these  meetings  the  Holy  Scriplure  was  read,  exhortations  given,  and 
psalms  sung,  the  only  exercises  of  religion  allowed  the  Jews  outside  the  Temple  of  Jeru¬ 
salem.  Some  authors  confidently  assert  that  before  the  destruction  of  this  great  city,  it 
had  not  less  than  four  hundred  and  eighty  of  these  synagogues.  Every  one  knows  that 
the  Jews  still  have  them  in  several  cities  of  Europe  where  they  are  tolerated. 


90 


TÜE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

issue  of  blood  twelve  years,  and  had  suffered  many  things  from  many 
physicians,  and  had  spent  all  that  she  had,  and  was  nothing  the  bet¬ 
ter,  but  rather  worse  ;  this  woman  then ,  when  she  had  heard  of  Je¬ 
sus,  came  in  the  crowd  behind  him,  and  (a)  touched  the  hem  of  his 
garment,  for  she  said  to  herself:  If  I  shall  touch  only  his  garment, 
I  shall  be  healed.  Forthwith  the  fountain  of  her  blood  was  dried 
up,  and  she  felt  in  her  body  she  was  healed  of  the  evil  (2).  Imme¬ 
diately  Jesus,  knowing  in  himself  the  virtue  which  had  proceeded 
from  him,  turning  to  the  multitude,  said  :  Who  hath  touched  my 
garment?  And  all  denying,  Peter  and  they  that  were  with  him 
said  :  Master,  the  multitudes  throng  and  press  thee,  and  dost  thou 
say,  Who  touched  me  ?  Jesus  said  :  Somebody  hath  touched  me, 
for  I  know  that  virtue  is  gone  out  from  me.  And  he  looked  about 
to  see  her  who  had  done  this  for  he  was  not  ignorant  of  her,  but 
he  thus  conformed  himself  to  our  method  of  acting;  and  because 
he  wished  that  the  miracle  which  he  had  wrought  should  be  known, 
he  thus  prepared  the  way  for  its  manifestation,  by  obliging  her  to 
speak  whose  deposition  alone  could  disclose  and  prove  the  fact. 
For  ( l '>)  “  the  woman  knowing  what  was  done  in  her,  seeing  that 
she  was  not  hid,  fearing  and  trembling,  came  and  fell  down  before 
his  feet,  and  told  him  all  the  truth,  and  declared  before  all  the 
people  for  what  cause  she  had  touched  him,  and  how  she  was  im¬ 
mediately  healed.  (c)  Jesus  turning,  and  seeing  her,  said  to  her: 
Be  of  good  heart,  daughter  ;  thy  faith  hath  made  thee  whole.  Go 
in  peace,  and  be  thou  whole  of  thy  disease.  And  the  woman  was 
made  whole  from  that  hour,”  perfectly  and  without  any  relapse. 

As  (cl)  “Jesus  was  yet  speaking,  there  cometh  one  t'o  the  ruler  of 

(a)  St.  Mark,  v.  29,  30  ;  St.  Luke,  viii.  45,  (c)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  22  ;  St.  Mark,  v. 

46  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  32.  34. 

(b)  St.  Mark,  v.  33  ;  St.  Luke,  viii.  47.  ( d )  St.  Luke,  viii.  49. 


(2)  The  robe  worn  by  Jesus  Christ  has,  therefore,  wrought  a  miracle.  Calvin,  who 
was  apprehensive,  and  reasonably  so,  that  the  inferences  from  this  miracle  must  be  favor¬ 
able  to  relics,  finds  out  indiscreet  zeal  and  a  dash  of  superstition  in  the  action  of  this  wo¬ 
man.  Jesus  Christ  finds  in  it  faith  :  he  openly  praises  this  faith  ;  he  accords  to  the  merit 
of  this  faith  a  cure  ;  and  this  faith,  by  the  report  of  the  three  evangelists,  is  the  same 
which  made  this  woman  say.  If  I  shall  touch  only  his  garment,  I  shall  be  healed.  Who 
are  we  to  believe  in  this  matter  ? 


chap.  xrr.J 


OF  OUE  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


91 


the  synagogue,  saying  to  him  :  Thy  daughter  is  dead,  trouble  him 
not”  uselessly.  Jairus,  whose  faith  had  received  a  new  impulse  from 
the  miracle  of  which  he  had  just  been  a  witness,  did  not  despair  for 
all  that.  (a)  “  Lord,”  said  he,  “  my  daughter  is  even  now  dead  ;  but 
come  lay  thy  hand  upon  her,  and  she  shall  live.”  For  thus  one  of 
the  evangelists  makes  him  speak;  and  they  are  all  unanimous  in 
placing  here  this  expression,  which  is  different  from  what  the  other 
evangelists  make  him  utter,  who  only  make  him  speak  of  the  ex¬ 
tremity  of  his  daughter.  ( b )  "  Jesus  hearing  this  word,  answered 
the  father  of  the  maid  :  Fear  not,  believe  only,  and  she  slnd.l  be  safe. 
When  he  was  come  to  the  house,  he  suffered  not  any  man  to  go  in 
with  him  but  Peter,  and  Janies,  and  John,  and  the  father  and  mother 
of  the  maiden.  He  saw  the  minstrels  (3)  and  the  multitude  making 
a  tumult,  weeping  and  wailing  much  ;  all  mourned  for  her.  Why 
make  you  this  ado  (saith  he  to  them  going  in),  and  weep  ?  (c)  Give 

place,  for  the  girl  is  not  dead,  but  sleepeth  (4).  And  they  laughed 
him  to  scorn,  knowiug  that  she  was  dead.  He  having  put  them  all 
out,  taketh  the  father  and  the  mother  of  the  damsel,  and  them 
that  were  with  them,  and  entereth  in  where  the  damsel  was  lying, 
(d)  Taking  her  by  the  hand,  he  cried  out  to  her  :  Talitha  cumi,  which 
is,  being  interpreted  :  Damsel,  I  say  to  thee  arise,  (e)  Her  spirit 
returned.  She  arose  immediately,  and  walked.  She  was  twelve 
years  old.  Jesus  commanded  that  something  should  be  given  her 
to  eat.  Her  parents  were  astonished.  He  charged  them  strictly  to 

(fi)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  18.  (c)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  24;  St.  Luke,  viii. 

(b)  St.  Luke,  viii.  50,  51  ;  St.  Matthew,  53  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  40. 

ix.  23  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  38.  ( d )  St.  Luke,  viii.  54  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  41. 

(e)  St.  Luke,  viii.  55,  56  ;  St.  Mark,  v.  42,  43  ;  St.  Matthew,  ix.  26. 


(3)  It  was  a  custom  common  to  both  Jews  and  Gentiles  to  hire  flute-players,  who 
accompanied  with  mournful  ail's  the  lamentations  which  were  made  at  funerals.  Al¬ 
though  wc  are  ignorant  whence  the  usage  derived  its  origin,  the  probability  is,  that 
the  Jews  borrowed  it  from  the  Gentiles.  If  we  were  to  conclude  from  thence,  as 
some  writer  has  done,  that  the  flute-players  in  question  here  were  Gentiles,  must  we 
not  contend  also  that  all  our  painters  are  Italians,  inasmuch  as  painting  comes  from 
Italy? 

(4)  A  death  which  was  to  be  confined,  by  so  speedy  a  resurrection,  to  scarcely  the 
duration  of  a  short  slumber,  should  be  called  sleep  rather  than  death. 


92  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIEE  [PART  I. 

toll  ho  man  wliat  was  done  (5).”  Yet  “  the  fame  hereof  went  abroad 
into  all  that  country.” 

(a)  “  As  Jesus  passed  from  thence”  into  the  house  where  he  dwelt, 
“there  followed  him  two  blind  men,  crying  out  and  saying:  O,  son 
of  Davit!,  have  mercy  on  us.”  It  was  undoubtedly  in  order  to  try 
their  faith  that  Jesus,  who  heard  them,  declined  stopping.  “When 
lie  was  come  to  the  house,  the  blind  men,”  who  had  still  kept  follow¬ 
ing  him,  “came  to  him,  and  he  saith  to  them:  Do  you  believe  that 
I  can  do  this  unto  you  ?  Yea,  Lord,  they  say  to  him.  Then  he 
touched  their  eyes,  saying  :  According  to  your  faith  be  it  done  unto 
you.  And  their  eyes  were  opened  ;  and  Jesus  strictly  charged  them, 
saying  :  See  that  no  man  know  this.  But  they  going  out,  spread  his 
fame  abroad  in  all  that  country.” 

“  When  they  were  gone  out,  they  brought  him  a  dumb  man  pos¬ 
sessed  with  a  devil.”  An  evangelist  conveys  to  us  that  he  was  dumb 
by  the  influence  of  the  devil  himself,  because  the  devil  hindered  the 
’possessed  man  from  speaking,  thus  informing  us  that  this  hindrance 
did  not  come  upon  the  man  from  any  natural  cause,  but  from  the  de¬ 
mon  tying  his  tongue.  This  construction  seems  obvious,  from  the 

(a)  Si.  Matthew,  ix.  27-34. 


(5)  There  were  too  many  witnesses  of  the  death  to  give  a  mysterious  character  to  the 
resurrection,  and  the  secrecy  imposed  by  Jesus  Christ  upon  this  occasion  can  merely  ap¬ 
ply  to  the  mode  in  which  he  wrought  the  miracle.  Jesus  Christ  exacted  the  like  secrecy 
for  the  ensuing  miracle,  and  in  some  other  transactions.  We  may  be  asked  what  reason 
had  he  for  this  line  of  conduct,  he  who  wrought  publicly  so  great  a  number  of  miracles, 
and  who,  far  from  desiring  to  make  a  mystery  of  them,  frequently  gave  orders  to  pub¬ 
lish  them.  Out  of  the  several  reasons  assigned,  the  only  one  which  has  some  probability 
is,  that  he  wished  to  inform  his  disciples,  and  all  those  to  whom  he  should  communicate 
the  gift  of  miracles,  to  conceal  them  as  much  as  in  their  power,  and  thus  steal  away  from 
the  applause  of  men.  Many  saints  have  profited  from  this  lesson,  and  we  know  the  pre¬ 
cautions  they  have  taken  to  withdraw  from  the  eyes  of  the  world  the  wonders  which  God 
operated  by  their  means.  Tlius  is  explained  why  Jesus  Christ  wished  some  of  his  mira¬ 
cles  to  be  kept  secret,  but  not  why  he  pursued  this  course  in  regard  of  such  and  such  a 
miracle  more  than  any  other.  Not  that  no  reasons  are  advanced  by  those  who  under¬ 
take  to  explain  every  thing,  but  no  satisfactory  reason  has  been  put  forward.  Let  us  be 
content  to  know  that  he  had  reasons  highly  worthy  of  his  wisdom,  deduced  from  the  cir¬ 
cumstances  of  time,  place,  and  person.  The  secret  was  not  always  kept  by  those  upon 
whom  it  was  enjoined.  Whatever  the  rigid  Calvin  may  think,  Catholic  divines  do  not 
tax  them  with  this  as  a  crime.  Gratitude,  which  made  them  speak,  excused  this  want 
of  submission  to  orders  which  they  merely  attributed  to  the  modesty  of  their  benefactor. 


'à  CS, 

fej-' 


r/c 


CHAr.  XII.] 


OF  O  UK  LORD  JESUS  CIIKIST. 


manner  in  which  the  cure  is  recounted  ;  for,  “  after  the  devil  was  cast 
out,  the  dumb  man  spoke.  The  multitudes  wondered,  saying:  Never 
was  the  like  seen  in  Israel.  But  the  Pharisees  said:  By  the  prince 
of  devils  he  casteth  out  devils.” 

Jesus  did  not  then  condemn  this  blasphemy,  which  perhaps  had 
not  been  uttered  in  his  presence.  We  shall  see,  upon  another  occa¬ 
sion,  that  he  answered  it  in  a  manner  which  covered  with  shame 
those  who  dared  to  advance  the  like  within  his  hearing  ;  the  result 
was,  that  they  became  his  irreconcilable  enemies.  For  to  be  utterly 
devoid  of  blame  is  the  highest  offence  in  envious  eyes. 

SECOND  PASSOYER. 

Jesus  left  the  I  harisees  of  Galilee  for  a  time,  to  go  seek  those  of 
the  capital.  If  the  latter  wrere  not  more  malignant,  they  were  more 
formidable  in  point  of  number,  as  also  by  their  proselytes  and  the 
facility  there  exists  in  large  cities  for  caballing  and  exciting  popular 
outbreaks.  But  it  was  not  for  the  purpose  of  warring  with  them 
that  the  mildest  of  men  came  to  meet  them  ;  he  sought  only  to  en¬ 
lighten  and  convert  them.  It  was  a  religious  motive  that  induced 
him  to  make  this  journey.  It  was  the  feast  of  the  Jews,  which  we 
believe,  with  many  interpreters,  to  have  been  that  of  Passover,  were 
it  merely  for  the  reason  of  its  being  called  here  simply  “  the  Feast.” 
It  is  known  that  this  was  the  principal  of  the  three  feasts  for  which 
the  law  ordained  that  every  Jew  should  repair  to  Jerusalem.  Jesus, 
the  author  of  the  law,  had  voluntarily  made  himself  a  subject  of  the 
law,  and  he  always  observed  it  with  the  most  perfect  punctuality. 
He  came,  therefore,  to  the  feast  with  his  disciples,  and  a  miraculous 
cure,  by  which  he  signalized  his  arrival,  was  for  the  Pharisees  an  oc¬ 
casion  to  calumniate  him;  to  him  an  opportunity  for  instructing 
them  by  an  admirable  discourse.  Plere  is  the  manner  in  which  these 
things  occurred. 


iW*  | 

m  Jr 


■  IK! 


f 


04 


TILE  HISTOKX  OF  TILE  LIFE 


|_UA"KT  L 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

PROBATICA. - A  MAN  INFIRM  TIIIRTY-EIGIIT  YEARS  HEALED. - DISCOURSE  OF  JESUS 

CHRIST  TO  THE  JEWS. 

(«)  “There  \_was]  (1)  at  Jerusalem  a  pond  called  Probation  (2), 
which,  in  Hebrew  is  named  Bethsaida,  having  five  porches.  In  these 
lay  a  great  multitude  of  sick,  of  blind,  of  lame,  of  withered,  waiting 

(a)  St.  John,  v.  2-47. 


(1)  We  read  in  the  text:  There  is  at  Jerusalem  a  pond . which  has  five  porches. 

This  form  of  expression  seems  to  show  clearly  that  Jerusalem  still  existed  when  Saint 
John  wrote  this.  Still  the  opinion  of  the  most  ancient  doctors,  and  of  those  whose  au¬ 
thority  ranks  highest,  is,  that  Saint  John  did  not  compose  his  Gospel  until  several  years 
after  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem.  In  referring  to  their  authority,  I  own  I  would  have  desired 
to  find  an  answer  to  this  difficulty,  which  they  seem  not  even  to  have  thought  of. 

Two  things  are  possible,  each  of  which,  if  true,  would  suffice  to  reconcile  Saint  John’s 
form  of  expression  with  the  date  which  all  antiquity  assigns  to  his  Gospel  :  1st.  After 
the  capture  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Emperor  Titus,  the  town  was  not  so  utterly  destroyed 
as  not  to  leave  some  edifices  standing,  and  some  Jews  occupying  them.  Some  writers 
even  maintain  that  they  still  preserved  there  some  synagogues  until  the  time  of  their  last, 
and  their  utter  and  irrevocable  expulsion,  which  was  under  the  Emperor  Adrian.  The 
pond  and  the  porticoes  might  then  still  exist,  and  Saint  John  could  speak  of  them  as  of 
things  actually  existing.  2d.  Saint  John,  who  according  to  constant  tradition  did  not 
publish  his  Gospel  until  after  the  capture  of  Jerusalem,  might  very  well  have  written 
previously  some  passages  which  he  may  have  inserted  afterwards  in  the  body  of  the  work. 
We  have  now  only  to  suppose  that  the  cure  of  the  paralytic  was  one  of  these  passages 
written  before  the  capture  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  difficulty  will  be  resolved,  at  least  for 
those  who  are  satisfied  to  be  content  with  these  suppositions. 

(2)  This  Greek  word  prohatica  signifies  sheep-pond.  This  name  was  given  either  be¬ 
cause  it  lay  near  the  gate  by  which  the  sheep  entered  into  the  city,  or  because  this  pond 
was  in  the  market  where  they  were  exposed  for  sale,  or  because  they  were  washed  there 
before  being  immolated,  or  perhaps  because  the  waters  which  had  been  made  use  of  in 
washing  the  immolated  victims  were  brought  thither  by  subterraneous  channels.  This 
last  conjecture  has  induced  several  to  think  that  it  was  for  this  reason  God  had  com¬ 
municated  to  these  waters  the  miraculous  virtue  which  is  about  to  be  related,  and  which 
made  them  be  regarded  as  a  figure  of  the  waters  of  baptism.  These  waters  extract  from 
the  blood  of  the  Lamb  immolated  for  the  sins  of  the  world,  the  vivifying  virtue  which 
communicates  to  souls  the  supernatural  life  of  grace,  by  a  miracle  far  superior  to  all  cures 
and  all  corporeal  resurrections. 

The  Anabaptists  regard  as  fabulous  this  miraculous  sheep-pond  spoken  of  by  Saint 


M 


à V 
& i  ! 

'fe.  ijS 

SK.  A 


cnAP.  xin.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


for  the  moving  of  the  water.  An  angel  of  the  Lord  descended  at 
certain  times  into  the  pond,  and  the  water  was  moved.  He  that 
went  down  first  into  the  pond  after  the  motion  of  the  water  was 
made  whole,  of  whatsoever  infirmity  he  lay  under.  There  was  a 
certain  man  there,  that  had  been  eight-and-thirty  years  under  his 
infirmity.  When  Jesus  had  seen  him  lying,  and  knew  he  had  been 
now  along  time,  he  saith  to  him:  Wilt  thou  be  made  whole?  The 
infirm  man  answered  :  Sir,  I  have  no  man,  when  the  water  is  troub¬ 
led,  to  put  me  into  the  pond  ;  for  whilst  I  am  coming,  another  goeth 
down  before  me.  Arise,  Jesus  saith  to  him,  take  up  thy  bed  and 
walk.  Immediately  the  man  was  made  whole,  and  he  took  up  his 
bed,  and  walked.  It  was  the  Sabbath  that  day.  The  Jews  there¬ 
fore  said  to  him  that  was  healed  :  It  is  the  Sabbath  ;  it  is  not 
lawful  for  thee  to  take  up  thy  bed.  He  answered  :  He  that  made 
me  whole,  he  said  to  me  :  Take  up  thy  bed  and  walk.” 

The  man  was  perfectly  justified  in  doing  as  he  did  by  the  order 
of  him  who  had  so  miraculously  effected  his  cure,  whilst  the  author 
of  that  order  was  justified  at  the  same  time  by  the  miracle  which  he 
had  wrought.  The  Jews,  who  merely  sought  to  criticise,  seemed  to 
pay  no  attention  to  what  this  man  stated  about  his  recovery,  and 
they  did  not  ask  him,  Who  is  that  man  who  cured  thee  ?  but  only, 
“  Who  is  that  man  who  said  to  thee  :  Take  .up  thy  bed  and  walk  ? 
But  he  who  was  healed  knew  not  who  it  was  ;  for  Jesus  went  aside 
from  the  multitude  standing  in  the  place.  Afterwards,  Jesus  find- 
eth  him  in  the  temple,  and  saith  to  him  :  Behold,  thou  art  made 
whole  :  sin  no  more,  lest  some  worse  thing  happen  thee.  The  man 
went  his  way,  and.  told  the  Jews  that  it  was  Jesus  who  had  made 
him  whole,”  and  not  that  it  was  Jesus  who  had  given  him  the  order 
to  take  away  his  bed.  This  shows  that  gratitude  prompted  him  to 
speak,  and  that  his  intention  was  not  to  denounce  Jesus  as  a  viola¬ 
tor  of  the  Sabbath,  but  to  make  him  known  as  author  of  the  mir¬ 
acle. 

Yet  “  the  Jews,”  who  were  only  willing  to  see  in  him  the  first  of 


John,  because  Josephus,  the  Jewish  historian,  does  not  speak  of  it.  If  Saint  John  did 
not  speak  of  it,  and  Josephus  did,  apparently  they  would  believe  it.  We  believe  just 
whoever  we  please  when  we  believe  only  what  we  like. 


96 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 

these  two  characters,  “  therefore  did  persecute  Jesus,  because  he  did 
these  thing's  on  the  Sabbath  for  liere  is  the  commencement  of  that 

O 

complaint,  which,  they  renewed  every  time  that  the  occasion  pre¬ 
sented  itself,  although  the  reproaches  which  they  cast  upon  Jesus  on 
this  subject  turned  always  to  their  own  confusion,  by  the  replies  he 
made,  and  which  they  never  could  answer.  Still,  once  that  hatred 
had  induced  them  to  say  :  “He  breaks  the  Sabbath,”  they  never 
ceased  repeating  it  ;  and  passion,  which  blindfolded  them,  so  as  to 
hinder  them  from  seeing  the  absurdity  of  this  accusation,  steeled 
their  hearts,  rendering  them  insensible  of  the  disgrace  which  recoiled 
back  upon  themselves  every  time  they  renewed  the  charge.  Here, 
then,  is  the  answer  wrhich  Jesus  then  made.  “  My  Father  worketh 
until  now  (3)  ;  and  I  work.”  Sublime  expression  !  signifying  that 
the  action  which  Jesus  Christ  had  just  performed  was  above  all 
criticism,  because  it  wms  as  much  the  action  of  his  Father  as  his 
own.  Whence  it  followed,  that  as  there  was  existing  between  him 
and  his  Father  unity  of  action,  there  must  also  have  been  unity  of 
nature  ;  and  that  when  he  called  God  his  father,  he  did  not  do  so 
in  the  sense  of  adoption,  which  was  not  unknown  to  the  Jews,  and 
would  not,  therefore,  have  scandalized  them,  but  in  the  sense  of  gen¬ 
eration,  by  virtue  of  which  he  attributed  to  himself  divine  nature, 
and  perfect  equality  with  God.  I  say  that  this  was  a  manifest  con¬ 
sequence,  for  so  the  Jews  understood  it  ;  and  as  their  envy  redoubled 
in  proportion  to  the  great  things  which  Jesus  disclosed  to  them  in 
reference  to  himself,  “  they  sought  the  more  to  kill  him,  because  he 
did  not  only  break  the  Sabbath,  but  also  said  God  was  his  father, 
making  himself  equal  to  God  (4).”  To  which  he  replied  by  the 


(3)  My  Father  worJceth  until  now,  that  is  to  say,,  there  is  no  time  or  no  day  during 
which  my  Father  doth  not  act,  not  excepting  the  Sabbath-day.  This  is  the  seventh  day, 
upon  which  day  God  rested,  after  employing  six  days  in  the  creation  of  the  world.  He 
wished  that  in  memory  of  this  rest  the  seventh  day  might  be  consecrated  to  him  by  a 
religious  stillness.  Yet  God  only  rested  inasmuch  as  he  ceased  to  create  new  species; 
for  he  never  ceases  working  their  preservation  and  their  production.  The  same  ceaseless 
action  exists  in  the  Son,  and  is  not  distinguished  from  that  of  the  Father. 

(4)  If  Jesus  Christ  is  not  equal  to  his  Father,  the  duty  was  imperatively  incumbent  on 
him  of  disabusing  the  Jews,  when  they  thought  they  found  this  equality  conveyed  by  his 
words.  Yet  he  has  not  done  so,  and  we  are  going  to  hear  him  express  himself  upon  the 
point  in  terms  much  stronger  than  those  he  had  heretofore  made  use  of.  Wherefore 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


97 


CHAP.  XIH.] 

following  discourse,  in  wliicli  two  different  parts,  as  it  were,  are  dis¬ 
tinguished.  The  first  is  the  further  development  of  the  expression 
we  have  just  noted,  and  the  direct  justification  of  his  own  conduct 
on  the  present  occasion.  The  second  establishes  the  divinity  of  his 
mission,  by  all  the  proofs  that  can  render  it  incontestable.  He  re¬ 
sumed,  therefore,  in  these  terms  :  “  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  the  Son  can¬ 
not  do  any  thing  of  himself,  but  what  he  seeth  the  Father  doing  ; 
for  what  things  soever  he  doth,  these  the  Son  also  doth  in  like  man¬ 
ner:  for  the  Father  loveth  the  Son,  and  showeth  him  all  things 
which  himself  doth,  and  greater  works  than  these  will  he  show  him, 
that  you  may  wonder.” 

Unity  of  operation  and  of  nature,  and  perfect  equality  between 
the  Father  and  the  Son,  are  found  explained  in  this  passage.  Still, 
it  js  well  to  observe  that  here  it  is  said,  the  Son  cannot  do  any  tiling 
of  himself,  but  only  what  he  seeth  the  Father  doing.  Not  in  the 
meaning  attached  to  these  words  by  the  Arians,  viz.  : — That  he  bor¬ 
rows  from  the  Father  any  knowledge  which  he  had  not  in  himself, 
or  any  power  in  which  he  was  deficient  ;  but,  because  the  Son  acts 
solely  through  the  knowledge  and  power  which  he  receives  from 
the  Father  through  the  eternal  generation.  This,  very  far  from 
limiting  the  one  or  the  other,  proves  the  infinitude  of  both;  for 
what  the  Father  possesses  from  all  eternity  the  same  doth  he  com¬ 
municate  in  all  its  plenitude  to  his  Son,  without  losing  any  thing  for 
what  he  gives,  or  ceasing  to  possess  what  he  incessantly  communi¬ 
cates.  It  is  in  this  sense  that  the  Son  cannot  do  any  thing  without 
the  Father.  But  it  is  not  the  less  true,  as  the  fathers  of  the  Church 
said  to  the  Arians,  that  the  Father  cannot  do  any  thing  without  the 
Son,  since  the  divine  nature,  which  is  common  to  the  Father  and  the 
Son,  cannot  divide  itself,  nor,  whilst  it  acts  in  the  Son,  cease  to  act- 
in  the  Father. 

Yet,  as  the  cure  of  this  man  languishing  under  paralysis  was  but 


there  is  no  medium  :  either  he  possesses  divine  nature,  or  lie  wishes  to  usurp  its  honors  ; 
and,  if  not  God,  he  is  an  impostor.  Now,  he  is  not  an  impostor,  according  to  the  avowal 
of  the  Arians  and  Socinians,  who,  when  combating  his  divinity,  nevertheless  acknowledge 
him  as  the  envoy  of  God,  and  subscribe  to  the  truth  of  all  his  words.  This  reasoning 
must  ever  be  a  rock  against  which  their  hollow  subtleties  shall  dash  to  pieces. 


M'! 

{d 

$.  f4y 


,  !/•  \ 


-S'/ 


A/i#; 


a  slight  exertion  of  the  infinite  power  which  the  Father  has  commu¬ 
nicated  to  the  Son,  Jesus  Christ  prepares  the  Jews  to  see  its  effects 
on  a  more  extensive  scale,  and  in  a  manner  more  calculated  to  ex¬ 
cite  their  admiration.  “  For,”  said  he  to  them,  “  as  the  Father  rais- 
eth  up  the  dead,  and  giveth  life,  so  the  Son  also  giveth  life  to  whom 
he  will.”  Therefore  the  power  of  giving  life,  or  of  raising  the  dead, 
is  no  more  restricted  in  the  Father  than  in  the  Son  ;  for,  to  say  that 
the  Son  giveth  life  to  “  whom  he  will,”  is  saying  very  plainly  that 
his  power  in  this  respect  is  unlimited.  And  as  that  great  miracle 
of  the  general  resurrection,  in  which  the  Son  shall  operate  conjointly 
with  the  Father,  must  be  followed  immediately  by  universal  judg¬ 
ment,  Jesus  Christ  takes  therefrom  an  opportunity  to  declare  to  the 
Jews,  that,  besides  the  power  of  resuscitating,  he  has  received  from 
his  Father  authority  to  judge,  which,  in  one  sense,  is  peculiarly  hjs 
own.  “  For,”  he  also  says,  “neither  doth  the  Father  judge  any  man, 
but  hath  given  all  judgment  to  the  Son,  that  all  may  honor  the  Son 
as  they  honor  the  Father  (5).”  This  is  done  in  the  present  state  of 


(5)  The  last  judgment  will  be  the  judgment  of  God,  and,  considered  as  a  divine  act, 
will  be  common  to  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  because  the  three  persons 
of  the  adorable  Trinity  concur  equally  in  all  the  actions  which  God  produces  beyond 
himself.  By  the  sacred  humanity  of  the  Man-God,  which  shall  serve  as  their  instrument 
on  this  occasion,  will  the  three  persons  exercise  this  judgment  ;  and  so  far  we  see  no  dif¬ 
ference  between  them.  But  this  humanity,  which  alone  shall  appear  in  this  great  ac¬ 
tion,  is  properly  the  Son’s,  who  has  united  himself  with  it,  and  not  the  Father’s  or  the 
Holy  Ghost’s,  who  have  not  contracted  with  it  a  similar  union..  In  this  respect  judg¬ 
ment  belongs  more  to  the  Son  than  to  the  Father  or  the  Holy  Ghost,  because,  when 
judging  by  his  humanity,  the  Son  judges  by  an  instrument  united  to  himself,  whereas 
the  Father  and  the  Holy  Ghost  judge  by  an  instrument  separated  from  them  respectively. 
Divines  express  themselves  thus  ;  and  this  may  be  better  understood  by  saying  that 
when  judging  by  the  humanity,  the  Son  judges  by  himself,  whereas  the  Father — and 
the  same  may  be  said  of  the  Holy  Ghost — judges  by  another  person  than  himself,  but 
who  at  the  same  time  is  another  self  ;  a  fashion  of  speech  which  can  only  have  a  literal 
signification  when  speaking  with  reference  to  the  three  persons  of  the  adorable  Trinity. 

The  Fathers  advance  several  reasons  why  God  wished  that  judgment  should  be  exes- 
cised  by  the  sacred  humanity  of  the  Saviour.  1st.  To  indemnify  him  for  the  profound 
humiliation  to  which  he  voluntarily  reduced  himself,  conformably  to  those  words  of  Saint 
Paul  :  He  emptied  himself  taking  the  form  of  a  servant.  ....  He  humbled  himself, 
becoming  obedient  unto  death,  and  unto  the  death  of  the  cross.  For  which  cause <  God 
mlso  hath  exalted  him,  and  hath  given  him  a  name  which  is  above  all  names,  that  in 
the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee  should  bow  that  are  in  heaven,  on  earth,  and  under  the 


"■nvWjfl 


chap,  xrn,] 

existence  by  those  who  believe  in  the  Son,  and  consequently  who  ren¬ 
der  him  the  honors  due  to  the  only  Son  of  the  Father,  and  its  accom¬ 
plishment  shall  be  seen  in  a  much  more  dazzling  manner  at  the  day 
of  judgment,  when  Jesus  Christ  shall  be  recognized  and  honored  by 
all  men,  not  even  excepting  those  who  shall  have  refused  to  believe 
in  him,  but  who  can  now  no  longer  pretend  not  to  know  him,  when 
they  shall  see  him  come  in  a  cloud  of  light,  full  of  majesty  and  glory, 
armed  with  might  and  power,  and  by  the  prodigies  of  his  right  arm 
announcing  to  all  nature  its  Lord  and  its  King.  Then,  convinced  by 
the  evidence  of  their  own  eyes,  they  shall  at  least  recognize  him  by 
their  involuntary  tremor  and  forced  adoration,  and  they  shall  have 
nothing  to  plead  in  reply  to  the  sentence  by  which  they  shall  be 
declared  attainted  and  convicted  of  the  crime  of  high  treason  against 
the  Divine  Majesty,  for  having  refused  him  during  life  the  faith  and 
homage  which  were  due  to  him  ;  whereby  they  have  as  grossly  in¬ 
sulted  the  Father  as  himself  :  “  For  he  who  honoreth.  not  the  Son, 
honoreth  not  the  Father,  who  hath  sent  him.”  And  he  that  would 
simply  honor  him  as  an  envoy  of  the  Father,  could  not  escape  a 
similar  condemnation  ;  because  that,  not  honoring  him  as  the  Son, 
in  which  quality  he  has  been  sent,  is  equally  despising  both  Father 
and  Son. 

Happy  those  for  whom  this  resurrection  shall  be  the  commence¬ 
ment  of  a  life  eternally  happy  !  But  to  this  end  they  must  have 
had  share  in  the  first  resurrection,  which  is  from  the  death  of  sin  to 


earth.  2d.  To  confer  on  Jesus  Christ  the  special  glory  of  judging  those  by  whom  he 
has  been  judged,  and  of  justly  condemning  those  by  whom  he  has  been  unjustly  con¬ 
demned.  The  latter  shall  see  with  unutterable  dread  the  scars  of  the  wounds  which 
their  brutal  fury  imprinted  on  his  innocent  flesh,  according  to  these  words  :  They  shall 
look  on  him  whom  they  pierced  (St.  John,  xix.  37).  3d.  That  men  may  have  a  judge  to 

whom  they  cannot  object.  He  is  man  like  themselves,  bone  of  their  bone  and  flesh  of 
their  flesh.  Will  they  object  to  him  who  has  only  become  their  judge  because  he  con¬ 
descended  to  become  their  brother  ?  He  is  their  Saviour,  who  only  acquired  this  quali¬ 
fication  at  the  expense  of  his  peace,  his  glory,  his  blood,  and  his  life.  Can  any  one  desire 
the  perdition  of  those  for  whom  he  has  made  such  sacrifices  ?  And  is  not  a  person  a 
thousand  times  more  culpable  for  having  neglected  a  salvation  which  had  cost  so  dearly  ? 
Israel,  from  thyself  cometh  thy  destruction,  accuse  not,  therefore,  thy  judge'.  His  past 
mercies  cannot  but  authorize  present  severity,  and  in  dying  for  thee  he  1ms  justified  by 
anticipation  the  sentence  of  death  which  he  shall  pronounce  against  thee. 


V/t 


f— 


the  life  of  grace.  In  this  resurrection  the  Son  doth  not  less  operate 
than  in  the  other  ;  but  here  there  is  one  thing  which  belongs  not  to 
the  other  resurrection,  viz.,  the  co-operation  of  man  is  requisite.  All 
shall  have  part  in  the  second,  because  no  one  can  resist  the  stern 
command  of  Almighty  power.  Many  shall  resist  the  first,  and  by 
their  resistance  exclude  themselves  from  it  altogether.  For  this 
reason  Jesus  Christ  promises  the  first  to  “  him  who  heareth  his 
word  whereas  of  the  second,  he  states  absolutely  and  without  any 
condition  :  “  All  that  are  in  the  graves  shall  hear  the  voice  of  the 
Son  of  God,  and  shall  come  forth.”  Here  are  his  words,  continuing 
his  address  :  “  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  that  he  who  heareth  my 
word,  and  believeth  him  that  sent  me,  hath  life  everlasting  (6)  and 
cometli  not  into  judgment  ;  but  is  passed  from  death  to  life.  Amen, 
amen,  I  say  unto  you,  that  the  hour  cometh,  and  now  is,  when  the 
dead  shall  hear  the  voice  of  the  Son  of  God  (7)  :  and  they  that  hear 
shall  live.  For,  as  the  Father  hath  life  in  himself,  so  he  hath  given 
to  the  Son  also  to  have  life  in  himself,  and  he  hath  given  him  power 
to  do  judgment  because  he  is  the  Son  of  man  (8).  Wonder  not  at 


(6)  There  is  the  principle  of  this  in  sanctifying  grace,  which  is  the  life  of  the  soul — a 
life  which,  by  its  nature,  must  last  always,  and  which  shall  procure  for  the  body  immor¬ 
tal  life,  if  the  possessor  of  this  life  doth  not  voluntarily  lose  it  by  sinning  again,  and  by 
thus  inflicting-  death  a  second  time  on  the  soul. 

(7)  This  is  understood  to  allude  to  the  particular  resurrections  effected  by  Jesus  Christ, 
and  which  he  was  going  to  operate  again.  They  are  proof  by  anticipation,  and,  as  it 
were,  the  earnest  of  the  general  resurrection. 

(8)  In  a  book  so  precise  and  so  profound  as  Scripture,  all  the  terms  must  have  been 
weighed.  What  occasions  this  reflection  is,  that  it  is  written  that  the  dead  shall  hear 
the- voice  of  the  Son  of  God,  and  that  the  Son  is  entitled  to  judge,  because  he  is  Son  of 
man.  Still  it  is  the  same  person,  and  there  is  no  difficulty  in  saying,  the  Son  of  man 
shall  resuscitate  the  dead,  and  the  Son  of  God  shall  judge  them  ;  but  here  is  attributed 
to  each  of  the  two  natures  the  act  which  it  shall  produce  immediately  by  itself.  To  the 
divine  nature  is  attributed  resurrection,  because  nothing  but  an  almighty  nature  can 
effect  this  by  its  own  proper  virtue  :  to  human  nature  is  attributed  judgment,  because 
the  sitting  of  the  judge,  the  pronouncing  of  judgment,  and  every  thing  of  a  sensible 
character  in  judgment,  can  be  the  immediate  effect  of  a  limited  nature.  Yet  the  right 
of  sovereign  judgment  over  the  universe  belongs  to  God  alone.  And  so  the  Son  enjoys 
it,  because  he  is  at  the  same  time  Son  of  God,  and,  inasmuch  as  by  the  personal  union 
of  the  Word,  with  human  nature,  humanity  has  been  associated  with  all  the  rights  of  the 
divinity,  who  imparts  to  it  the  power  of  doing  immediately,  and  by  itself,  every  thing 
which  is  not  beyond  the  sphere  of  created  nature. 


100 


THE  IHSTOKY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST, 


CILAP.  XIII, 


tliis.  For  the  hour  cometh,  wherein  all  that  are  in  the  graves  shall 
hear  the  voice  of  the  Son  of  God  ;  and  they  that  have  done  good 
things  shall  come  forth  unto  the  resurrection  of  life  ;  but  they  that 
have  done  evil,  unto  the  resurrection  of  judgment.”  Jesus  Christ 
adds,  what  is,  in  two  words,  an  apology  for  all  his  acts  and  judg¬ 
ments,  viz.,  that  the  former  are  produced  by  the  power  imparted  to 
him  by  his  Father,  whose  judgments  and  wishes  are  equally  the  rule 
of  his  wishes  and  his  judgments  :  this  he  expresses  by  these  words  : 
“  I  cannot  of  myself  do  any  thing.  As  I  hear,  so  I  judge,  and  my 
judgment  is  just.  Because  I  seek  not  my  own  will,  but  the  will  of 
him  that  sent  me.” 

He  has  just  announced  great  things  :  he  is  now  going  to  support 
their  truth  by  great  testimony.  The  first  is  that  of  John  ;  for  what¬ 
ever  authority  the  purity  of  his  morals  and  his  irreproachable  con¬ 
duct  gave  to  the  statement  of  Jesus,  he  does  not  expect  to  be  be¬ 
lieved  upon  his  own  simple  assertion.  “  If  I  bear  witness  of  my¬ 
self,  my  witness  is  not  true  (9).  There  is  another  that  beareth  wit¬ 
ness  of  me,  and  I  know  that  the  witness  which  he  witnesseth  of  me 
is  true.”  You  yourselves  have  recognized  the  legitimacy  of  his  tes¬ 
timony  ;  for  “you  sent  to  John,  and  he  gave  testimony  to  the  truth. 
But  I  receive  not  testimony  from  man,”  which  is  by  no  means  neces¬ 
sary  to  me.  Wherefore  it  is  not  for  myself,  “  but  I  say  these  things 
that  you  may  be  saved.”  Besides,  this  testimony  you  have  chosen 
is  void  of  all  reproach,  and  I  do  not  now  cast  any  reproach  upon  it 
to  be  reported  by  you  to  him.  “  John  was  a  burning  and  a  shining 
light.  You  were  willing  for  a  time  to  rejoice  in  his  light  (10),”  yet 


(9)  If  we  gave  the  literal  meaning,  it  would  be,  My  testimony  is  not  true  ;  and  Jesus 
Christ  would  contradict  himself,  for  he  says  in  another  place:  Although  I  give  testimony 
of  myself  \  my  testimony  is  true  (John  viii.).  No  doubt  it  was  true  ;  but  if  it  were  single 
testimony  it  proved  nothing,  and  the  hearer  had  a  right  to  decline  believing  upon  the 
maxim  that  no  one  can  be  judge  or  witness  in  his  own  cause.  Hence  what  he  acquires 
by  extrinsic  testimony  is  not  truth,  but  legitimate  evidence,  which  renders  truth  availa¬ 
ble,  and  compels  it  to  be  received. 

(10)  Since  they  sent  a  deputation  to  him,  with  the  disposition,  for  the  most  part,  of 
recognizing  him  as  the  Messiah,  supposing  he  had  declared  himself  such.  We  say  for 
the  most  part,  for  the  people  proceeded  in  the  matter  with  good  faith,  and  the  perverse 
intentions  spoken  of  elsewhere  are  only  attributed  to  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees.  John 
referred  back  this  honor  to  him  to  whom  it  belonged.  Yet  the  Jews  did  not  believe  him. 


1 

mm 

. . —  ■  .■■■■■  ■■■■ . ■■ 

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-1-7Ï?iT  1  "  Vn([ '“"*1  ’"‘l  \  !  ,;"S 

p(v 


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«  '"I  I 


JT> 


mÿif 

îàî' 

S' 


.  ' 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


you  turned  away  your  eyes  from  this  light,  which  seemed  at  first  so 
welcome.  But  although  he  was  worthy  of  all  belief,  “I  have  a 
greater  testimony  than  that  of  John  ;”  even  that  of  my  Father. 
“ For  the”  miraculous  “works  which  the  Father  hath  given  me  to 
perfect,  the  works  themselves  which  I  do,  give  testimony  of  me,  that 
the  Father  hath  sent  me,  and  the  Father  himself  who  hath  sent  me 
hath  given  testimony  of  me.  Neither  have  you  heard  his  voice  at 
any  time,  nor  seen  his  shape  ;”  for  God,  who  is  a  pure  spirit,  comes 
not  under  the  observation  of  the  senses  but  by  the  works  which 
he  has  given  me  to  perform,  and  which  are,  as  it  were,  his  voice,'  he 
has  made  sensible  the  testimony  which  he  has  rendered  concerning 
me  ;  “  and  you  have  not  his  word  abiding  in  you,  for  whom  he  hath 
sent,  him  you  believe  not.” 

Meantime  you  deem  yourselves  the  faithful  depositories  and  mi¬ 
nute  searchers  of  this  divine  word.  You  “  search  the  Scriptures, 
for  you  think  in  them  to  have  life  everlasting.  Xhe  same  are  they 
that  give  testimony  of  me,  and  you  will  not  come  to  me  that  you 
may  have  life  (11),”  which  they  only  promise  you  through  me. 
You  remove  from,  whilst  you  seem  to  be  in  search  of  it,  because  you 
withdraw  from  the  only  road  that  conducts  to  it.  Whereas,  if  I 
seek  to  attract  you  to  me,  I  do  so  with  a  view  to  your  interest,  and 
not  my  own.  “  I  receive  not  glory  from  men.  But”  you,  who  wish 
to  justify  by  the  motive  of  the  love  of  God  your  unwillingness  to 
hear  me,  “  I  know  that  you  have  not  the  love  of  God  in  you,”  and 
the  conduct  you  pursue  towards  me  is  proof  of  this  ;  for  “  I  am  come 
in  the  name  of  my  Father,  and  you  receive  me  not.  If  another  shall 
come  in  his  own  name,  him  you  will  receive  (12).”  Yet  your  incre- 


although  much  more  deserving  of  credit  when  rendering  this  testimony  to  another  than 
if  he  had  rendered  it  to  himself. 

(11)  "Who  is  there  who  would  not  have  life,  and  above  all  others,  eternal  life?  The 
Jews  wished  for  it,  and  we  also  wish  for  it.  But  the  Jews  did  not  wish  to  have  it  through 
faith  in  Jesus  Christ;  and  we  do  not  wish  to  have  it  through  the  observance  of  the  law 
of  Jesus  Christ.  They  wished  for  the  end  like  ourselves  :  like  them,  we  do  not  wish  for 
the  means.  They  perished  with  such  a  wish  ;  and  what  can  we  expect  but  to  perish  like 
them,  if  we  do  not  pass  from  this  wish  (which  I  know  not  whether  to  call  chimerical  or 
hypocritical)  to  a  sincere,  absolute,  and  efficacious  wish,  tending  to  the  end  by  the  means, 
and  embracing  every  thing  without  exception  and  without  reserve  ? 

(12)  This  is  not  merely  a  threat,  ’tis  prophetic  of  what  was  going  to  happen  immedi- 


CHAP.  XIII, 


OP  OUR  LOKD  JESUS  CHKIST. 


dulity  should  not  excite  surprise.  There  is  nothing  in  faith  that 
flatters  human  pride  ;  being  little  esteemed  amongst  men,  faith  at¬ 
tracts  the  complacency  of  God  alone.  “  How  can  you  believe,  who 
receive  glory  one  from  another,  and  the  glory  which  is  from  God 


ately  after  the  death  of  Jesus  Christ.  All  those  who  wished  to  assume  to  themselves 
the  title  of  Messiah,  found  followers  amongst  them,  and  the  prodigy  of  their  credulity  in 
this  regard  equals  that  of  their  incredulity.  Terrible,  yet  just  chastisement  of  that  vol¬ 
untary  blindness  which,  after  having  closed  their  eyes  to  the  truth,  renders  them  the 
dupes,  and  at  last  the  victims  of  the  grossest  illusions  and  the  most  absurd  lies  !  Let  us 
dread  this,  since  it  is  daily  renewed  before  our  eyes.  When  men  decline  hearkening  to 
the  voice  of  those  whom  God  has  established  as  interpreters  of  his  oracles,  they  listen  to 
others,  for  after  all  the  people  do  not  know  how  to  construct  for  themselves  a  system  of 
religion,  and  error,  like  faith,  cometh  to  them  by  hearing  (Rom.  x.  17).  Wherefore  to 
them  it  is  a  necessity  to  hearken  to  other  masters  ;  and  to  what  masters  do  they  hearken  ? 
First  of  all,  to  men  without  title,  without  credentials,  without  mission,  who  bear  witness 
of  themselves,  who  must  be  credited  on  their  word,  when,  with  a  boldness  as  ridiculous 
as  ’tis  insolent,  they  come  and  tell,  I  alone  am  more  enlightened  in  matters  of  religion,  I 
understand  Scripture  better  than  all  the  doctors  and  all  the  pastors  of  the  Church.  But 
this  is  merely  the  beginning  of  the  illusion.  After  having  rejected  those  really  sent  by 
God,  the  people  receive  as  envoys  of  God  eveiy  one  who  presents  himself  before  them. 
By  means  of  considerable  effrontery  and  some  strokes  of  jugglery,  a  man,  qualified  at 
most  to  figure  as  a  mountebank,  sets  the  rumor  afloat  that  he  is  a  prophet,  and  a  thou¬ 
sand  voices  are  heard  repeating,  He  is  a  prophet.  Others  come  to  enlist  themselves,  and 
as  all  have  an  equal  right,  there  soon  appears  formed  a  body  of  prophets  and  prophet¬ 
esses,  composed  of  the  very  dregs  of  the  lowest  populace.  In  language  worthy  of  those 
who  use  it,  they  retail  the  most  monstrous  conceits,  such  ravings  as  the  excitement  of 
fever  could  scarcely  engender  in  the  brain  of  a  distempered  patient.  All  that  is  intelli¬ 
gible  is  their  palpable  impiety  ;  but  in  general  they  do  not  understand  themselves. 
Whether  we  can  understand  them  or  not,  still  they  are  oracles,  who  are  listened  to  with 
religious  attention,  who  are  entertained,  whose  sayings  are  reported  and  treasured  up  like 
a  second  Scripture,  more  respected  than  the  first,  which  now  is  merely  made  use  of  to 
clothe  their  extravagant  whims  in  sacred  expressions.  The  mind  once  fascinated  and 
carried  away,  the  flesh  has  no  longer  any  bridle  :  the  filth  of  impurity  mingles  with  the 
visions  of  fanaticism,  and  comes  to  be  incorporated  with  its  fearful  mysteries.  And  well 
would  it  be  if  they  did  not  soon  pass  from  lust  to  cruelty,  from  folly  to  phrensy  ;  if  they 
did  not  advance  with  torch  and  steel  in  hand  to  accomplish  the  sanguinary  predictions  of 
those  prophets,  who  never  cease  announcing  the  impending  and  utter  ruin  of  their  adver¬ 
saries  !  To  such  a  pitch  does  this  reason  degrade  and  vilify  itself,  when  too  proud  to 
bend  under  the  salutary  yoke  of  divine  authority.  This  is  an  abridgment  of  the  history 
of  the  Gnostics,  the  Montanists,  the  Priscilianists,  the  Donatists,  the  Albigenses,  the  Huss¬ 
ites,  the  Anabaptists,  the  fanatics  of  Cevennes,  Ac.,  Ac.,  Ac.,  and  in  fine,  of  all  those 
who,  walking  in  the  same  paths,  shall  ever  stray  into  the  same  wanderings,  and  shall  ver¬ 
ify  in  themselves  the  expression  of  the  Saviour  :  I  am  come  in  the  name  of  the  Father, 
and  you  receive  me  not  :  if  another  shall  come  in  his  own  name,  him  you  will  receive. 


104 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

alone  you  do  not  seek  ?  Think  not  that  I  will  accuse  you  to  ray 
Father.”  He  who  you  are  forever  placing  in  opposition  to  me,  and 
of  whom  you  would  give  people  to  understand  that  you  are  most 
zealous  defenders,  this  “  Moses,  in  whom'^ou  trust,  is”  already  “  one 
that  accuseth  you.  For  if  you  did  believe  Moses,  you  would  per¬ 
haps  (IB)  believe  me  also  ;  for  he  wrote  of  me  (14).  But  if  you  do 
not  believe  his  writings,  how  will  you  believe  my  words  ?” 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

A  PENITENT  SINNER  AT  THE  FEET  OF  JESUS  CHRIST. - THE  CORN  FLECKED. 

Here  we  give  a  narrative  which  others  place  a  little  further  on  : 
they  think  it  occurred  at  Naim,  and  we  think  it  was  at  Bethany, 
a  borough  or  small  town  a  short  distance  from  Jerusalem.  It  fol¬ 
lows,  from  the  view  we  take,  that  the  sinner  whose  conversion  we 
are  going  to  relate  is  no  other  than  Mary,  sister  of  Lazarus  and  of 
Martha.  Neither  shall  we  distinguish  her  from  Mary  Magdalen,  so 
well  known  by  her  tender  and  inviolable  attachment  to  the  sacred 
person  of  the  Saviour.  Many  think  that  these  are  two,  or  even 
three  different  persons.  They  ought  not  to  be  blamed  for  maintain¬ 
ing  upon  this  point  the  opinion  which  appeared  to  them  most  prob¬ 
able  ;  yet  it  is  desirable  to  know  that  their  proofs  fall  very  short  in¬ 
deed  of  demonstration.  After  having  examined  their  reasons,  we 


(13)  See  Note  4,  page  64,  where  this  “perhaps”  is  explained. 

(14)  In  the  18th  chapter  of  Deuteronomy  we  read  these  words:  The  Lord  thy  Goa 

will  raise  up  to  thee  a  prophet  of  thy  nation,  and  of  thy  brethren,  like  unto  me . I 

will  put  my  words  in  his  mouth,  and  he  shall  speak  all  that  I  shall  command  him.  He 
that  ioill  not  hear  his  words  which  he  shall  speak  in  my  name,  I  will  be  the  revenger . 

This  prophecy  has  always  been  applied  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  undoubtedly  Jesus  Christ 
had  it  then  in  view.  These  words,  like  unto  me,  signify,  1st.  A  man,  like  unto  me,  to 
allay  the  apprehensions  of  the  people,  who,  from  fear  of  dying,  had  entreated  the  Lord 
not  to  speak  personally  any  more  by  himself,  as  lie  had  done  upon  Mount  Sinai.  2d. 
They  also  signify  a  legislator,  like  unto  me,  to  distinguish  Jesus  Christ  from  the  other 
prophets,  and  to  prepare  men  for  receiving  the  new  law  which  was  to  abrogate  the  old. 


CHAP.  XIV.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  *  105 

think  we  may  state  with  confidence  that  they  merely  oppose  con¬ 
jecture  to  conjecture,  a  new  opinion  to  one  more  ancient.  Now, 
opinion  for  opinion,  we  feel  no  difficulty  in  stating  that  we  side  more 
willingly  with  those  which  are  ancient  and  common  than  those  which 
are  new  and  singular.  After  this  short  digression,  we  shall  proceed 
to  recount  the  narrative  which  occasioned  it. 

Despite  of  the  declared  hostility  of  the  Pharisees  to  Jesus  Christ, 
there  was  one  of  them  who  ventured  to  give  him  marks  of  attach¬ 
ment  and  respect.  His  name  was  Simon,  and  it  is  thought  very  prob¬ 
able  that  he  is  no  other  than  Simon  the  leper,  who  is  also  spoken  of 
in  circumstances  very  like  the  present.  Whether  from  esteem  for 
Jesus  Christ,  or  from  that  species  of  vanity  which  induces  opulent 
men  to  invite  extraordinary  characters  to  their  tables,  (a)  “  Simon 
desired  Jesus  to  eat  with  him.”  Jesus  consented,  and  thereby  show¬ 
ed  that  what  he  hated  in  the  Pharisees  was  their  vices,  and  not  them¬ 
selves.  “  He  went  therefore  into  his  house,  and  sat  down  to  meat. 
Behold,  a  woman  that  was  in  the  city,  a  sinner,  when  she  knew  that 
he  sat  at  meat  in  the  Pharisee’s  house,  brought  an  alabaster  box  of 
ointment  ;  and  standing  behind  at  his  feet  (1),  she  began  to  wash  his 
feet  with  tears,  wiped  them  with  the  hairs  of  her  head,  kissed  them, 
and  anointed  them  with  the  ointment.  The  Pharisee,  who  had  in¬ 
vited  him,  seeing  it,  spoke  within  himself:  This  man,  if  he  wTere  a 
prophet,  would  know  surely  who  and  what  manner  of  woman  this  is 
that  toucheth  him  (2),  that  she  is  a  sinner.”  He,  before  whose  eyes 
all  things  are  laid  bare,  knew  well  what  the  Pharisee  ventured  to 
think,  though  not  to  utter,  and  by  letting  him  know  that  he  was  cog- 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vii.  36. 


(1)  The  posture  in  which  it  was  the  custom  of  those  times  to  recline  at  table,  facilitated 
to  her  the  means  of  so  doing.  They  reclined  on  beds  (or  couches),  the  head  being  turn¬ 
ed  towards  the  table  and  the  feet  outwards. 

(2)  To  be  a  prophet,  it  is  not  necessary  to  know  every  thing  by  divine  revelation  ;  it 
is  enough  to  know  several.  Eliseus  was  not  the  less  a  prophet,  although  he  was  igno¬ 
rant  of  the  death  of  the  Sunamite’s  son,  which  the  Lord,  he  said,  had  concealed  from 
him.  Thus  Jesus  Christ  might,  as  man,  be  ignorant  what  this  woman  was,  and  never¬ 
theless  be  a  prophet.  Wherefore  the  Pharisee  was  mistaken  on  this  point.  We  shall 
see  that  he  also  deceived  himself  on  several  others.  Innumerable  are  the  blunders  of 
malice,  which,  notwithstanding,  thinks  itself  so  subtle  and  penetrating. 


106  %  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I. 

nizant  of  what  was  passing  within  him,  should  have  fully  satisfied 
the  Pharisee’s  mind  that  he  was  plainly  invested  with  the  quality  of 
prophet.  But  as  he  wished  to  use  forbearance  towards  a  man  who 
had  invited  him  to  his  table,  he  not  only  did  not  address  him  until 
he  had  in  some  manner  asked  his  permission,  but  also  made  use  of  a 
parable,  which,  without  too  sorely  wounding  his  self-love,  yet  con¬ 
vinced  him  of  his  error,  by  showing  him  how  blind  he  was  in  the 
judgment  he  passed  upon  Jesus  Christ,  unjust  in  his  slrictures  on  the 
penitent,  and  presumptuous  in  the  estimate  he  formed  of  himself. 
“  He  said  to  him  then,  answering,”  not  his  words,  but  his  thoughts  : 
“  Simon,  I  have  something  to  say  to  thee  :  Master,  say  it,  said  he.  A 
certain  creditor  had  two  debtors  :  the  one  owed  five  hundred  pence, 
and  the  other  fifty.  Whereas  they  had  not  wherewith  to  pay,  he 
forgave  them  both.  Which,  therefore,  of  the  two  loveth  him  most  ? 
I  suppose,  said  Simon,  answering,  that  he  to  whom  he  forgave  most. 
Jesns  said  to  him:  Thou  hast  judged  rightly.”  And  turning  to  the 
woman,  he  justified  the  little  attention  which  he  had  seemed  to  pay 
to  what  she  was  doing,  by  making  it  apparent  that  he  had  remarked 
every  thing,  that  he  gave  her  credit  for  all,  and  that  her  tears  had 
a  more  delicious  relish  for  him  than  all  the  dainties  which  the  Phar¬ 
isee  had  served  up  before  him.  “  Dost  thou  see  this  woman  ?  I  en¬ 
tered  into  thy  house,  thou  gavest  me  no  water  for  my  feet,  but  she 
with  tears  hath  washed  my  feet,  and  with  her  hairs  hath  wiped  them. 
Thou  gavest  me  no  kiss,  but  she,  since  she  came  in,  hath  not  ceased 
to  kiss  my  feet.  My  head  with  oil  thou  didst  not  anoint,  but  she 
with  ointment  hath  anointed  my  feet.  Wherefore,  I  say  to  thee, 
many  sins  are  forgiven  her,  because  she  hath  loved  much  (3).  But 


(3)  The  great  love  of  this  sinful  woman  is  given  here  for  the  cause  of  the  great 
remission  accorded  to  her.  In  the  parable  remission  is  granted  to  her  on  account 
of  this  great  love.  If  you  seek  for  the  justice  of  the  application,  I  am  free  to  avow 
there  is  much  ado  in  finding  it.  Yet  that  it  does  not  appear  impossible,  you  may 
form  your  own  judgment  by  what  we  are  going  to  say.  It  seems  that  there  would 
exist  no  further  difficulty  if  we  admitted  a  love  which  was  at  the  same  time  the  cause 
and  the  effect  of  the  remission,  that  is  to  say,  a  love  that  preceded  the  remission,  and 
which' had  at  the  same  time  the  remission  for  its  motive.  This  is,  in  point  of  fact, 
the  love  of  that  penitent.  According  to  the  parable  she  loved  much,  because  many  sins 
were  remitted  her  ;  and  following  the  application,  many  sins  are  remitted  her,  because 
she  loved  much.  Now,  here  is  the  way  in  which  all  this  can  be  explained  and  recoD- 


m 

m 


\ 


H' 


v 


in  I 


CHAP.  XIV.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


107 


lie  to  whom  less  is  forgiven,  lie  lovetli  less.  And  lie  said  to  her  : 
Thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee.” 

This  was  what  she  exclusively  desired  ;  and  what  constituted  the 
glory  of  this  illustrious  penitent  is,  that  she  was  the  first  who  ad¬ 
dressed  herself  to  Jesus  Christ  to  obtain  from  him,  not,  like  others, 
deliverance  from  some  corporeal  infirmity,  but  the  healing  of  those 
mortal  wounds  which  sin  had  made  in  her  soul.  In  doing  so,  her 
faith  which  Jesus  Christ  is  going  to  eulogize  seems  to  have  perfectly 
enlightened  her,  since  she  recognized  him  for  her  Saviour  in  the  true 
sense,  viz.,  in  the  sense  that  he  was  (a)  “  to  save  the  people  from 
their  sins.”  Now  this  is  what  was  less  understood  than  any  thing 
else  even  among  those  Jews  who  acknowledged  him  to  be  a  prophet. 
Very  far  from  thinking  that  he  was  soon  to  confer  upon  sinful  men 
the  power  of  remitting  sin,  they  viewed  him  with  astonishment  when 
he  attributed  this  power  to  himself.  Whence  it  followed  that  “  they 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  i.  21. 


ciled.  Let  us  bear  in  mind  these  words  of  the  Council  of  Trent,  when  it  treats  of  the 
dispositions  for  justification  :  They  (the  sinners)  must  begin  to  love  God  as  the  source  of 
all  justice,  that  is  to  say,  as  author  of  the  justification  of  sinners.  This  justification  is 
evidently  the  effect  of  the  merciful  bounty  by  which  God  remits  sins,  and  this  mercy  is 
the  attribute  under  which  God  is  here  proposed  to  the  love  of  the  sinner.  Wherefore  he 
is  bound  to  love  God,  because  God  is  sufficiently  good  to  render  him  just,  after  being  a 
sinner,  and  to  render  him  just  by  mercifully  according  to  him  the  pardon  of  all  his  crimes. 
Now,  the  heavier  he  is  loaded  with  crimes,  the  greater  is  this  bounty  with  respect  to  him, 
and  the  more  amiable  should  it  appear  to  him  ;  and  I  can  conceive  that  if  I  love  God, 
because  I  know  that  he  is  sufficiently  good  to  grant  to  my  repentance  the  pardon  of  all 
my  crimes,  I  ought  to  love  him  a  thousand  times  more,  being  a  thousand  times  more  cul¬ 
pable,  than  I  should  love  him  if  I  were  a  thousand  times  less  guilty.  I  have  said  that 
such  was  the  love  of  this  sinful  woman  ;  and  it  is  that  at  the  same  time  that  she  was  the 
woman  to  whom  many  sins  were  remitted,  because  she  loved  much,  she  also  discovers 
herself  to  be  the  debtor,  who  loves  the  creditor  not  for  what  he  has  already  remitted,  but 
because  the  debtor  believes  firmly  that  the  creditor  is  sufficiently  generous  to  remit  him 
even  a  heavier  debt.  In  a  word,  this  is  gratitude  by  anticipation,  for  a  grace  which  is 
sure  to  be  obtained  from  the  pure  bounty  of  Him  who  can,  and  we  know  will  accord  it. 
Let  us  say,  however,  that  there  never  is  any  certainty  of  having  obtained  this  grace.  Yet 
this  uncertainty  should  be  no  obstacle  to  the  love  of  which  I  speak  ;  because  this  does 
not  come  from  God,  but  from  ourselves,  that  is  to  say,  from  our  own  dispositions,  for  the 
validity  of  which  we  never  can  answer.  For  could  I  be  infallibly  assured  that  they  are 
such  as  they  ought  to  be,  I  should  no  longer  be  permitted  to  doubt  of  my  pardon  ;  it 
would  be  to  me  an  article  of  faith,  as  it  was  to  the  penitent,  after  Jesus  Christ  had  said 
to  her  :  Thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee. 


W 


w, 


Tm — f  VW  ,1WI*J  r~!  1 


4  *-4 

i  a 

ia s 
% 


\-W 


'/Cfhi 


Sn 


mm* 


//mt 
Z/lv 


ÏIIE  IIISTOIiY  OF  THE  LIFE 


that  sat  at  meat  with  him  began  to  say  within  themselves,”  in  sur¬ 
prise,  mingled  with  no  little  indignation  :  “  Who  is  this  that  forgiv- 
eth  sins  also  ?”  But  without  stopping  to  reply  to  them,  “  Jesus  said 
to  the  woman  :  Thy  faith  hath  made  thee  safe  ;  go  in  peace  (4).” 
This  faith  was  evidently  that  by  which  she  had  believed  that  Jesus 
Christ  had  the  power  and  the  will  to  remit  her  sins  ;  and  Jesus,  by 
expressly  declaring  so,  taught  this  murmuring  throng  that  only  by 
similar  faith  could  they  merit  and  obtain  the  like  grace. 

When  the  feast  was  over,  Jesus,  who  was  under  no  obligation  to 
prolong  his  sojourn  at  Jerusalem,  returned  back  towards  Galilee. 
He  arrived  there,  and  was  occupied,  as  usual,  in  pursuing  his  evan¬ 
gelical  missions,  (<?)  “  On  the  second-first  (5)  Sabbath,  as  he  went 
through  the  corn-fields,  it  came  to  pass  that  his  disciples  being  hun¬ 
gry,  began  to  pluck  the  ears,  and  rubbing  them  in  their  hands,  did 
eat.”  The  law  allowed  this  in  express  terms  (Deut.  23),  and  the 
thing,  considered  in  itself,  could  not  incur  the  slightest  reproach  from 
those  who  piqued  themselves  on  being  scrupulous  observers.  Where¬ 
fore  it  was  on  account  of  the  particular  day  that  those  Pharisees  vTho 
were  spectators  of  the  action  took  occasion  to  find  fault,  (b)  “  Why, 
said  they  to  the  disciples,  do  you  that  which  is  not  lawful  on  the 
Sabbath  days?”  and  as  their  animosity  was  much  more  inflamed 
against  the  Master,  “  Behold,”  said  they  to  him,  with  that  bitter  zeal 


(«)  St.  Luke,  vi.  1  ;  St.  Matthew,  xii.  1. 


(6)  St.  Luke,  vi.  2. 


(4)  The  abuse  which  Protestants  have  made  of  these  words  to  establish  their  justify¬ 
ing  faith,  compels  us  to  remember  here  that  Jesus  Christ  had  said  previously:  Many 
sins  are  forgiven  her,  because  she  hath  loved  much.  It  is  not,  therefore,  faith  alone  which 
justifies,  but  faith  that  loorketh  by  charity. — Gal.  v. 

(5)  Second-first,  that  is  to  say,  the  first  Sabbath  after  the  second  day  of  the  feast  of 
Azimes.  In  the  23d  chapter  of  Leviticus  we  read  the  following  decree  :  “You  shall 
count,  therefore,  from  the  morrow  after  the  Sabbath,  wherein  you  offered  the  share  of 
the  firstifniits,  seven  full  weeks,  even  unto  the  morrow  after  the  seventh  week  be  expired, 
that  is  to  say,  fifty  days.”  This  day  after  the  seventh  week  was  the  day  of  Pente¬ 
cost.  Now  it  has  been  very  happily  conjectured  that  all  the  Sabbath  days  between  the 
feast  of  Easter  and  that  of  Pentecost  were  named  from  this  second  day  of  Easter,  so  that 
the  first  Saturday  following  was  termed  the  first  Sabbath  after  the  second  day,  and,  by 
abbreviation,  the  second-first,  the  second-second,  &c.,  that  is  to  say,  second  Sabbath  after 
the  second  day,  third  Sabbath  after  the  second  day.  Note  that  the  circumstance  of  the 
ripe  ears  of  wheat  leave  no  ground  for  doubting  that  it  was  then  between  Easter  and 
Pentecost. 


CHAP.  XIV. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


which  rather  unmasks  than  disguises  passion,  («)  “  behold,  thy  disci¬ 
ples  do  that  which  is  not  lawful  to  do  on  the  Sabbath  days.”  “  Have 
you  not  read,  said  Jesus,  answering  them,  have  you  not  read  what 
David  did  when  he  was  hungry  himself,  and  they  that  were  with 
him  ?  How  he  entered  into  the  house  of  God  (6)  under  Abiathar  (7 ), 
the  high  priest  ;  took  and  eat  the  bread  of  proposition  (8),  which  it 
is  not  lawful  for  him  to  eat,  nor  for  them  that  were  with  him  (9), 
but  for  the  priests  only  ?  Or  have  you  not  read  in  the  law,  that  on 
the  Sabbath  days  the  priests  in  the  temple  break  the  Sabbath,  and 
are  without  blame  ?  But  I  tell  you  that  there  is  here  a  greater  than 
the  temple.” 

He  spoke  of  himself,  and  this  was  one  of  those  expressions  which, 
as  it  were,  escaped  him,  whereby  he  discovered  his  divinity  to  those 
who  hearkened  attentively  to  his  words,  and  applied  themselves  to 
understand  them  ;  for  who  is  greater  than  the  temple,  if  it  be  not 
the  Lord  of  the  temple  ?  Afterwards  he  added,  to  let  them  know 
that  the  motive  for  the  reproach  they  made  him  was  no  other  than 
that  zeal  which  they  so  pompously  paraded  :  (h)  “  If  you  knew  what 
this  meaneth,  I  will  have  mercy  (10),  and  not  sacrifice,  you  would 
never  have  condemned  the  innocent.”  Jesus  Christ  had  already 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  2,  3  ;  St.  Mark,  ii.  26  ;  St.  Luke,  vi.  4  ;  St.  Matthew,  xii.  4-6 

(b)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  7. 


(6)  In  the  first  inclosure  of  the  tabernacle,  where  laymen  were  allowed  to  enter.  This 
occurred  at  Nobe,  a  sacerdotal  town,  whither  the  tabernacle  was  transported  from  Silo. 

(7)  It  is  written  in  the  1st  book  of  Kings,  chap,  xxi.,  that  the  high  priest  from  whom 
David  asked  the  bread  was  Achimeleeh,  the  father  of  Abiathar.  Several  answers  have 
been  given  to  this  difficulty.  The  most  decisive  is,  that  it  is  settled  by  the  2d  book  of 
Kings,  chap,  viii.,  and  by  the  1st  of  Paralipomenon,  chap,  xviii.,  that  the  father  and  the 
son  had  each  of  them  the  two  names  of  Achimeleeh  and  Abiathar. 

(8)  So  called  because  the  bread  was  'proposed,  or  presented,  before  the  face  of  the 
Lord  upon  a  table  called,  for  this  reason,  the  table  of  the  bread  of  proposition.  They 
were  piled  up,  six  on  each  side.  The  twelve  represented  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel  who 
protested  by  this  offering  that  they  held  from  the  Lord  all  their  subsistence.  They  were 
renewed  every  Sabbath-day,  and  those  which  were  taken  away  could  only  be  eaten  by 
the  priest,  and  that  within  the  inclosure  of  the  tabernacle. 

(9)  David  presented  himself  alone  ;  but  those  that  were  with  him  were  in  the  vicinity, 
as  we  also  see  in  the  21st  chap,  of  the  1st  book  of  Kings. 

(10)  See  the,  14  th  note  of  the  11th  chap.,  page  86. 


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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


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quoted  tliis  maxim  against  them  in  a  case  similar  to  this,  and  thus 
we  see  how  earnestly  he  desired  that  this  truth  should  be  deeply 
engraven  on  every  mind.  Finally,  to  wind  up  his  reply  and  the  les¬ 
son  which  it  had  furnished  him  with  an  occasion  of  giving,  (a)  “  he 
said  to  them:  The  Sabbath  was  made  for  man,  and  not  man  for 
the  Sabbath  ;  therefore,  the  Son  of  man  is  Lord  of  the  Sabbath 
also.” 

The  one  follows  evidently  from  the  other,  since  the  Son  of  man 
being  the  king  and  master  of  all  men,  hath  under  his  control  every 
thing  connected  with  men,  and  whatever  is  made  for  them,  as  was 
the  Sabbath.  Wherefore,  he  hath  a  right  to  dispense  them,  and  he 
did  so  in  the  present  circumstance  ;  for  it  is  ackowledged  by  all,  that 
the  disciples  then  required  a  dispensation — not,  as  we  have  already 
said,  for  taking  the  ears  of  corn  away  from  the  people’s  crops,  nor 
even  for  bruising  them  between  their  hands,  which  was  equivalent 
to  breaking  bread  into  pieces  before  eating,  an  action  which  could 
never  require  any  defence  ; — but  a  dispensation  was  requisite  to 
enable  them  to  gather  these  ears  of  corn  on  the  Sabbath-day,  which 
was  expressly  forbidden,  and  from  this  prohibition  Jesus  Christ  dis¬ 
pensed  them.  Undoubtedly  he  had  a  right  to  do  so  ;  and  no  one 
was  entitled  to  call  him  to  account  for  the  reasons  upon  which  he 
grounded  the  dispensation.  Yet  he  condescended  to  give  them,  and, 
on  close  examination,  we  find  in  them  the  foundation  of  a  complete 
apology  :  1st.  By  declaring  himself  Lord  of  the  Sabbath,  he  estab¬ 
lished  his  sovereign  right  to  dispense  with  it.  2d.  The  law  was,  by 
its  nature,  susceptible  of  dispensation  ;  inasmuch  as,  being  made  for 
man,  it  was  natural  it  should  give  way  to  his  real  and  pressing  neces¬ 
sities.  Bd.  The  motive  which  induced  God  to  use  this  indulgence  is 
his  goodness.  He  is  better  pleased  that  men  should  break  the  rest 
which  he  commanded  them,  than  allow  themselves  to  be  pressed  by 
hunger,  so  as  to  run  the  risk  of  falling  from  weakness.  Such  is  the 
direct  meaning  of  this  expression,  “  I  will  have  mercy,  and  not  sacri¬ 
fice,”  without  prejudice  to  the  moral  sense  which  we  have  affixed 
to  it,  and  which  it  likewise  had  when  uttered  by  Jesus  Christ. 
4th.  The  disciples  were  in  a  position  requiring  dispensation  for  two 

(a)  St.  Mark,  ii.  27. 


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CfUP.  XV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


reasons  :  of  these,  necessity  was  the  first.  This  had  authorized  David 
in  an  action  which,  under  any  other  circumstances,  would  have  been 
deemed  a  sort  of  sacrilege  ;  therefore,  such  necessity  must,  for  a 
much  stronger  reason,  have  authorized  the  disciples  in  the  seeming 
violation  of  a  less  important  law.  The  second  reason  is,  the  sanctity 
of  the  functions  in  which  they  were  employed.  This  justifies,  or 
rather  sanctifies,  the  working  of  the  priests  in  the  temple,  for  the 
preparation  and  immolation  of  victims,  whence  arose  the  Jewish 
proverb  :  There  is  no  Sabbath  in  the  temple.  How  much  the  more 
ought  it  to  justify  and  sanctify  the  actions  of  those  who,  being  at¬ 
tached  to  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  having  become  his  co- 
operators,  are  occupied  in  ministrations  much  more  holy  than  all 
those  of  the  ancient  priesthood  !  The  remark  has  been  made  that 
Jesus  Christ  justifies  his  disciples  by  the  example  of  holy  and  reli¬ 
gious  men,  yet  that,  when  his  object  was  to  justify  himself  person¬ 
ally,  he  merely  alleges  the  example  of  his  Father,  comparing  thus 
man  to  man,  and  a  God  to  a  God. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  WITHERED  HAND  RESTORED. - MILDNESS  OF  JESUS  CHRIST  FORETOLD. - CALLING 

OF  THE  TWELVE  APOSTLES. 

Tins  complaint  was  soon  renewed.  Shortly  after  the  fact  we 
have  just  related,  (a)  “  it  came  to  pass,  also  on  another  Sabbath- 
day,  that  Jesus  entered  into  the  synagogue,  and  taught.  There  was 
a  man  whose  right  hand  was  withered.  The  Scribes  and  the  Phari¬ 
sees  watched  if  he  would  heal  on  the  Sabbath,  and  they  asked 
Jesus:  Is  it  lawful  to  heal  on  the  Sabbath  days?”  They  spoke  thus, 
“  that  they  might  find  an  accusation  against  him,”  or  make  him  con¬ 
tradict  himself,  if  he  hesitated  at  all  in  his  reply.  Either  that,  or 
they  designed  to  accuse  him  of  gross  prevarication,  if  he  advanced 
what,  in  their  eyes,  was  a  most  scandalous  maxim,  viz.,  it  is  lawful 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vi.  6,  "7  ;  St.  Matthew,  xii.  10. 


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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  L 

to  heal  ailments  on  the  Sabbath-day.  («)  “  Jesus,  who  knew  their 
thoughts,”  disconcerted  them  in  a  way  which,  while  it  covered  them 
with  shame,  did  but  render  their  hatred  more  furious,  and  their  re¬ 
sentment  more  implacable.  “  He  said  to  the  man  who  had  the 
withered  hand  :  Arise,  and  stand  forth  in  the  midst.  And,  rising, 
he  stood  forth.”  Then,  addressing  himself  to  the  Pharisees,  “  I  ask 
you,  if  it  be  laAvful  on  the  Sabbath  day3  to  do  good  or  to  do  evil — 
to  save  life  or  to  destroy  (1)  ?” — that  is  to  say,  not  to  save  life  when 
it  is  within  our  power  to  do  so  ;  for  between  the  two  extremes  of 
saving  and  depriving  of  life  by  a  positive  act,  there  is  a  medium, 
which  consists  in  inaction,  or  doing  neither  good  nor  evil.  But  the 
proof  that  J esus  used  this  expression  in  the  sense  which  we  attach  to 
it,  is  this,  that  whereas  they  might  have  replied  to  him,  (li)  “  they 
held  their  peace.”  Hence  they  acknowledged  by  their  silence,  that 
doing  good  to  our  neighbor  on  the  Sabbath-day,  when  this  good  is 
of  a  nature  not  to  be  deferred,  is  not  an  evil  act  ;  and  that  we  should 
rather  be  doing  an  evil  to  our  neighbor,  heinous  in  proportion  to 
this  very  good,  if  we  omitted  the  good  when  in  our  power.  But  to 
make  them  feel  the  utter  cruelty  of  their  false  zeal,  Jesus  added  this 
comparison,  drawn  from  their  own  conduct  :  (c)  “  What  man,  he 
said  to  them,  shall  there  be  among  you,  that  hath  one  sheep,  and  if 
the^same  fall  into  a  pit  on  the  Sabbath-day,  will  he  not  take  hold  on 
it  and  lift  it  up  (2)  ?  How  much  better  is  a  man  than  a  sheep  ? 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vi.  8.  (c)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  11,  12  ;  St.  Mark, 

(b)  St.  Mark,  iii.  4.  iii.  4  ;  St.  Matthew,  xii.  13. 


(1)  Not  to  save  the  life  of  the  soul  or  that  of  the  body,  when  in  our  power  so  to  do, 
is  taking  away  one  or  the  other.  Who  is  there  that  will  not  be  alarmed  at  this  ?  But 
who  can  excuse  those  whom  God  has  charged  -with  the  care  of  souls,  or  to  whom  he  has 
given  the  means  of  relieving  the  wants  of  the  body  ? 

(2)  What  then  was  permitted  is  express!}1 2 * * * * 7  forbidden  by  the  canon  law  of  the  Jews,  and 

the  Rabbis  are  become  more  scrupulous  on  this  point  than  the  Pharisees  were  in  the  time 

of  Jesus  Christ.  They  say,  notwithstanding,  that  when  an  animal  falls  into  a  pit  on  a  Sab¬ 
bath-day,  a  person  in  that  case  can  go  down  into  the  pit,  place  something  under  the  ani¬ 
mal  to  raise  it,  and  that,  if  it  then  escapes,  the  Sabbath  is  not  violated.  Poor  subtlety, 
which  would  not  hinder  the  Sabbath  from  being  violated,  in  point  of  fact,  if  the  law  for¬ 

bid  acting  in  a  circumstance  like  the  present  ;  because  to  act  it  evidently  is — descending 
into  a  pit,  carrying  thitber  a  stone  o.r  piece  of  stick,  and  placing  it  under  cattle,  which  re¬ 

quire  this  aid  to  get  out  of  the  pit.  It  is  well  to  remark,  that  with  all  their  scruples,  this 

class  of  people  do  not  wish,  nevertheless,  to  lose  their  sheep. 


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CHAP.  AV.] 

Therefore,  it  is  lawful  to  do  a  good  deed  oil  the  Sabbath  days,”  con¬ 
tinues  he,  in  conclusion.  He  seemed  to  pause  for  any  answer  they 
might  have  to  make  ;  “  but  they  held  their  peace,”  confounded  with 
shame  and  vexation.  “  Jesus,  looking  round  about  on  them  with 
anger,  being  grieved  for  the  blindness  of  their  hearts  (3),  saith  to 
the  man  :  Stretch  forth  thy  hand.  He  stretched  it  forth,  and  his 
hand  was  restored  to  health,  even  as  the  other.” 

At  the  sight  of  this  miracle,  “  the  Pharisees  were  filled  with  mad¬ 
ness,”  and  assuredly  not  without  reason.  Jesus  Christ  had  clearly 
shown  them  that  it  was  allowable  to  cure  this  man  upon  the  Sab¬ 
bath-day,  in  whatever  point  of  view  the  subject  was  examined. 
Still,  had  he  applied  his  hand,  their  malignity  might  have  found 
room  to  cavil  anew  ;  but  what  could  they  say  when  they  saw  him 
employ  nothing  but  speech  ?  Was  it  forbidden  to  speak  upon  the 
Sabbath-day  ? — or,  as  to  the  words  allowed  to  be  spoken,  must  there 
be  an  exception  against  those  which  worked  miracles  ?  They  saw 
that  the  absurdity  would  be  too  glaring  did  they  hazard  such  objec¬ 
tions,  and  so  being  forced  to  hold  their  peace,  they  no  longer  heark¬ 
ened  to  any  other  impulse  than  that  of  exasperated  and  furious  pas¬ 
sion.  (a)  “  Going  out,  they  immediately  made  a  consultation  with 
the  Herodians  (4),  how  “  they  might  destroy  him”  whom  they  could 
not  confound. 

(b)  “  Jesus  knowing  it”— he,  whose  power  could  nullify  the  efforts 
of  his  enemies  with  the  same  facility  as  his  wisdom  had  disconcerted 
the  vain  subtleties  of  their  words,  wished  on  this  occasion  to  give 
his  disciples  the  example  of  the  conduct  they  should  pursue  in  the 
persecutions  they  were  to  encounter.  He  appeared  to  yield  before 
the  storm,  ( c )  “  and  retired  with  them  to  the  sea.  A  great  multitude 


(a)  St.  Mark,  iii.  6. 


(1)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  15. 


(c)  St.  Mark,  iii.  7. 


(3)  Sin  is  injurious  to  God,  whom  it  offends,  and  wretched  for  man,  who  commits  it. 
Inasmuch  as  it  is  an  offence  towards  God,  it  excites  the  indignation  of  Jesus  Christ,  and 
the  evil  it  does  men  causes  him  grief.  This  is  so,  because  Jesus  Christ  loves  both  God 
and  man.  True  zeal  is  that  which  has  its  origin  in  both  these  affections. 

(4)  We  are  ignorant  who  these  Herodians  were.  They  may  have  constituted  a  reli¬ 
gious  sect,  or  a  political  party — perhaps  both  together.  Very  likely  they  derived  the 
name  of  Herodians  from  their  declared  attachment  to  the  person  of  Herod  Antipas,  then 
tetrarch  of  Galilee,  or  in  general  for  the  family  of  the  Herods. 

S 


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followed  him  from  Galilee  and  Judea,  from  Jerusalem,  from  Idumea, 
and  beyond  the  Jordan.  They  about  Tyre  and  Sidon,  a  great  mul¬ 
titude,  hearing  the  things  which  he  did,  came  to  him.  Jesus  spoke 
to  his  disciples,  that  a  small  ship  should  wait  on  him,  because  of  the 
multitude,  lest  they  should  throng  him.  For  he  healed  many,  so 
that  they  pressed  upon  him  for  to  touch  him,  as  many  as  had  evils. 
(a)  He  healed  them  all,  and  he  charged  them  that  they  should  not 
make  him  known.  (/>)  The  unclean  spirits” — that  is,  the  possessed, 
who  were  their  instruments — “  when  they  saw  him,  fell  down  before 
him,  and  they  cried  out,  saying  :  Thou  art  the  Son  of  God.  And  he 
strictly  charged  them,  that  they  should  not  make  him  known  (5)  ; 
that  it  might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken  by  Isaias  the  prophet, 
saying  (6)  :  Behold  my  servant,  whom  I  have  chosen  ;  my  beloved, 
in  whom  my  soul  hath  been  well  pleased.  I  will  put  my  Spirit  upon 
him,  and  he  shall  show  judgment  to  the  Gentiles.  He  shall  not  con¬ 
tend,  nor  cry  out  ;  neither  shall  any  man  hear  his  voice  in  the  streets. 
The  bruised  reed  he  shall  not  break,  and  smoking  flax  he  shall  not 
extinguish,  till  he  send  forth  judgment  unto  victory.  And  in  his 
name  the  Gentiles  shall  hope.” 

Meekness,  therefore,  is  one  of  the  features  which  designate  the  Mes¬ 
siah,  and  he  ought  to  be  recognized  by  this  amiable  character.  Were 
the  Jews,  then,  mistaken  when  they  figured  to  themselves  a  conquer¬ 
ing  Messiah?  No:  mistaken  they  were  not,  excepting  in  the  mode 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  15,  16,  ( b )  St.  Mark,  iii.  11,  12  ;  St.  Matthew,  xii.  17-21. 


(5)  See  note  4  of  chapter  x.,  page  73. 

(6)  To  connect  this  prophecy  with  what  precedes  it,  it  is  said  that  Jesus  Christ’s  inten¬ 
tion,  in  forbidding  the  publication  of  his  divinity  and  his  miracles,  was  to  deprecate  the 
anger  of  the  Pharisees,  who  were  already  but  too  much  exasperated  against  him.  This 
motive  was  worthy  of  the  meekness  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  constitutes  the  object  of  this 
prophecy.  Envy  should  not  be  so  humored  as  to  make  us  abstain  from  works  of  zeal  and 
chai'ity,  at  which  it  is  unjust  to  take  offence  ;  but  we  must  soften  their  lustre  as  much  as 
possible,  in  order  not  to  increase  its  pain  or  augment  its  torment.  There  is  malignity  in 
insulting  its  grief,  and  putting  straight  before  its  eye  the  light  which  it  hates  and  which 
fires  this  passion.  If  envy  is  unworthy  of  being  treated  with  caution,  such  caution  is  due 
to  charity,  which  never  allows  us  to  take  pleasure  in  another’s  pain  ;  this  caution  is  also 
due  to  our  own  safety.  Envy,  when  irritated,  is  capable  of  any  thing  ;  and  how  often 
have  its  furious  paroxysms,  not  treated  with  sufficient  caution,  upset  the  victor  in  his 
chariot,  and  changed  into  funereal  pomp  the  exhibition  of  a  triumph  indiscreetly  dis¬ 
played  ! 


A 


CHAP.  XV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


115 


of  his  conquests  ;  for  a  conqueror  he  was  to  be,  in  point  of  fact.  The 
justice  alluded  to  here  is  the  evangelical  law,  under  which  he  was  to 
reduce  all  nations  ;  yet  not  by  force  or  terror.  The  means  which  he 
is  to  employ  shall  be  a  tone  of  voice  so  moderate,  that  no  one  shall 
ever  remark  in  it  either  the  animosity  of  contention  or  the  brilliancy 
of  dispute.  He  shall  not  advance  amidst  the  overthrow  and  wreck 
of  every  obstacle  on  his  passage,  crushing  all  before  him  ;  his  step 
shall  be  so  soft,  his  tread  so  measured,  that  he  might  put  his  foot 
upon  a  bruised  reed  without  breaking  it,  and  on  smoking  flax  with¬ 
out  extinguishing  the  Are  :  terms  of  expression  which,  in  the  hallow¬ 
ed  language  of  Scripture,  signify  a  meekness  not  only  unalterable,  but 
also  infinitely  cautious  not  to  shock  the  weak,  and  to  soothe  the  in¬ 
firm.  These  are  the  weapons  by  which  he  shall  triumph  over  all 
hearts,  and,  victorious  over  all  nations,  he  shall  first  of  all  accomplish 
in  his  person  that  magnificent  promise  which  he  is  just  going  to  make 
to  all  the  imitators  of  his  incomparable  meekness  :  (a)  “  Blessed  are 
the  meek,  for  they  shall  possess  the  land  !” 

He  alone  was  more  than  sufficient  for  the  execution  of  this  great 
project.  Yet,  for  the  honor  of  human  nature,  with  which  he  had 
not  disdained  to  unite  himself,  he  wished  that  men  should  be  his  co- 
operators.  Already  he  had  disciples  ;  still  up  to  then  they  were  all 
nearly  equal,  and  his  will  was  that  some  of  them  should  hold  the 
first  rank  amongst  their  companions,  and  be,  as  it  were,  the  fathers 
and  chiefs  of  the  new  people  whom  he  was  about  consolidating  on 
the  earth.  The  moment  was  come  when  he  was  to  make  this  choice 
of  every  one  of  those  individuals — a  choice  of  unparalleled  import¬ 
ance  to  the  universe,  and  conferring  the  utmost  glory  upon  those 
who  had  the  happiness  to  be  included.  Before  he  commenced  this 
undertaking,  (Jj)  “he  went  out  into  a  mountain  to  pray.”  We  know 
that  such  a  preparation  was  not  requisite  for  him  ;  still  it  was  desi- 
rable  that  he  should  give  the  example  to  his  Church,  which  made  it 
incumbent  on  her  to  imitate  him  in  this  particular,  as  we  see  by  the 
fasts  and  the  prayers  preceding  the  choice  and  consecration  of  her 
ministers,  (c)  “  When  day  was  come,  he  called  unto  him  his  disciples, 
and  they  came  to  him.  He  chose  twelve  of  them,  whom  he  would 


(а)  St.  Matthew,  v.  4.  (c)  St.  Luke,  vi.  13  ;  St.  Mark,  iii. 

(б)  St.  Luke.  vi.  12.  r  13,  14. 


116  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I. 

himself,  that  should  be  with  him,  and  that  he  might  send  them  to 
preach.  He  named  them  apostles  [which  signifies  sent],  and  he  gave 
them  the  power  to  heal  sicknesses  and  to  cast  out  devils,  (a)  The 
names  of  the  twelve  apostles  are  :  Simon,  whom  he  surnamed  Peter, 
the  first  ;  then  James,  the  son  of  Zebedee,  and  John,  the  brother  of 
James  ;  he  named  them  Boanerges,  which  is,  the  sons  of  thunder  ; 
Andrew,  Philip,  Bartholomew,  Matthew,  the  publican;  Thomas, 
James,  the  son  of  Alpheus,  and  Jude,  his  brother,  named  Thaddeus  ; 
Simon,  the  Cananean,  who  is  called  Zelotes,  and  Judas  Iscariot,  who 
was  the  traitor  (7).”  This  is  the  reason  why  he  is  always  placed  the 
last  among  the  apostles.  Peter  is  always  named  the  first,  as  he  was 
appointed  head  of  the  Apostolic  College,  and  first  pastor  of  the 
Church.  James,  son  of  Zebedee,  is  the  same  whom  we  call  James 
the  Elder.  It  is  not  in  the  sense  in  which  they  themselves  seem  to 
have  originally  understood  the  expression,  that  he  and  his  brother 
were  termed  sons  of  thunder  ;  this  name  was  only  given  to  them  to 
signify  the  lustre  and  energy  of  their  preaching.  James,  the  son  of 
Alpheus,  is  known  by  the  name  of  James  the  Minor.  He  also  is 
called  in  Scripture  the  brother  of  the  Lord,  with  whom  he,  as  well 
as  his  brother  Jude,  or  Thaddeus,  was  closely  connected.  Each  of 
them  is  the  author  of  a  separate  canonical  Epistle,  bearing  their  re¬ 
spective  names.  Matthew,  who,  out  of  humility,  gives  himself  here 
the  title  of  Publican,  is  the  same  as  Levi,  the  son  of  another  Alphe¬ 
us,  spoken  of  elsewhere.  Some  are  of  opinion  that  Bartholomew  is 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  x.  2  ;  St.  Luke,  vi.  14-16  ;  St.  Mark,  iii.  17,  18. 


(7)  Jesus  chose  Judas  because  he  sincerely  wished  him  to  be  an  apostle.  Judas  ren¬ 
dered  this  choice  woeful  to  himself  by  his  treachery.  This  did  not  hinder  the  Saviour 
from  choosing  him,  because  he  was  to  serve  to  teach  us  that  the  gifts  from  God  of  the 
highest  excellence  always  leave  the  man  who  has  been  endowed  with  them  the  power  of 
using  or  abusing  them  at  his  option.  Called  by  the  divine  vocation  to  the  holiest  of  states, 
man  may  still  be  lost  there  ;  and  he  should  there  work  out  his  salvation  with  fear  and 
with  trembling.  This  treachery  serves  to  teach  us  further,  that  as  J  udas,  when  he  preach¬ 
ed  by  virtue  of  the  mission  he  had  received  from  Jesus  Christ,  should  not  have  been  less 
listened  to  than  Saint  Peter,  so  we  must,  therefore,  ever  respect  in  pastors  the  divine  mis¬ 
sion,  which  they  do  not  lose  by  their  personal  unworthiness  ;  and,  lastly,  we  must  know 
how  to  distinguish,  on  occasion,  the  individual  from  the  body  corporate,  and  the  minister 
from  the  ministry,  if  we  do  not  wish  to  be  reduced  to  say  that  the  apostles  were  a  society 
of  traitors,  and  the  apostleship  the  school  of  treachery.  t 


i:ew  ïotk  1)  &  J  :  Sad  lier. 


CHAP.  XVI.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  117 

not  different  from  Nathaniel,  one  of  the  first  disciples  in  the  order  of 
vocation.  If  we  find  some  relations  of  the  Saviour  among  the  apos¬ 
tles,  we  must  not  think  that  he  chose  them  from  motives  of  flesh  and 
blood.  Kindred  furnishes  no  ground  for  elevating  our  connections 
to  ecclesiastical  dignities  ;  yet  neither  does  it  furnish  a  reason  for  ex¬ 
cluding  them.  Besides,  a  vocation  to  the  apostleship  was  then  a  des¬ 
tiny  of  labor,  persecution,  and  martyrdom.  If  those  who  dispose  of 
church  patronage  employ  them  relatives  in  the  like  ministries,  they 
would  rather  be  liable  to  the  reproach  of  having  sacrificed  than  of 
having  enriched  or  elevated  their  family. 

Jesus  was  solicitous  to  make  this  choice  in  some  quiet,  remote  place, 
and  for  that  purpose  had  retired  to  the  mountain.  When  this  rea¬ 
son  no  longer  detained  him,  he  yielded  to  the  desires  and  wants  of 
the  people  who  were  expecting  him.  (a)  “  Coming  down  with  them, 
he  stood  in  a  plain  ;  and  the  company  of  his  disciples,  and  a  very 
great  multitude  of  people  from  all  Judea  and  Jerusalem,  and  the  sea- 
coast  both  of  Tyre  and  Sidon,  who  were  come  to  hear  him,  and  to  be 
healed  of  their  diseases.  They  that  were  troubled  with  unclean  spir¬ 
its  were  healed  ;  and  all  the  multitude  sought  to  touch  him,  for  vir¬ 
tue  went  out  from  him,  and  healed  all.” 


CHAPTER  XVI, 

THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT. 

After  having  cured  bodily  evils,  he  thought  this  was  a  fitting 
time  to  work  out  the  salvation  and  perfection  of  souls.  (Jj)  “  Seeing” 
then  “the  multitudes,”  who  were  come  to  hear  him,  and  wdio  were 
disposed  by  his  benefits  to  listen  to  him,  and  to  hear  him  with  fruit, 
“  he  went  up  [ the  second  time]  a  mountain  to  an  eminence,”  from  which 
he  could  be  seen  and  heard  in  the  plain  ;  “  and  when  he  was  set 
down,  his  disciples  came  unto  him.”  Then  “  lifting  up  his  eyes  on 
his  disciples,  he  said,  and  taught  them,”  by  the  ensuing  discourse, 
which  he  seems  to  have  only  addressed,  at  least  in  great  part,  to 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vi.  1*7-19.  (6)  St.  Matthew,  v.  1,  2  ;  St.  Luke,  vi.  20. 


■fv 

f'jy  . 

p  V 

hW? 

A?  \% 

A?  % 


&S 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


them  alone,  hut  which  lie  pronounced  in  a  tone  of  voice  sufficiently 
ilevatecl  to  be  beard  by  all  the  people,  as  we  may  easily  judge  by 
be  admiration  wbicb  tbe  sublime  doctrine  of  this  divine  legislatoi 
caused  among  tbe  multitude. 

He  begins  by  laying  down  tbe  foundation  of  true  happiness,  and 
be  annihilates  at  one  stroke  all  tbe  ideas  wbicb  bad  been  formed  on 
this  point,  not  only  by  tbe  passions,  but  by  philosophy,  which  was 
merely  tbe  art  of  gratifying  them  more  methodically  after  covering 
them  with  a  false  gloss  of  reason,  and  by  Judaism  itself,  wbicb,  tak¬ 
ing  it  all  in  all,  for  tbe  exceptions  might  be  counted,  imagined  no 
other  happiness  than  what  is  found  in  tbe  enjoyment  of  tbe  goods, 
tbe  honors,  and  pleasures  of  tbe  earth,  (a)  “  Blessed,”  said  be,  “  are 
tbe  poor  in  spirit  ;  for  theirs  is  tbe  kingdom  of  heaven.  Blessed  are 
tbe  meek  ;  for  they  shall  possess  tbe  land.  Blessed  are  they  that 
mourn  ;  for  they  shall  be  comforted.  Blessed  are  they  that  hunger 
and  thirst  after  justice  ;  for  they  shall  have  their  fill.  Blessed  are 
tbe  merciful  ;  for  they  shall  obtain  mercy.  Blessed  are  tbe  clean  of 
heart  ;  for  they  shall  see  God.  Blessed  are  tbe  peace-makers  ;  for 
they  shall  be  called  tbe  children  of  God.  Blessed  are  they  that  suf¬ 
fer  persecution  for  justice’  sake  ;  for  theirs  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
Blessed  are  ye,  when  they  shall  revile  you,  and  persecute  you,  and 
speak  all  that  is  evil  against  you,  untruly,  for  my  sake.  Be  glad, 
and  rejoice,  for  your  reward  is  very  great  in  heaven.  For  so  they 
persecuted  the  prophets  that  were  before  you  (1).” 

(a)  St:  Matthew,  v.  3-12. 


(l)  Whole  volumes  would  scarcely  suffice  to  develop  the  morality  comprised  in  these 
eight  beatitudes.  We  shall  confine  ourselves  here  to  pointing  out  the  sense  which  ap¬ 
pears  to  us  tpe  most  literal.  The  poor  in  spirit  are  by  excellence  those  who  have  vol¬ 
untarily  stripped  themselves  of  all  their  goods  to  follow  Jesus  Christ.  Those,  therefore, 
whose  hearts  are  detached  from  worldly  goods,  whether  they  do  or  do  not  possess  them, 
participate  also  in  this  beatitude,  but  in  an  inferior  degree,  and  proportionably  to  their 
merit.  We  shall  make  use  of  the  term  patient,  because  our  language  has  not  a  more 
proper  term,  to  convey  who  those  meek  are  to  whom  is  promised  the  true  land  of  the  liv¬ 
ing.  Those  who  mourn  and  who  shall  be  comforted  are  they  who  suffer  with  resignation 
the  afflictions  which  God  sends  them.  The  heartfelt  love  of  virtue  is  expressed  by  the 
hunger  and  thirst  after  justice.  To  this  noble  passion  is  promised  perfect  satiety,  which 
can  never  be  found  in  fleeting  goods,  that  only  sharpen  the  hunger  and  irritate  the  thirst 
of  their  unhappy  votaries.  The  word  merciful  extends  here  to  eveiy  species  of  mercy. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


119 


CHAP.  X\L.] 

Since  it  is  finally  laid  down  that  what  men  regarded  as  evils  are 
the  only  true  good,  the  conclusion  was  plain,  that  what  they  called 
good  things  are  the  evils  most  to  be  dreaded.  Yet  lest  this  sequel 
should  escape  inattention,  or  be  evaded  by  subtlety,  Jesus  draws  the 
conclusion  formally,  and  after  having  beatified  the  first,  he  hurls  this 
tremendous  anathema  against  the  second  :  ( a )  “  Woe  to  you  that  are 
rich  ;  for  you  have  your  consolation  in  this  loorld.  Woe  to  you 
that  are  filled;  for  you  shall  hunger.  Woe  to  you  that  now  laugh  ; 
for  you  shall  mourn  and  weep.  Woe  to  you  when  men  shall  bless 
you  ;  for  according  to  these  things  did  their  fathers  to  the  false 
prophets.” 

These  prophets,  true  and  false,  being  cited  at  the  close  of  the  bless¬ 
ings  and  maledictions,  are  proof  that  Jesus  addressed  his  words  di¬ 
rectly  to  his  apostles.  What  follows  sets  this  in  an  equally  clear 
light  ;  for  although  applicable  within  certain  limits  to  all  Christians, 
still  it  does  not  bear  its  full  meaning,  except  with  reference  to  the 
apostles  and  their  successors,  (li)  “  You  are,”  saith  he  to  them,  “  the 
salt  of  the  earth.  But  if  the  salt  lose  its  savor,  wherewith  shall  it 
be  salted  (2)  ?  It  is  good  for  nothing  any  more,  but  to  be  cast  out 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vi.  24-26.  (b)  St.  Matthew,  v.  13-16. 


both  spiritual  and  corporal.  We  do  not  see  God  with  the  eyes  of  the  body,  says  Saint 
Augustine,  but  with  the  eyes  of  the  heart  :  wherefore  those  who  have  pure  eyes  have 
nothing  to  hinder  them  from  seeing  his  ineffable  beauties  unveiled.  Those  are  called 
peace-makers  who  strive  to  re-establish  and  preserve  peace  amongst  men.  This  great 
feature  of  resemblance  to  the  God  of  Peace  will  merit  for  them,  in  a  very  excellent  man¬ 
ner,  the  title  of  children  of  God.  The  kingdom  of  heaven,  adjudged  in  the  first  place  to 
the  voluntary  poor,  is  also  adjudged  to  those  who  suffer  persecution  for  justice  :  the  first 
class  receive  it  by  right  of  exchange — the  latter  by  right  of  conquest.  The  first  are  those 
pnident  traders,  who  sell  all  to  purchase  it  :  the  second  are  those  violent  invaders,  who 
grasp  it  by  force,  and  cany  it  at  the  point  of  the  sword.  It  is  not  the  less  insured  to  all 
the  others.  For  the  recompense  proposed  to  them  is  always  the  kingdom  of  God,  under 
different  names,  which  correspond  with  the  different  merits  to  which  it  is  promised. 
These  expressions  are  also  understood  to  refer  to  the  temporal  rewards  of  virtue,  and  this 
sense  should  not  be  excluded  from  them  ;  but  it  must  only  be  admitted  as  secondaiy.  To 
advance  it  as  the  first  and  most  literal,  would  be  putting  too  visibly  the  accessory  in  plac^ 
of  the  principal. 

(2)  Salt  does  not  lose  its  savor  ;  but  if  it  should  lose  its  savor,  with  what  can  we  salt, 
or  what  is  there  in  nature  which  can  be  as  salt  to  salt  itself?  This  is  what  Jesus  Christ 
wishes  to  say  here.  Thus  the  doctor,  if  he  deceives  himself,  shall  not  be  set  right  by  an¬ 
other  doctor  ;  the  pastor,  if  he  wanders,  shall  not  be  brought  back  by  another  pastor  ; 


120 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


and  to  be  trodden  on  by  men  (3).  You  are  the  light  of  the  world 
destined  to  enlighten  it;  you  cannot  escape  its  observation.  “A 
city  seated  on  a  mountain  cannot  be  hid  :  neither  do  men  light  a 
candle  and  put  it  under  a  bushel,  but  upon  a  candlestick,  that  it 
may  shine  to  all  that  are  in  the  house.  So  let  your  light  shine  be¬ 
fore  men,  that  they  may  see  your  good  works,  and  glorify  your  Fa¬ 
ther  who  is  in  heaven.” 

But  in  order  that  they  may  be  this  mysterious  salt,  which  imparts 
to  the  earth,  that  is  to  say,  to  the  men  who  inhabit  it,  the  relish  of 
virtue,  and,  after  having  imparted,  preserves  this  relish  ;  that  they 
may  become  the  light  of  the  world,  and  that  city  seated  on  a  mount¬ 
ain,  which  rivets  the  traveller’s  eye,  and  prevents  him  from  wander¬ 
ing  from  his  path  ;  that  they  may  be  the  light  put  upon  the  candle¬ 
stick,  that  it  may  shine  to  all  those  who  compose  the  house  of  the 
great  father  of  the  family  ;  in  short,  that  they  may  be,  by  the  lustre 
of  their  preaching,  and  the  example  of  their  holiness,  the  reformers 
of  the  world,  and  worthy  ministers  of  the  heavenly  Father,  to  whom 
those  who  witness  their  virtues  and  successes  shall  refer  all  the  glory 
thereof — they  must  teach  all  salutary  truths,  and  be  faithful  to  all 
duties,  without  distinction  of  little  or  great,  of  what  is  important  or 
unimportant.  But  that  they  may  have  in  his  person  the  most  per¬ 
fect  model  of  such  rare  perfection,  Jesus  thus  proceeds:  “Do  not 
think  that  I  am  come  to  destroy  the  law  or  the  prophets.  I  am  not 
come  to  destroy,  but  to  fulfil  (4).  For,  amen,  I  say  unto  you  :  Till 


and  the  apostle,  if  he  becomes  perverted,  shall  not  be  converted  by  another  apostle.  Not 
that  the  thing  is  absolutely  impossible  ;  but  it  occurs  so  rarely,  that  we  reckon  it  an  ex¬ 
ception,  which  does  not  hinder  the  truth  of  the  general  proposition. 

(3)  To  be  trodden  on  by  men,  an  expression  of  the  lowest  contempt,  but  which  is  not 
too  strong  to  express  that  into  which  those  ministers  of  the  altar  inevitably  fall  who  dis¬ 
honor  their  ministry  by  a  publicly  licentious  life. 

(4)  The  Jews  have  reproached  the  Christians  with  this  saying  of  Jesus  Christ,  as  a 
falsehood  in  the  mouth  of  him  who  said  that  he  was  sent  to  establish  a  new  law  on  the 
ruins  of  the  old.  A  more  false  reproach  was  never  made,  nor  a  more  unfounded  accusa¬ 
tion.  1st.  Jesus  Christ  has  kept  the  law,  if  we  consider  it  under  the  aspect  of  the  moral 
and  ceremonious  precepts.  As  to  what  regards  the  first,  he  was  always  perfectly  irrép¬ 
réhensible  ;  and  in  order  to  confound  his  enemies,  he  had  only  to  defy  them  to  reproach 
him  with  a  single  sin.  As  to  the  ceremonious  precepts,  although  in  no  way  bound  to  ob¬ 
serve  them,  he  has  not,  nevertheless,  disdained  to  fulfil  them.  He  wished  to  be  circum¬ 
cised  ;  for,  although  he  was  circumcised  in  his  mere  infancy,  he  was  the  only  child  of  whom 


%  jN 


W 


CHAP.  AVI.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


121 


heaven  and  earth  pass,  one  jot  or  one  tittle  shall  not  pass  of  the  law, 
till  all  is  fulfilled.  He,  therefore,  that  shall  break  one  of  these  least 
commandments,  and  shall  so  teach  men,  shall  be  called  the  least  in 
the  kingdom  of  heaven  (5).  But  he  that  shall  do,  and  teach,  he 
shall  be  called  great  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  For  I  tell  you, 
that  unless  your  justice  abound  more  than  that  of  the  Scribes  and 
Pharisees  you  shall  not  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven.” 

This  conclusion  shows  clearly  enough  that  these  commandments 
which  Jesus  Christ  denominates  “  least,”  were  not  so  in  their  own 
nature,  but  only  in  the  judgment  of  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees. 
These  men  were  never  accused  of  despising  what  are  termed  “  little” 
things  :  we  know,  on  the  contrary,  that  they  relinquished  important 
duties  to  wed  themselves  scrupulously  to  minute  observances.  This 
drew  upon  them  from  Jesus  Christ  this  grave  rebuke,  inculcating 


it  was  true  to  say  that  he  was  only  circumcised  because  he  wished  to  be  so.  I  say  as 
much  of  his  presentation  in  the  temple.  Arrived  at  a  mature  age,  he  went  to  Jerusalem 
at  the  great  festivals  ;  he  celebrated  the  Passover  ;  and  as  to  the  Sabbath,  concerning 
which  he  encountered  such  great  reproaches,  he  never  objected  to  its  obligation,  but  only 
to  the  false  or  finical  additions  of  the  Pharisees.  2d.  If  we  consider  the  ancient  law  as 
the  sketch  of  the  new,  not  only  did  Jesus  Christ  accomplish  it  by  realizing  the  tilings  it 
shadowed  forth,  and  verifying  its  prophecies,  but  it  could  only  receive  its  accomplishment 
from  him  alone  :  -without  him  it  should  have  eternally  remained  imperfect  ;  and,  if  we 
wish  to  speak  exactly,  we  should  say  that  he  rather  perfected  than  abrogated  it,  as  the 
colors  which  cover  the  lines  of  a  drawing  do  not  efface  the  design,  but  set  it  off  to  perfec¬ 
tion,  by  imparting  the  requisite  animation  to  the  figures  of  the  body. 

(5)  According  to  the  common  interpretation,  these  words  signify  that  he  shall  be  ex¬ 
cluded  from  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  According  to  some,  they  mean  to  say  that  he  shall 
have  the  last  place.  What  follows  is  in  favor  of  the  first  interpretation.  Those  who  pre¬ 
fer  the  secOftd,  ground  themselves  on  the  fact  that  small  precepts  alone  are  spoken  of, 
that  is  to  say,  according  to  them,  such  as  do  not  oblige  to  the  extent  of  mortal  sin.  We 
shall  see  whether  or  not  they  are  mistaken  in  this.  But  supposing  that  in  point  of  fact 
they  are  not  mistaken,  if  then  it  be  true  that  we  may  violate  these  small  precepts  with¬ 
out  being  thereupon  excluded  from  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  can  any  one  venture  to  say 
that  we  should  not  be  excluded  therefrom  if  we  taught  others  to  violate  them — above  all, 
if  a  person  had  the  influence  and  character  to  teach  ?  Teaching  people  to  contemn  the 
will  of  God,  which  is  not  the  less  declared,  and,  in  one  sense,  is  not  the  less  entitled  to 
respect  in  small  things  as  in  great  ;  encouraging  men  to  emancipate  themselves  from  their 
primary  duties,  by  affording  them  facility  in  so  doing  in  those  which  are  regarded  as  of 
lesser  importance  ;  stripping  virtue  of  all  her  outworks,  and,  like  a  stronghold,  whose  ex¬ 
ternal  works  are  all  demolished,  exposing  it  to  be  carried  by  the  first  assault  of  vice  ; 
eould  the  pastor,  the  preacher,  the  director  who  should  have  caused  so  great  an  evil, 
have  still  a  right  to  claim  even  the  last  place  in  the  heavenly  kingdom  ? 


!U  jb 
if 


122 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART 


that  the  latter  should  not  be  omitted,  but  that  we  must  commence 
by  fulfilling  the  first.  The  error,  or  rather  the  depravity,  which 
here  seems  to  be  the  cause  of  the  reproach  cast  upon  them,  is,  their 
regarding  as  a  trifling  matter  the  inward  accomplishment  of  great 
commandments  or  precepts,  condemning  only  the  outward  act.  So 
as  they  abstained  from  this,  they  deemed  themselves  just,  and  reck¬ 
oned  as  naught  a  thousand  criminal  desires,  .to  which  they  abandon¬ 
ed  themselves  without  scruple.  Insufficient  justice  !  which  at  most 
was  merely  a  mask,  since  it  did  not  dwell  in  the  heart,  which  is  the 
only  seat  of  true  justice,  man  being  never  innocent  when  his  heart 
is  guilty,  as  he  never  can  be  guilty  when  his  heart  is  innocent. 
What  gives  also  to  this  explanation  a  new  degree  of  probability, 
are  the  following  words  of  the  Saviour,  which  are  going  to  disclose 
to  us  the  malice  of  murder  in  a  word  uttered  from  the  lips,  and  the 
iniquity  of  adultery  even  in  a  desire  of  the  heart. 

“You  have  heard  that  it  was  said  of  old:  Thou  shalt  not  kill; 
and  whoever  shall  kill  shall  be  in  danger  of  the  judgment.  But  I 
say  to  you,  that  whoever  is  angry  with  his  brother  shall  be  in  dan¬ 
ger  of  judgment  (6)  :  whoever  shall  say  to  his  brother,  Baca,  shall 


(6)  Amongst  the  Jews  there  were  two  different  tribunals,  denominated  the  judgment  : 
one  was  only  composed  of  three  judges,  and  the  other  of  twenty-three.  The  council 
spoken  of  here  was  the  Sanhedrim,  the  great  senate  of  the  nation,  composed  of  seventy- 
two  judges.  Causes  were  brought  before  these  different  tribunals,  according  to  the  im¬ 
portance  of  the  matter  or  the  quality  of  the  crime.  The  Jews  had  also  three  capital  pun¬ 
ishments — the  sword,  lapidation,  and  fire,  the  most  rigorous  of  all.  The  words  of  the 
Saviour  allude  to  all  these  things  without  prejudice  to  the  literal  sense  of  the  pain  of  fire, 
which  should  be  understood  with  reference  to  the  fire  of  the  other  life.  * 

Since  it  is  with  reference  to  murder  that  Jesus  Christ  speaks  in  this  way,  it  is  natural 
to  suppose  that,  in  order  to  deserve  these  severe  judgments,  anger  must  be  accompanied 
by  ill-will.  The  word  Raca,  also,  which,  according  to  the  greater  number  of  interpre¬ 
ters,  is  merely  a  vague  expression  of  contempt,  or  which  signifies  at  most  a  giddy  person, 
according  to  those  who  give  a  definite  meaning  to  the  word — this  word,  I  say,  must  be 
pronounced  in  a  tone  and  in  circumstances  which  make  it  an  injury  ;  and  the  tone  and 
circumstances  must  also  make  the  word  fool,  or  any  other  equivalent  thereto,  an  outrage. 
This  does  not  always  occur,  and,  therefore,  these  faults  are  not  always  capital  sins; 
but  this  criminal  character  occurs  often  enough  to  furnish  just  grounds  of  terror  to  those 
who,  when  in  anger,  do  not  know  how  to  moderate  their  resentment  or  temper  their 
speech.  We  ought  not  to  except  certain  phlegmatic  sallies  of  anger,  less  violent  in  ap¬ 
pearance  and  less  outrageous  in  language.  Here  the  language  is  nothing — all  depends 
on  the  thing  they  signify  ;  and,  in  despite  of  his  affected  moderation  and  his  smooth  ex 


711 


\ 


'//t 


A'i 

4: 


7,V  *r-4 


/•  M 


H' 


CHAP.  XVI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


be  in  danger  of  the  council  ;  and  whoever  shall  say,  Thou  fool,  shall 
be  in  danger  of  hell  fire.” 

Still  there  are  means  of  avoiding  this  chastisement.  But  these 
means,  to  which  it  hath  pleased  God  to  attach  the  forgiveness  of 
sin,  are  of  indispensable  obligation  and  a  necessity  so  urgent,  that 
there  is  no  duty,  no  matter  of  what  nature,  but  should  yield  to  this. 
“  If,  therefore,  thou  offer  thy  gift  at  the  altar,  and  there  thou  re¬ 
member  that  thy  brother  hath  any  thing  against  thee,  leave  there 
thy  offering  before  the  altar,  and  go  first  to  be  reconciled  to  thy 
brother,  and  then  coming,  thou  shalt  offer  thy  gift.  Be  at  agree¬ 
ment  with  thy  adversary  betimes,  whilst  thou  art  in  the  way  with 
him,  lest  perhaps  the  adversary  deliver  thee  to  the  judge,  and  the 
judge  deliver  thee  to  the  officer,  and  thou  be  cast  into  prison. 
Amen,  I  say  to  thee,  thou  shalt  not  go  out  from  thence,  till  thou 
repay  the  last  farthing.” 

This  sort  of  parable  is  not  very  difficult  to  explain.  The  party  to 
it  is  the  person  offended.  The  “  agreement”  referred  to  is  the  just 
reparation  of  the  offence  ;  “  the  way”  is  the  time  of  life  ;  God  is  “  the 
judge;”  “the  officers”  are  the  spirits  executing  his  vengeance  ;  and 
hell  or  purgatory  is  the  “prison”  wherein,  according  to  the  quality 
of  the  debt,  the  debtor  shall  be  inclosed,  never  to  be  enlarged  from 
the  first  species  of  confinement,  where  the  prisoner  remains  always 
insolvent,  the  crime  which  made  him  fall  therein  being  always  mor¬ 
tal  ;  or,  if  the  guilt  be  only  venial,  not  to  be  enlarged  from  the  sec¬ 
ond  species  of  confinement  until  after  he  has  paid,  according  to  the 
very  rigor  of  justice,  all  the  penalty  he  had  deserved  to  undergo. 
For  it  doth  not  suffice,  when  we  have  offended  our  brother,  to  ask 
God’s  pardon  for  the  offence  ;  we  must  also  satisfy  the  injured  party. 


pressions,  the  polished  man  who  gives  any  one  to  understand  that  he  regards  him  as  a 
fool  and  a  blockhead,  shall  be  condemned  to  the  punishment  of  fire. 

If  you  object  that  there  will,  therefore,  be  many  men  condemned  to  the  punishment  of 
fire,  considering  the  great  number  of  those  with  whom  such  modes  of  speaking  are  habit¬ 
ual  and' ordinary,  it  is  easily  answered,  that  in  the  judgment  of  God  the  multitude  will 
not  save  the  guilty  ;  that  the  habit,  veiy  far  from  justifying  the  sinner,  render’s  him  more 
criminal,  and  that  the  same  rule  applies  to  this  case  as  to  that  of  judging  our  neighbor  ; 
that  lastly,  since  the  oracle  hath  spoken,  there  is  no  further  question  of  considering  the 
matter,  but  of  correcting  one’s  self. 


?! 


!!'»■ 


Ft 


13a  9  a  o  «  a  n  • 


kp‘% 


124  TIIE  HISTOKY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PARTI. 

Without' this  preliminary  there  can*  be  no  remission.  If  this  obliga¬ 
tion  were  unknown  to  the  Jews,  it  seems  to  be  forgotten  by  Chris¬ 
tians  ;  but,  forgotten  or  unknown,  it  is  not  the  less  real,  and  the  law 
which  prescribed  it  is  too  plain  to  leave  the  smallest  doubt  on  the 
subject.  Whoever  refuses  to  submit  himself  to  it  should  expect  to 
undergo  one  of  those  terrible  judgments  which  have  just  been  pro¬ 
nounced  ;  and,  even  in  this  life,  he  should  regard  himself  as  excluded 
from  the  altar,  aud,  in  some  measure,  excommunicated  by  this  sen¬ 
tence,  coming  from  the  mouth  of  the  God  of  Justice  and  of  Peace, 
who  still  repeats  to  him  from  the  recess  of  the  tabernacle  wherein 
he  invisibly  resides  :  “  Go  first  to  be  reconciled  to  thy  brother.” 

The  new  legislator  goes  on  to  speak  of  adultery  very  nearly  in 
the  same  way  he  did  of  murder,  that  is  to  say,  he  discloses  it  where 
men  had  not  even  suspected  it  to  be.  “  You  have  heard,”  [ saith  lie 
also  to  them^\  “  that  it  wras  said  of  old  :  Thou  shalt  not  commit  adul¬ 
tery  ;  but  I  say  to  you,  that  whoever  shall  look  on  a  woman  to  lust 
after  her,  hath  already  committed  adultery  in  his  heart.” 

Desire  follows  so  close  after  sight,  and  sight  appears  so  inevitable 
to  any  one  having  eyes,  that  we  are  tempted  to  ask  then,  Must  they 
be  plucked  out?  Yes,  said  the  Saviour,  who,  very  far  from  endeav¬ 
oring  to  elude,  is  the  first  to  draw  this  consequence  :  “  If  thy  right 
eye  scandalize  thee,  pluck  it  out  and  cast  it  from  thee  ;  for  it  is  ex¬ 
pedient  for  thee  that  one  of  thy  members  should  perish,  rather  than 
thy  whole  body  be  cast  into  hell  ;  and  if  thy  right  hand  scandalize 
thee,  cut  it  off,  and  cast  it  from  thee  ;  for  it  is  expedient  for  thee 
that  one  of  thy  members  should  perish,  rather  than  that  thy  whole 
body  go  into  hell.” 

The  healing  art  does  so  every  day,  that  is  to  say,  sacrifices  a  fes 
tered  member  for  the  preservation  of  the  entire  body,  and  these 
figures  of  speech  are  obviously  drawn  from  this  art.  Yet  we  must 
not  take  them  exactly  to  the  letter.  True,  it  is  better  to  lose 
the  eye  and  the  hand,  than  the  whole  body  and  soul,  and  that  if 
salvation  depended  on  the  like  separation,  we  should  endure  it  com 
ing  from  another;  but  it  is  not  allowable  to  perform  it  on  our 
selves,  and  the  Church  has  ever  condemned  those  who,  deceived  by 
the  literal  sense,  have  made  attempts  against  their  own  lives,  or  the 
members  of  their  bodies.  "Reduced  to  their  true  meaning,  these 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


1Ü5 


CHAP.  XVI.] 

words  signify  that  we  are  obliged  to  separate  ourselves  from  every 
thing  which  is  a  near  occasion  of  sin,  were  it  a  thing  so  dear  and  so 
precious  as  may  be  the  right  eye  and  the  right  hand,  and  were  the 
separation  equally  as  painful.  Here  all  tampering  is  mortal.  Flight 
or  hell,  separation  or  hell.  Between  these  two  things  Jesus  Christ 
•places  no  medium.  At  the  sight  of  this  fearful  alternative,  let  every 
attachment  be  broken,  every  repugnance  surmounted,  every  inter¬ 
est  sacrificed  ;  let  the  sophistry  of  the  passions  disappear  before  the 
flash  of  this  lightning,  and  be  silent  at  the  crash  of  this  thunder. 
Yet,  Jesus  does  not  stop  here  ;  and,  after  having  pointed  out  adul¬ 
tery  in  desire,  he  shows  it  again  in  a  sort  of  union  tolerated  up  to 
that  period  :  it  was  that  which  was  formed  after  a  marriage  broken, 
not  by  the  death  of  one  of  the  united  parties,  but  by  the  divorce 
permitted  by  the  old  law,  which  was  finally  and  irrevocably  abol¬ 
ished  by  the  author  of  the  evangelical  law,  who  thus  brought  back 
marriage  to  the  purity  of  its  original.  He  thus  expresses  himself  : 
“  It  hath  been  said,  whosoever  shall  put  away  his  wife,  let  him  give 
her  a  bill  of  divorce  (7).  But  I  say  to  you,  that  whosoever  shall 
put  away  his  wife,  excepting  for  the  cause  of  fornication  (8),  maketh 


(7)  We  shall  have  occasion  further  on  to  speak  of  the  law  of  divorce.  We  shall  only 
here  remark  the  tenor  of  the  act,  and  the  formalities  observed  therein  by  the  Jews.  1st. 
It  could  not  be  granted,  except  with  the  permission  of  the  husband.  2d.  The  husband 
should  transfer  the  deed  to  the  woman  with  his  own  hand.  3d.  There  should  not  be 
less  than  two  witnesses,  and  all  the  witnesses  should  affix  their  seal  to  the  instrument. 
4th.  The  recital  set  forth  three  degrees  of  generation  of  the  man  and  three  of  the  wo¬ 
man.  5th.  The  paper  on  which  it  was  engrossed  should  be  of  a  greater  length  than 
breadth,  the  letters  should  be  written  in  a  round  hand,  and  separated  from  one  another  ; 
there  should  be  no  erasure  ;  and,  if  a  drop  of  ink  fell  upon  the  paper,  it  would  make 
the  act  a  nullity.  We  recognize  in  these  minutiae  the  scruples  of  the  Jews,  who  often 
made  no  scruple  in  repudiating  a  woman  from  fancy  or  for  trifles.  The  husband  said  to 
the  woman,  when  giving  the  deed  :  Receive  the  act  of  divorce  :  be  separated  from  me, 
and  let  any  one  be  allowed  to  marry  thee.  This  deed  was  couched  in  these  terms  : — 
I,  Rabbi  N.,  son  of  Rabbi  N.,  son  of  Rabbi  N.,  such  a  day  of  such  a  month  of  such  a 
year  from  the  creation  of  the  world,  being  in  such  a  place,  of  my  own  full  and  free  deter¬ 
mination,  and  without  being  constrained  to  it,  have  repudiated  N.,  daughter  of  Rabbi  N., 
son  of  Rabbi  N.,  son  of  Rabbi  N.,  and  I  have  placed  in  her  hands  the  deed  of  divorce, 
the  schedule  of  separation,  and  the  testimony  of  division,  that  she  may  be  separated 
from  me,  and  that  she  may  go  wheresoever  it  pleaseth  her,  without  any  one  offering  her 
any  opposition,  conformably  to  the  constitution  of  Moses  and  of  the  people  of  Israel. 

(8)  Several  other  reasons  might  authorize  married  people  to  separate  ;  but  Jesus 


fA 

P  S 


U! 


her  to  commit  adultery,  and  lie  that  shall  marry  her  that  is  put 
away,”  for  whatever  cause  it  may  be,  “  committeth  adultery.”  Un¬ 
doubtedly  the  man  who  marries  again,  after  having  put  away  his 
wife,  also  commits  adultery,  and  the  woman  who  consents  to  marry 
him  sins  in  like  manner;  for  what  is  said  of  one  is  equally  under¬ 
stood  of  the  other,  although  not  formally  announced.  In  the  same- 
way,  when  Jesus  Christ  said  that  the  man  who  looks  at  a  woman 
with  eyes  of  desire  hath  committed  adultery  in  his  heart,  this  is  un¬ 
derstood  to  mean,  that  by  casting  on  a  man  similar  glances,  a  wo¬ 
man  renders  herself  guilty  of  the  same  crime. 

The  depravity  of  man  coerced  him  to  place  first  in  the  order  of 
reform  these  two  precepts,  which  form  the  fifth  and  sixth  of  the 
Decalogue.  Having  brought  them  to  such  high  perfection,  the 
Lord  comes  to  that  which,  in  the  order  of  the  commandments,  is 
second.  He  likewise  strips  this  of  the  false  glosses  put  upon  it  by 
the  Pharisees,  and  he  makes  additions  to  it  hitherto  unknown  to  the 
Jews.  “  Again,  you  have  heard,”  added  he,  “  that  it  was  said  to 
them  of  old  :  Thou  shalt  not  forswear  thyself,  but  thou  shalt  per¬ 
form  thy  oaths  to  the  Lord  (9).  But  I  say  to  you,  not  to  swear  at 


Christ  only  speaks  of  adultery.  1st.  Because  he  only  treats  here  directly  of  the  dis¬ 
missal  of  the  woman  by  the  husband,  and  that  it  was  very  rare  that  other  legitimate 
reasons  arose  on  the  woman’s  side.  2d.  Because  the  other  causes  of  separation  do  not 
proceed  from  the  very  nature  of  marriage,  like  that  of  adultery,  which  openly  violates 
the  contract.  We  are  not  unaware  that  violence  carried  to  a  certain  excess,  that  danger 
of  perversion,  which  perversion  appears  inevitable,  are  reasons  for  married  people  to  sep¬ 
arate  ;  but  this  is  only  by  virtue  of  the  natural  right  which  all  have  to  provide  by  flight 
or  by  separation  for  their  life’s  safety,  or  for  the  salvation  of  their  soul.  3d.  The  sep¬ 
aration  which  has  adultery  for  its  cause  is  perpetual  in  its  nature,  which  those  separations 
are  not  which  arise  from  any  other  cause.  In  the  latter  cases,  when  the  culpable  party 
acknowledges  his  delinquency,  and  that  he  corrects  himself  of  it,  the  wife  is  bound  to 
come  back,  and  to  live  with  him  ;  but  no  one  is  bound  to  do  so  in  the  case  of  adultery. 
Supposing  he  repents,  and  is  converted,  he  may  be  received  into  favor,  or  refused  admit¬ 
tance  ;  'the  parties  may  be  reunited,  or  remain  irrevocably  separated.  In  Christianity 
this  right  does  not  the  less  belong  to  the  woman  than  to  the  man  :  I  say  in  Christianity, 
which,  of  all  religions,  is  the  most  favorable  to  women,  by  re-establishing  them  in  their 
legitimate  rights,  elsewhere  overlooked  through  the  injustice,  or  usurped  by  the  violence 
of  men. 

(9)  This  regards  more  particularly  the  vow,  which  is  only  a  species  of  oath  ;  but  taking 
occasion  from  this,  Jesus  Christ  gives  precepts  regarding  all  sorts  of  oaths,  of  what  na¬ 
ture  soever  *hey  may  be. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


127 


ciiap.  xvi.] 

all  ;  neither  by  heaven,  for  it  is  the  throne  of  God  ;  nor  by  the 
earth,  for  it  is  his  foot-stool  ;  nor  by  Jerusalem,  for  it  is  the  city  of 
the  great  King  (10).  Neither  shalt  thou  swear  by  thy  head,  be¬ 
cause  thou  canst  not  make  one  hair  white  or  black  ;  but  let  your 
speech  be  yea,  yea  ;  no,  no  ;  and  that  which  is  over  and  above  these 
is  evil.” 

All  the  antecedent  part  is  of  strict  obligation  ;  what  follows  is 
not  equally  so.  Among  the  precepts  there  are  to  be  found  counsels 
which  are  not  rigorously  binding,  at  least  as  to  external  practice  ; 
for,  regarding  the  interior  disposition,  there  exists  no  one  who  is  not, 
to  a  certain  extent,  bound,  and  whoever  should  refuse  to  adopt  their 
spirit,  would  not  have  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel.  Such  is  what-  Jesus 
Christ  here  opposes  to  the  ancient  lex  talionis ,  which  he  abolishes, 


(10)  That  is  to  say,  in  no  manner,  and  not  in  no  circumstance,  whatever  the  followers 
of  Wickliffe  and  the  Anabaptists  may  have  thought,  following  the  example  of  some  an¬ 
cient  obscure  heretics,  who  concluded,  from  these  expressions,  that  swearing  is  never  al¬ 
lowable.  The  sequel  shows  clearly  enough  that  Jesus  Christ  had  only  in  view  to  pro¬ 
scribe  that  series  of  oaths  of  all  sorts  which  the  Jews  had  perpetually  in  their  mouths. 
It  has,  therefore,  been  always  permitted  to  take  God  for  witness  of  a  thing  that  is  true, 
when  necessity  or  great  utility  obliges  it  to  be  done,  and  that  it  is  done  respectfully,  and 
in  suitable  circumstances.  Such  has  been,  at  all  times,  the  practice  of  the  Church,  au¬ 
thorized  by  the  great  example  of  Saint  Paul,  who  takes  God  as  a  witness  of  the  great 
things  which  he  writes  ;  and  of  the  Angel  of  the  Apocalypse,  who,  after  raising  his 
hand,  swears  by  Him  who  lives  from  age  to  age.  But,  beyond  these  cases  which  we 
have  just  excepted,  all  swearing  is  forbidden,  and  we  should  confine  ourselves  simply  to 
affirmation  or  to  negation.  If  this  is  not  an  addition  which  Jesus  Christ  makes  to  the 
second  precept,  it  is,  at  least,  the  explanation  of  a  second  sense,  which  the  Jews  did  not 
perceive  in  these  words  :  Thou  shalt  not  swear  in  vain.  They  only  understood  the  words 
with  reference  to  the  prohibition  of  swearing  contrary  to  truth  ;  Jesus  Christ  discloses  to 
them  the  further  sense  of  swearing  without  reason. 

Another  addition  to  this  precept  is  the  prohibition,  which  Jesus  Christ  subjoins,  of  not 
swearing  by  any  thing  whatsoever.  The  Jews  imagined  themselves  irrépréhensible 
when  they  swore  by  any  thing  else  than  by  the  name  of  God.  Jesus  Christ  teaches 
them,  that  to  swear  by  creatures  is  swearing  by  the  Creator,  and  that  to  swear  by  one’s 
self  or  by  one’s  bead  (a  species  of  oath  very  much  in  use  among  the  Greeks  and  Ro¬ 
mans,  whence,  apparently,  it  had  passed  to  the  Jews),  was  also  sinful,  but  for  a  different 
reason.  To  swear  by  the  head,  is  to  offer  it  up  as  a  sacrifice,  supposing  a  person  swears 
falsely,  and  to  sacrifice  it  is  disposing  of  what  properly  belongs  to  God,  as  if  it  were  our 
own  property.  For  can  a  person  be  the  owner  of  his  head,  if  he  cannot  change  the 
color  of  a  single  hair  thereof  ? 

Every  oath  beyond  those  which  we  have  excepted,  is  always  a  sin  ;  this  follows  evi¬ 
dently  from  the  prohibition  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  reasons  upon  which  he  grounds  it 


•A 

id 


Œ 


128 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part 


as  incompatible  with  the  meekness  of  tbe  new  law.  “You  bave 
beard  that  it  batb  been  said:  An  eye  for  an  eye,  and  a  tooth  for  a 
tooth  (11).  But  I  say  to  you,  not  to  resist  evil  ;  but  if  one  strike 
thee  on  thy  right  cheek,  turn  to  him  also  the  other.  If  a  man  will 
contend  with  thee  in  judgment,  and  take  away  thy  coat,  let  go  thy 
cloak  also  to  him  ;  and  whosoever  will  force  thee  one  mile  (12),  go 
with  him  other  two.” 

Behold  the  new  lex  talionis ,  which  the  Lamb  of  God  substitutes 
for  the  ancient.  That  of  the  law  gave  back  injury  for  injury  ;  that 


(11)  We  read  this  law  in  the  twenty-first  chapter  of  Exodus.  It  did  not  give  private 
persons  the  right  of  taking  justice  into  their  own  hands  ;  it  merely  prescribed  to  judges 
the  measure  of  punishment  which  they  should  dispense  to  those  who  had  used  violence. 
The  Jews  were  not  allowed  to  insist  on  this  punishment  through  a  spirit  of  vengeance, 
as  appears  by  the  passage  of  Leviticus,  chapter  xix  :  Seek  not  revenge,  nor  he  mindful 
of  the  injury  of  thy  citizens.  In  Christianity,  it  is  not  forbidden  to  denounce  the  guilty, 
and  to  demand  in  justice  the  reparation  of  the  injury,  provided  it  be  done  through  some 
other  motive  than  that  of  resentment  and  vengeance.  Here,  then,  we  see  no  difference 
between  the  two  laws;  and  there  remains  still  to  be  known  what  Jesus  Christ  can  have 
in  view,  as  he  evidently  appears  to  abrogate  something  of  the  ancient  and  substitute  for 
it  something  new.  In  two  words,  he  reforms  the  abuse  of  the  ancient  law,  and  he  estab¬ 
lishes  the  perfection  of  the  new.  The  abuse  of  the  ancient  law  consisted  in  doing, 
through  a  spirit  of  vengeance,  what  was  only  allowed  to  be  done  through  some  other 
innocent  motive.  I  say  that  this  was  done  without  any  scruple,  and,  far  from  viewing 
this  vengeance  as  criminal,  we  have  grounds  for  suspecting  that  the  Pharisees  made  it  a 
duty  and  an  obligation.  The  perfection  of  the  new  law  consists  not  merely  in  not  seek¬ 
ing  for  reparation  through  a  motive  of  vengeance  ;  it  requires  further,  when  there  ex¬ 
ists  another  reason  for  seeking  it,  to  make  charity  supersede  this  reason — to  prefer  that 
injury  should  remain  unpunished,  sooner  than  see  it  punished  by  the  suffering  of  the 
guilty  party,  even  although  in  consequence  of  this  impunity  an  individual  should  be  ex¬ 
posed  to  fresh  injuries.  We  are  not  always  rigorously  bound  to  take  this  course;  but 
we  are  bound  to  mingle  no  resentment  with  the  reason  which  makes  us  seek  reparation. 
It  is  so  difficult  to  attain  this  precision,  that  timerous  souls,  who  despair  of  reaching  it, 
rather  prefer  to  relinquish  the  attempt,  than  to  encounter  the  risk  of  so  hazardous  a  pur¬ 
suit,  and  of  a  victory,  which  perhaps  would  only  save  their  honor  at  the  expense  of  their 
conscience.  For  what  man  is  sufficiently  master  of  his  heart,  to  answer  for  his  not  rel¬ 
ishing  with  delight  the  always  criminal  pleasure  of  seeing  at  his  feet  an  enemy  humbled 
and  confounded  ? 

(12)  In  Latin,  angariaverit.  This  word  comes  from  the  Persian  angar,  which  passed 
into  the  Greek  and  Latin  tongues,  and  even  into  the  French,  in  which  tongue  it  is  used 
in  the  familiar  style.  Its  ordinary  signification  is,  public  courier.  These  couriers  were 
entitled  to  dismount  all  those  whom  they  met,  and  oblige  them  to  accompany  them  to 
the  next  stage.  The  species  of  violence  which  they  used  is  expressed  by  the  verb  anga- 
riare.  This  usage  still  exists  amongst  many  of  the  Eastern  nations. 


if 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


129 


CHAP.  XVI.] 

of  the  Gospel  suffered  it  twice  over  rather  than  once  avenge.  Such 
is  the  disposition  of  heart  to  which  these  words  of  the  Saviour  oblige 
us,  and  not  to  present  the  left  cheek  to  him  who  strikes  the  right. 
Those  who  insist  that  there  are  cases  wherein  we  are  bound  by  the 
letter,  are  reduced  to  fancy  some  which  we  may  almost  call  chimeri¬ 
cal.  Some  saints  have  done  so  to  the  edification  of  the  whole 
Church  ;  but  not  through  obligation,  since,  in  like  circumstances, 
Saint  Paul,  and  even  Jesus  Christ,  have  not  done  so.  We  may  add, 
that  it  is  more  proper  not  to  do  so,  when  we  foresee  that  by  so  do¬ 
ing  we  should  merely  redouble  the  audacity  of  aggression  and  en¬ 
courage  a  new  crime.  The  same  reasoning  must  be  pursued  with  ref¬ 
erence  to  the  treatment  of  a  man  who  would  wish  to  rob  us  unjustly 
or  exact  painful  services  from  us  to  which  he  is  not  entitled.  By 
yielding  to  him  what  he  would  deprive  us  of,  or  by  acquiescing  in 
his  exactions,  we  are  not  bound  to  offer  him  double  value  ;  but  we 
should  do  so,  if  necessary,  rather  than  oppose  violence  to  violence. 
Wherefore,  it  is  this  meekness,  which  resisteth  nothing — this  unal¬ 
terable  patience,  ever  superior  to  all  injuries  and  all  injustice — 
which  is  here  commanded  us  by  Jesus  Christ.  To  a  morality  so 
sublime,  this  God  of  charity  and  peace  joins  these  short  maxims,  the 
practice  of  which,  if  they  were  observed,  would  banish  from  society 
many  crimes  and  many  miseries  :  (a)  “  Give  to  him  that  asketh, 
and  from  him  that  would  borrow  from  thee  turn  not  away  ;  of 
him  that  taketh  away  thy  goods  ask  them  not  again  ;  forgive,  and 
you  shall  be  forgiven;  give,  and  it  shall  be  given  to  you  (13). 
Good  measure,  pressed  down,  and  shaken  together,  and  running 
over,  shall  they  give  into  your  bosom.  It  is  a  more  blessed  thing 
to  give  rather  than  to  receive  (14).  And  as  you  would  that  men 
should  do  to  you,  do  you  also  to  them  in  like  manner.” 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vi.  30,  37,  38  ;  Acts,  xx.  35  ;  St.  Luke,  vi.  31  ;  St.  Matthew,  vii.  12. 


(13)  Should  any  one  object,  that  if  this  counsel  were  followed,  the  world  would  be  in¬ 
undated  with  robbers,  it  is  easy  to  answer,  that  each  of  us  is  only  responsible  for  himself 
alone,  and  not  for  the  rest  of  the  world.  Be  meek  and  patient,  without  being  apprehen¬ 
sive  of  ever  exceeding  in  these  virtues  ;  and,  supposing  that  any  inconvenience  may  result 
therefrom,  let  us  leave  to  God  and  to  the  civil  authorities  under  him  to  regulate  such 
matters. 

(14)  In  the  twentieth  chapter  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  Saint  Paul  says  :  You 

9 


130 


TIIE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 


Nature  had  known  nothing  so  pure,  and  philosophy  had  not  even 
imagined  any  thing  so  noble  as  these  doctrines.  But  it  is  useless  to 
know  them  unless  we  put  them  in  practice  ;  and  to  do  so,  we  must 
have  the  principle  in  our  hearts.  This  principle  is,  the  love  of  all 
men,  without  excepting  those  whom  reason,  when  left  to  itself,  rep¬ 
resents  to  us  as  the  most  detestable — that  is  to  say,  without  except¬ 
ing  our  most  cruel  enemies.  Whosoever  loves  these  may  assure  him¬ 
self  that  he  accomplishes  the  great  precept  of  universal  charity  ;  but 
he  who  hates  them  dwells  in  death,  because  charity  is  incompatible 
with  the  hatred  of  a  single  man,  were  he  the  most  odious  and  the 
most  wicked  of  all  men  :  a  truth  heretofore  openly  resisted  by  the 
human  heart,  which,  after  an  offence,  found  nothing  so  reasonable  as 
hatred,  or  so  just  as  vengeance.  New  lights  are  about  to  produce 
new  feelings.  The  disagreeable  man  can  be  loved,  and  he  should 
be  loved.  Here  is  the  precept  uttered  from  His  lips  who  can  teach 
no  unreasonable  doctrine,  since  he  is  the  supreme  and  eternal  rea¬ 
son;  and  he  would  no  longer  be  justice  and  goodness  itself,  if  he 
were  capable  of  commanding  impossibilities. 

(a)  “You  have  heard  that  it  has  been  said:  Thou  shalt  love  thy 
neighbor  and  hate  thy  enemy  (15).  But  I  say  to  you:  Love  your 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  v.  43  ;  St.  Luke,  vi.  28,  32-35. 


ought  to  remember  the  words  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  how  he  said  :  It  is  a  more  blessed  thing 
to  give  rather  than  to  receive.  These  expressions  are  not  to  he  met  with  in  any  of  tire 
four  evangelists.  Saint  Paul  had  learned  it  from  the  apostles,  or  from  one  of  the  disci¬ 
ples  who  had  seen  the  Lord.  There  is  no  doubt  that  these  preserved  the  recollection  of 
several  other  expressions  of  their  divine  Master,  which  are  not  written.  As  this  is  writ¬ 
ten,  we  deemed  it  our  duty  to  treasure  it,  and  to  put  it  in  this  place  where  the  Saviour 
makes  such  magnificent  promises,  to  liberality,  which  serve  to  prove  the  truth  of  the 
maxim  in  the  sense  that  it  is  more  advantageous  to  give  than  to  receive. 

It  is  also  true  in  the  sense  that  there  is  greater  pleasure  in  giving  than  in  receiving. 
Generous  souls  find  no  difficulty  in  subscribing  to  this  truth,  of  which  they  have  experi¬ 
ence  in  their  own  sensations.  Interested  persons,  who  do  not  feel  it,  cannot  comprehend 
it  ;  the  latter  should  believe  it  as  they  believe  mysteries. 

(15)  In  the  nineteenth  chapter  of  Leviticus,  verse  18,  we  read  these  words:  Thou 
shalt  love  thy  friend  as  thyself.  These  words,  Thou  shalt  hate  thy  enemy,  we  read  in 
no  part  of  Scripture,  unless  we  wish  to  find  this  meaning  in  the  order  which  God  issued 
to  his  people,  to  exterminate  the  unfaithful  nations,  whose  country  his  people  were  to  oc¬ 
cupy  ;  but  even  this  construction  would  not  be  a  just  one.  The  order  to  exterminate 
docs  not  command  hatred  ;  and  that  which  is  given  to  soldiers,  to  kill  the  enemies  of  the 


CHAP.  XVI.] 

enemies  (16)  ;  do  good  to  tliem  that  hate  you  ;  bless  them  that  curse 
you  ;  pray  for  them  that  persecute  and  calumniate  you  ;  that  you 
may  be  the  children  of  your  Father  that  is  in  heaven  (17),  who 
maketh  his  sun  to  rise  upon  the  good  and  bad,  and  raineth  upon 
the  just  and  the  unjust.  For  if  you  love  them  that  love  you,  what 
reward  shall  you  have  (18)?  Do  not  even  the  publicans  these 
things  ?  And  if  you  salute  your  brethren  only,  what  do  you  more  ? 
Do  not  also  the  heathens  this  ?  If  you  do  good  to  them  who  do 
good  to  you,  what  thanks  are  to  you  ?  for  sinners  also  do  this.  And 
if  you  lend  to  them  of  whom  you  hope  to  receive,  what  thanks  ar 
to  you?  for  sinners  also  lend  to  sinners  for  to  receive  as  much. \  But 
love  ye  your  enemies  ;  do  good  ;  lend,  hoping  for  nothing  thereby  ; 


State,  is  not  an  order  to  hate  them.  But  even  if  the  order  of  God  had  been  such,  Jesus 
Christ  revoked  it,  as  he  came  to  do  away  with  the  distinction  between  Jew  and  Gentile, 
and  to  unite  all  people  in  the  bonds  of  the  same  faith  and  the  same  charity.  But  this 
is  not  the  interpretation  which  the  Saviour  here  contends  against.  It  appears  that  from 
these  words,  Thou  shalt  love  thy  friend,  the  Jews  had  concluded,  by  a  contrary  analogy, 
that  if  they  were  not  obliged,  they  were,  at  least,  authorized,  to  hate  their  enemies.  They 
understood  the  word  enemy  in  the  sense  opposed  to  friend — that  is  to  say,  in  the  sense 
of  private  enemy.  The  description  which  Jesus  Christ  gives  of  it  leaves  no  doubt  as  to 
their  meaning  of  the  word.  It  is,  according  to  him,  the  enemy,  who  hates  us — who 
persecutes  us — who  curses  us,  and  calumniates  us — all  of  which  things  are  understood 
more  naturally  with  reference  to  a  particular  enemy  than  to  the  public  enemy. 

(16)  The  heart  of  man  is  impenetrable  to  himself,  and  it  is  very  difficult,  especially  in 
the  struggles  of  resentment  against  charity,  to  discover  its  depth,  and  to  decide  what  is 
its  predominant  disposition.  Love,  says  Jesus  Christ;  but  how  can  I  assure  myself  that 
I  love  him  whom  I  am  tempted  one  thousand  times  a  day  to  hate  mortally  ?  Listen  to 
what  the  Saviour  adds  :  Do  good  to  him,  pray  for  him,  bless  him — that  is  to  say,  speak 
well  of  him.  Then  you  have  the  greatest  assurance  which  a  Christian  heart  can  have, 
that  you  have  preserved  charity.  On  the  contrary,  if  you  speak  ill  of  him — if  you  seek 
to  injure  or  to  thwart  him — if  you  refuse  to  salute  him,  that  is  to  say,  if  you  refuse  what 
you  owe  to  his  rank  and  to  the  different  relations  which  you  may  have  with  him,  of  citi¬ 
zen,  neighbor,  relative — your  state  is  decided  ;  you  do  not  love,  or  rather  there  is  proof 
that  you  hate  :  and  if  still  you  say,  As  a  Christian,  I  love  him,  the  expression  is  well  un¬ 
derstood,  and,  in  modern  acceptation,  signifies  something  worse  than  indifference. 

(17)  In  order  that,  by  this  great  feature  of  resemblance,  you  may  be  recognized  for 
the  children  of  your  heavenly  Father.  When  you  see  a  man  who  loves  his  enemy,  say 
boldly,  Here  is  a  child  of  God.  No  one  can  be  mistaken  here. 

(18)  There  is  merit  in  loving  our  friend  when  we  also  love  our  enemy;  but  when  we 
do  not  love  our  enemy,  there  is  no  longer  any  merit  in  loving  our  friend.  For  in  such  a 
cf.ne  the  latte»  is  only  through  feeling  or  interest.  For  if  charity  had  any  part  in  it,  char¬ 
ity  would  make  us  also  love  our  enemy. 


a 


f  1 

lliiii 

11 

132 


THE  IIISTOKY  OF  TIIE  LIFE 


[part  L 

and  your  reward  shall  be  great.  And  you  shall  be  the  sons  of  the 
Highest,  for  he  is  kind  to  the  unthankful  and  the  evil.  Be  ye,  there¬ 
fore,  merciful  and  perfect,  as  also  your  heavenly  Father  is  perfect.” 

Such  is  the  perfection  to  which  we  are  called  ;  not  that  we  may 
equal  it— for  who  is  as  perfect  as  God  ? — but  that  we  may  labor  to 
acquire  it,  and  to  go  on  evermore  in  the  path  that  leads  to  it,  for 
the  very  reason  that  we  never  can  equal  this  perfection.  In  short, 
we  must  either  resemble  our  heavenly  Father,  or  we  shall  resemble 
publicans  and  Pagans.  Here  there  is  no  medium,  inasmuch  as  there 
is  none  between  love  and  hatred.  We  can  never  be  indifferent  with 
regard  to  our  enemy,  whom  we  are  sure  to  hate  from  resentment,  if 
we  do  not  love  him  from  religion. 

But,  after  having  taught  us  to  do  good,  Jesus  Christ  goes  on  to 
teach  us  how  to  do  it  well.  Prayer,  alms,  and  fasting  are  works  so 
excellent,  that  all  virtues  are  comprised  in  them,  or  refer  to  them. 
Yet  nothing  is  sound  for  a  diseased  heart.  Such  was  that  of  the 
Pharisees,  with  whom  every  virtue  was  turned  into  vice,  because  of 
the  motive  that  made  them  exhibit  these  virtues.  They  forgot  God, 
and  thought  wholly  of  pleasing  men.  To  shun  the  eye  of  man,  and 
to  think  wholly  of  pleasing  God,  is  the  great  maxim  which  the  Sa¬ 
viour  opposes  to  their  hypocrisy,  and,  at  the  same  time,  the  saluta¬ 
ry  instruction  which  he  gives  to  his  true  disciples  in  the  following 
words  : 

(a)  “  Take  heed  that  you  do  not  your  justice  before  men,  to  be 
seen  by  them  (19);  otherwise  you  shall  not  have  a  reward  of  your 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  vi.  1-6. 


(19)  This  maxim  does  not  abrogate  that  which  we  have  read  at  the  commencement  of 
the  Saviour’s  discourse  :  So  let  your  light  shine  before  men,  that  they  may  see  your  good 
works,  and  glorify  your  Father  who  is  in  heaven.  It  is  not  always  a  crime — it  is  some¬ 
times  eVen  a  duty  to  do  good  before  men,  even  with  a  design  of  their  seeing  it  ;  all  de¬ 
pends  upon  the  intention.  To  wish  to  be  seen  when  we  do  good — I  say  to  wish  it  solely 
to  the  end  that  God  may  be  thereby  glorified,  is  always  a  virtue,  and,  as  we  have  said, 
sometimes  an  obligation.  In  general,  we  must  make  public  what  is  a  matter  of  duty, 
and  keep  secret  what  is  a  matter  of  supererogation.  Neither  of  the  two  rules,  however, 
is  without  exception.  When  we  are  in  doubt  whether  the  good  work  should  be  shown  or 
concealed,  the  second  course  is  always  the  surest  ;  it  is  so  easy  to  lose  one’s  self  through 
vanity,  and  so  difficult,  not  to  say  impossible,  to  sin  through  humility. 

Humility  and  charity  sometimes  exceed  bounds,  or  seem  to  exceed  ;  but  they  never  sin. 


•  w 

- 

.  ■  U, 


?• 


■  '•  '  •  :  • 

- 


.  ...  -,  . 


*  .  '  •  ••  . 

.-VO  .  ■  ■■ 


. 

.  ‘  ■  • 

. 

- 


•  •  "■  : 

■  '  , 

i  i  •  ».  -  '  . 

I'  ■  .  ;  • 

•:  V 


-  - 


. 


CIIAP.  XVI.J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


133 


Father  who  is  in  heaven.  Therefore,  when  thou  doest  an  alms-deed, 
sound  not  a  trumpet  before  thee  (20),  as  the  hypocrites  do  in  the 
synagogues  and  in  the  streets,  that  they  may  be  honored  by  men. 
Amen,  I  say  to  you,  they  have  received  their  reward  (21).  But 
when  thou  doest  alms,  let  not  thy  left  hand  know  what  thy  right 
hand  doeth  (22),  that  thy  alms  may  be  in  secret;  and  thy  Father, 
who  seeth  in  secret,  will  repay  thee.  When  ye  pray,  you  shall  not 
be  as  the  hypocrites  (23),  that  love  to  stand  and  pray  in  the  syna¬ 
gogues  and  corners  of  the  streets,  that  they  may  be  seen  by  men. 
Amen,  I  say  to  you,  they  have  received  their  reward.  But  thou, 
when  thou  shalt  pray,  enter  into  thy  chamber,  and,  having  shut  the 
door,  pray  to  thy  Father  in  secret,  and  thy  Father,  who  seeth  in  se¬ 
cret,  will  repay  thee  (24).” 

This  naturally  led  Jesus  Christ  to  correct  another  error  on  pray¬ 
er — that  of  making  the  merit  thereof  consist  in  the  multitude,  and, 


(20)  This  is,  perhaps,  a  figurative  expression,  to  signify  the  ostentation  with  which  the 
Pharisees  dispensed  their  alms.  Perhaps  there  was  also  among  them  the  custom  of  really 
having  a  trumpet'  sounded,  to  assemble  the  poor  with  more  show  and  noise. 

(21)  Vain  like  themselves,  since  they  are  vain  men.  But,  however,  it  is  theirs,  such 
as  they  had  in  view,  and  as  they  desired.  They  have  received  it,  and  they  are  paid  ; 
God  owes  them  nothing  further.  To  speak  with  more  precision,  he  owes  them  the  chas¬ 
tisement  of  their  criminal  vanity,  and  he  owes  it  to  himself  to  avenge  the  injury  which 
they  have  done  him,  by  preferring  the  glory  that  comes  from  men  to  that  which  comes 
from  God. 

(22)  This  is  an  hyperbole,  which  conveys  the  idea  that  we  ought  to  conceal  our  alms 
from  the  rest  of  men,  and,  if  it  be  possible,  even  from  ourselves,  by  forgetting  them,  or 
setting  little  value  upon  them.  Nothing  is  so  great  as  to  do  great  things,  and  to  esteem 
them  little.  There  is  a  measure  of  alms  which'  each  person  is  bound  to  perform,  accord¬ 
ing  to  his  means;  these  alms  ought  not  to  be  unknown  to  the  world.  For,  otherwise, 
those  would  be  scandalized  who  might  have  grounds  for  believing  that  you  failed  to  per¬ 
form  the  precept.  Secrecy  refers  only  to  superorogation. 

(23)  They  prayed  standing  up,  to  be  seen  by  a  greater  number  of  people.  The  words 
of  the  text  in  Latin,  stantes  orare,  may  also  signify  stop,  stopping  to  pray,  which  leaves 
the  posture  undecided.  This  second  construction  would  make  the  hypocrisy  consist  in 
seeking  out  public  places,  and  saying  long  prayers  there,  with  a  view  of  being  seen  and 
praised  by  men. 

(24)  This  is  said  without  prejudice  to  public  prayer,  recommended  and  practised  at  all 
times.  Trifling  distractions  do  not  hinder  it  from  being  the  better  course  for  the  heads 
of  families  to  pray  in  the  midst  of  their  children  and  their  servants  than  in  the  secrecy  of 
their  private  apartments.  I  speak  here  of  morning  and  evening  prayer.  If  they  wisli  to 
pray  at  other  hours,  let  them  apply  to  these  prayers  the  lesson  which  the  Saviour  hero 
gives  us. 


perhaps,  in  the  elegance,  of  the  words.  This  is  to  treat  God  as  we 
would  men,  who  suffer  themselves  to  be  dazzled  by  the  pomp  of  dic¬ 
tion,  and  persuaded  by  the  force  of  eloquence.  Very  probably  the 
Jews  were  not  exempt  from  this  defect.  Yet  Jesus  Christ  only  at¬ 
tributes  it  here  to  the  Gentiles.  But,  as  his  Church  was  to  form  a 
union  of  the  two  people,  it  was  proper  that  the  Gentiles,  who  were 
to  compose  the  greater  part  of  it,  should  also  have  that  instruction 
which  was  necessary  fjr  them.  He  proceeds,  therefore,  thus: 

(a)  “  When  you  are  praying,  speak  not  much,  as  the  heathens  ; 
for  they  think  that  in  their  much  speaking  they  may  be  heard  (25). 
Be  not  you,  therefore,  like  to  them.  Your  Father  knoweth  what  is 
needful  for  you  before  you  ask  him.  Thus,  therefore,  shall  you 
pray  :  Our  Father,  who  art  in  heaven,  hallowed  be  thy  name  ;  thy 
kingdom  come  ;  thy  will  be  done  on  earth,  as  it  is  in  heaven  ;  give 
us  this  day  our  daily  bread,  and  forgive  us  Cur  debts,  as  we  also 
forgive  our  debtors  ;  and  lead  us  not  into  temptation,  but  deliver 

us  from  evil.  Amen  (26).” 

<% 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  vi.  7-13  ;  St.  Luke,  xi.  3. 


(25)  That  which  renders  long  discourses  unnecessary,  or  a  great  display  of  our  miser¬ 
ies,  is  the  knowledge  which  God  has  of  them.  Our  sentiment  thereof  must  be  lively, 
and  accompanied  with  an  ardent  desire  to  be  delivered  from  them.  This  does  not  re¬ 
quire  many  words. 

(26)  Can  God,  says  Saint  Cyprian,  not  hear  this  prayer,  in  which  he  recognizes  the 
very  words  of  his  Son  ?  Tertullian  calls  it  the  abridgment  of  the  Gospel.  It  is  in  real¬ 
ity,  for  those  who  meditate  upon  it,  an  inexhaustible  source  of  light  and  instruction.  We 
shall  confine  ourselves  to  giving  the  sense  of  it  which  appears  the  most  literal. 

The  name  of  Father  is  at  the  commencement,  1st,  to  excite  our  confidence;  it  is  to  our 
Father  that  we  pray  ;  2d,  to  touch  the  heart  of  God  ;  those  who  pray  are  his  children. 

When  calling  him  our  Father,  we  remember  that  we  are  all  brethren,  since  we  have  a 
common  Father.  The  heathens,  who  have  not  received  the  grace  of  adoption,  have  not, 
like  us,  the  right  of  calling  him  our  Father,  and  the  only  Son  whom  he  engendered  from 
all  eternity  is  properly  the  only  person  who  has  the  right  of  calling  him — my  Father. 

Who  art  in  heaven.  God  is  everywhere,  but  heaven  is  the  abode  of  his  glory,  and 
the  inheritance  which  he  has  prepared  for  his  children.  Where  can  we  more  willingly 
contemplate  him  than  in  the  place  where  he  reigns  with  the  greatest  lustre,  and  where 
we  are  to  reign  eternally  with  him  ?  Hallowed  he  thy  name.  The  name  of  God  is  essen¬ 
tially  holy,  says  Saint  Augustine  ;  wherefore  all  that  we  can  ask  for  here  is,  that  his  sanc¬ 
tity  may  be  known  and  confessed  by  all  men.  Thy  kingdom  come.  Reign  everywhere 
without  opposition,  and  hasten  the  arrival  of  that  great  day  when  all  thy  friends  shall  be 
side  by  side  with  thee,  and  all  thy  enemies  at  thy  feet.  Thy  will  be  done,  &c.  Those 


1 


7/ 


V 


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«,-a  c*»OOOOOa 


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1 01 
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v 


i\ 


After  liaving  given  us  this  admirable  prayer,  Jesus  Christ  refers 
again  to  the  fifth  petition  in  it,  to  make  us  understand  that  .it  com¬ 
prehends  a  species  of  treaty  between  God  and  man,  by  which  God 
undertakes  to  forgive  the  man  who  forgives,  and  the  man  who  doth 
not  forgive  virtually  refuses  to  obtain  from  God  the  pardon  of  his 

who  love  God  desire  the  most  perfect  accomplishment  of  his  will  that  can  possibly  be 
imagined.  In  heaven  but  one  will  is  accomplished,  that  of  God,  because  all  others  are 
perfectly  conformable  to  it.  We  ask  for  the  same  state  of  things  to  be  on  earth  ;  if  we 
cannot  obtain  it  for  all  men,  each  may  obtain  it  for  himself,  and  the  earth  has  the  happi¬ 
ness  of  still  possessing  souls  sufficiently  angelical  to  render  it  easy  for  us  to  judge  that 
this  petition  is  not  without  effect.  Give  us  this  day  our  daily,  bread — that  is  to  say, 
whatsoever  is  necessary  and  sufficient  for  the  support  of  the  life  of  the  body.  This  day  : 
for  who  knows  whether  he  shall  see  the  morrow?  Our  daily  bread:  We  read  it  thus 
in  Saint  Luke.  In  Saint  Matthew  we  read  super-substantial  bread.  The  Greek  word  is 
the  same  in  the  two  evangelists,  and  there  is  every  appearance  that  the  super-substantial 
of  Saint  Matthew  bears  the  same  sense  as  the  daily  of  Saint  Luke.  The  first  may  signify 
the  bread  necessary  to  the  support  of  our  substance,  that  is  to  say,  of  our  body,  or  in¬ 
deed  the  bread  which  corresponds  to  the  substance  of  this  day  ;  for  the  Hebrews,  in  or¬ 
der  to  signify  the  present  day,  said  the  substance  of  the  present  day  ;  and  we  know  that 
Saint  Matthew  wrote  his  Gospel  in  Hebrew  (Maldon  on  Saint  Matthew,  p.  147).  This 
bread,  above  all  substance,  is  also,  according  to  the  Fathers,  the  Eucharistic  bread;  for 
this  sense,  although  mystic,  is  not  the  less  on  that  account  here  a  direct  and  literal  sense. 
If  it  be  reasonable  for  us  to  ask  for  the  bread  which  nourishes  the  body,  how  much  more 
so  is  it  to  ask  for  the  bread  which  supports  the  life  of  our  souls  ?  And  can  we  pray  to 
our  Father  without  asking  from  him  the  bread  which  is  by  excellence  the  bread  of  the 
children  ? 

And  forgive  us  our  debts.  Our  offences,  which  render  us,  with  regard  to  God,  insol¬ 
vent  debtors.  God,  nevertheless,  consents  to  remit  to  us  these  immense  debts,  these  ten 
thousand  talents  ;  provided  that  we  remit  to  our  brethren  the  few  pence  wherein  they  may 
stand  indebted  to  us.  This  is  drawing  good  from  evil,  and  causing  life  to  issue  from  the 
bosom  of  death,  whilst  we  learn  from  our  own  sins  to  grant  unto  others  a  pardon  which 
we  are  so  much  in  want  of  ourselves. 

And  lead  us  not  into  temptation.  God  does  not  tempt  us  ;  but  he  permits  us  to  be 
tempted,  and  the  experience  which  we  have  of  our  weakness  makes  us  beg  of  God  not 
to  allow  it — a  prayer  which  God  grants  by  diminishing  temptations  and  redoubling  his 
help. 

But  deliver  us  from  evil.  The  Latin  word  signifies,  equally,  the  evil  or  the  wicked  one. 
The  Greek  word  properly  signifies  the  evil  one,  that  is  to  say,  the  demon.  As  to  the 
sense,  it  is  quite  equal  to  ask  from  God  that  he  should  deliver  us  from  the  evil  which 
the  wicked  one  doth,  or  from  the  wicked  one  that  doth  the  evil. 

There  are  two  parts  in  this  prayer  :  the  first  appears  to  have  only  in  view  the  interests 
of  God  ;  the  second  part  is  for  us.  Good  children  should  desire  the  prosperity  of  their 
father  before  their  own.  The  glory  of  God  is  more  advantageous  to  ourselves  than  we 
think.  If  it  were  not  so,  would  the  Church  say  to  God  :  We  thank  thee  for  the  great¬ 
ness  of  thy  glory  ? 


■  'jFTHT 


7]| 

m 


136 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[P^RT  I. 

sins.  This  truth,  equally  terrible  and  consoling,  is  expressed  by 
these  words  :  (a)  “  For  if  you  will  forgive  men  their  offences,  your 
heavenly  Father  will  forgive  you  also  your  offences.  But  if  you 
will  not  forgive  men,  neither  will  your  Father  forgive  you  your 
offences.” 

Now,  if  we  pray  after  the  mannef  prescribed  to  us,  we  may  reck¬ 
on  as  certain  that  our  Father  will  hear  us.  His  word  is  express, 
and  his  goodness  alone  is  as  infallible  a  guarantee  to  us  as  his  truth. 
For  Jesus  Christ  saith  further  :  ( b )  “  Ask,  and  it  shall  be  given  you  ; 
seek,  and  you  shall  find;  knock,  and  it  shall  be  opened  to  you. 
For  every  one  that  asketh  receiveth,  and  he  that  seeketh  findeth, 
and  to  him  that  knocketh  it  shall  be  opened.  And  which  of  you, 
if  he  ask  his  father  bread,  will  he  give  him  a  stone  (27)?  or  a  fish, 
will  he  for  a  fish  give  him  a  serpent  ?  Or,  if  he  shall  ask  an  egg, 
will  he  reach  him  a  scorpion  ?  If  you,  then,  being  evil,  know  how 
to  give  good  gifts  to  your  children,  how  much  more  will  your  Fa¬ 
ther  from  heaven  give  the  good  Spirit  to  them  that  ask  him  ?  When 
you  fast,”  continues  the  Saviour ,  “  be  not  as  the  hypocrites,  sad  :  for 
they  disfigure  their  faces  (28),  that  they  may  appear  unto  men  to 
fast.  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  they  have  received  their  reward.  But 
thou,* when  thou  fastest,  anoint  thy  head  (29),  and  wash  thy  face, 
that  thou  appear  not  to  men  to  fast,  but  to  thy  Father  who  is  in  se¬ 
cret;  and  thy  Father,  who  seeth  in  secret,  will  repay  thee.” 

Therefore  we  must  have  God  alone  in  view  in  all  the  good  works 
that  we  perform.  This  simplicity  of  purpose  and  purity  of  inten¬ 
tion  is  what  renders  them  virtuous  and  worthy  of  recompense.  But 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  vi.  14,  15.  ( b )  St.  Luke,  xi.  9-31  ;  St.  Matthew,  vi.  16-18. 


(27)  We  ask  from  God  what  we  think  to  be  bread,  and  which  is  in  reality  a  stone. 
God  gives  to  us  what  appears  a  stone,  but  which,  nevertheless,  is  bread.  God  listens 
when  he  seems  to  refuse.  He  would  have  refused  if  he  had  appeared  to  listen.  For 
after  all,  what  is  sought  for  is  bread. 

(28)  Some  think  that  they  rubbed  their  faces  with  certain  compositions,  which  ren¬ 
dered  them  pale  and  livid.  This  was  the  artificial  coloring  of  hypocrisy. 

(29)  Supposing,  besides,  you  did  mean  to  perfume  the  head  upon  that  day:  for  if  a 
person  only  perfumed  on  fast  days,  then  perfumery,  instead  of  dissembling  the  fast, 
would  announce  it.  Therefore  affect  nothing,  and  conceal  the  mortifications  which  you 
should  practise  in  secret. 


9(V 


CHAP.  XVII.] 

if  vanity  or  interest  is  their  sole  or  principal  object,  that  is  to  say, 
if  the  intention  be  corrupt,  this  vitiates  every  act  we  perform,  as 
Jesus  Christ  gives  us  to  understand  by  this  elegant  metaphor: 
(a)  “  The  light  of  thy  body  is  thy  eye.  If  thy  eye  be  single,  thy 
whole  body  shall  be  lightsome  ;  but  if  thy  eye  be  evil,  thy  whole 
body  shall  be  darksome.  If,  then,  the  light  that  is  in  thee  be  dark¬ 
ness,  the  darkness  itself  how  great  shall  it  be  !” 


fi 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

CONTINUATION  OF  THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT. 

Pride,  lust,  anger,  and  vindictiveness — that  is  to  say,  almost  all 
the  passions — were  overthrown  by  these  divine  precepts.  Jesus 
Christ  had  attacked  them  even  in  the  very  heart  of  man,  where 
they  could  no  longer  exist  after  the  deadly  blows  he  had  given 
them.  For,  widely  different  from  the  Pharisees,  who  cleansed  the 
exterior,  and  left  all  corruption  within,  this  wise  physician  applied 
himself  to  rectify  the  interior,  without  which  the  exterior,  even  sup¬ 
posing  it  were  well  regulated,  would  only  be  a  deceitful  show,  and 
vice  glossed  over  with  the  colors  of  virtue.  There  remained  one 
more  passion  to  be  subdued — this  was  avarice — of  all  the  passions, 
the  one  which  strikes  its  roots  the  deepest  into  the  soul,  and  is  the 
most  difficult  to  be  extirpated.  Jesus  Christ  exhibits  its  folly,  in 
hoarding  up  goods  which  it  seldom  enjoys  ;  its  disorderly  charac¬ 
ter,  engrossing  as  it  does  the  whole  heart,  to  the  exclusion  of  every 
thought  and  desire  of  heaven  ;  its  illusion,  in  endeavoring  against 
reason  and  experience,  cunningly  to  ally  its  schemes  with  the  service 
of  God  :  for  nearly  all  avaricious  men  would  fain  be  devout,  and 
persuade  themselves  that  they  are  so.  Lastly,  pursuant  to  his  ordi¬ 
nary  method,  Jesus  Christ  attacks  this  passion  in  the  heart,  by 
stripping  it  of  the  most  specious  of  all  its  pretexts,  which  is  the  fear 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  vi.  22,  23. 


mm 


aoaaooooa 


U 


fl 


Br 


of  future  want.  This  excellent  lesson  constitutes  the  subject  of  the 
following  articles  : 

(a)  “  Lay  not  up  to  yourselves  treasures  on  earth,  where  the  rust 
and  moth  consume,  and  where  thieves  break  through  and  steal  ; 
but  lay  up  to  yourselves  treasures  in  heaven  (1),  where  neither  the 
rust  nor  moth  doth  consume,  and  where  thieves  do  not  break 
through,  nor  steal.  For  where  thy  treasure  is,  there  is  thy  heart 
also.” 

“  No  man  can  serve  two  masters  ;  for  either  he  will  hate  the  one 
and  love  the  other;  or  he  will  sustain  the  one,  and  despise  the 
other.  You  cannot  serve  God  and  mammon  (2).  Therefore,  I  say 
to  you  :  Be  not  solicitous  for  your  life,  what  you  shall  eat,  nor  for 
your  body,  what  you  shall  put  on.  Is  not  the  life  more  than  the 
meat,  and  the  body  more  than  the  raiment  ?  Behold  the  birds  of 
the  air  :  they  neither  sow,  nor  do  they  reap,  nor  gather  into  barns  ; 
and  your  heavenly  Father  feedeth  them.  Are  not  you  of  much 
more  value  than  they  ?  Now,  which  of  you,  by  taking  thought, 
can  add  to  his  stature  one  cubit  ?  And  for  raiment  why  are  you 
solicitous  ?  Consider  the  lilies  of  the  field,  how  they  grow  :  they 
labor  not,  neither  do  they  spin  ;  but  I  say  to  you,  not  even  Solomon, 
in  all  his  glory,  was  arrayed  as  one  of  these.  Now,  if  the  grass  of 
the  field,  which  is  to-day,  and  to-morrow  is  cast  into  the  oven,  God 
doth  so  clothe,  how  much  more  ye,  O  ye  of  little  faith  !  Be  not 
solicitous,  therefore,  saying  :  What  shall  we  eat,  or  what  shall  we 
drink,  or  wherewith  shall  we  be  clothed?  For  after  these  (3)  things 
do  the  heathens  seek,  and  your  Father  knoweth  that  you  have  need 
of  all  these  things.  Seek  ye,  therefore,  first  the  kingdom  of  God 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  vi.  19-21  ;  24-34. 


(1)  This  is  principally  done  by  alms.  Keeping  one’s  goods  is,  therefore,  losing  them  ; 
and  giving  them,  is  treasuring  them  up. 

(2)  Remark  the  propriety  of  the  term  :  for  a  person  can  possess  riches  and  serve  God , 
but  we  cannot  be  subject  to  riches  and  serve  God. 

(3)  God  does  not  prohibit  foresight,  but  he  prohibits  anxiety,  as  injurious  to  his  paren¬ 
tal  providence. 

Not  to  trouble  ourselves  about  this  present  life,  and  to  occupy  ourselves  entirely  about 
the  future  life,  are,  in  two  words,  what  we  ought  to  do,  and  the  contrary  of  what  we  ac¬ 
tually  do. 


sCI//, 


— \  j  im  wpfj 


▼  / 

t  m, 


sv 


j 


AI//Æ 


ri 


-A 


chap.  xvn.J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


139 


and  Lis  justice,  and  all  these  tilings  shall  be  added  unto  you.  Be 
not,  therefore,  solicitous  for  to-morrow  ;  for  the  morrow  will  be  so¬ 
licitous  for  itself.  Sufficient  for  the  day  is  the  evil  thereof.” 

The  judgments  which  we  are  in  the  habit  of  passing  upon  one 
another  occupy  a  position  here  which  shows  how  much  more  impor¬ 
tant  this  matter  seemed  to  Jesus  Christ  than  to  the  majority  of  man¬ 
kind,  who  scarcely  reckon  as  faults  the  transgressions  of  this  kind 
which  they  daily  commit.  Their  consequence  will  be  better  known, 
when  we  shall  have  seen  what  recompense  Jesus  Christ  promises  to 
those  who  do  not  judge,  and  what  a  judgment  he  reserves  for  those 
who  do  (4).  “  Judge  not,”  he  says,  “  and  you  shall  not  be  judged  ; 

condemn  not,  and  you  shall  not  be  condemned  ;  for  with  what  judg¬ 
ment  you  judge,  you  shall  be  judged  (5).  And  why  seest  thou  the 
'  mote  that  is  in  thy  brother’s  eye,  and  seest  not  the  beam  that  is  in 
thy  own  eye  ?  Or  how  sayest  thou  to  thy  brother  :  Let  me  cast  the 
mote  out  of  thine  eye,  and  behold,  a  beam  is  in  thy  own  eye  ? 
Thou  hypocrite  (6),  cast  out  first  the  beam  out  of  thy  own  eye, 
and  then  shalt  thou  see  to  cast  out  the  mote  out  of  thy  brother’s 
eye.” 

(4)  We  do  not  judge,  but  we  see  what  is  as  clear  as  day.  Beyond  this  never  judge, 
if  you  be  not  a  judge.  You  are  such  with  regard  to  those  over  whom  you  have  a  right 
of  correction.  We  may  be  allowed  to  act  upon  a  legitimate  suspicion  ;  but  we  are  not 
permitted  to  judge.  That  a  man’s  fidelity  is  suspected  is  not  enough  to  entitle  us  to 
judge  him  faithless,  although  it  be  enough  to  enable  us  in  certain  circumstances  to  dis¬ 
place  or  discharge  him,  on  account  of  the  right  which  we  have  to  make  use  of  only  per¬ 
sons  of  unsuspected  fidelity.  Whilst  this  right  is  well  known,  its  limits  ai*e  scarcely  ever 
known  ;  for  we  do  not  only  form  the  judgment,  but  we  •pronounce  and  we  publish  it, 
without  dreaming  that  a  subordinate,  and  perhaps  a  servant,  has  no  less  a  right  to  his 
reputation  than  the  master  has  to  his  own,  and  that  often  this  reputation  is  even  more 
necessary  to  the  servant.  This  is  one  of  those  sins  which  are  never  remitted,  if  there  be 
not  reparation  made. 

(5)  That  is  to  say,  that  those  who  shall  have  judged  rigorously  shall  be  judged  with 
rigor  ;  for  the  judgments  of  God  shall  neither  be  false  nor  rash,  like  ours.  In  what, 
therefore,  could  they  resemble  ours,  if  not  by  severity  ?  There  are  two  ways  of  judging 
the  guilty,  even  when  attainted  and  convicted — one  full  of  sternness  and  harshness — the 
other  meek  and  indulgent.  The  first  was  that  of  the  Pharisees — the  second  that  of  Je¬ 
sus  Christ,  who  said  to  the  adulterous  woman  :  Neither  will  I  condemn  thee. 

(G)  Because  censure  supposes  the  zeal  of  justice,  and  is  the  expression  of  it.  Now, 
he  who  does  not  commence  by  condemning  himself,  has  not  truly  the  zeal  of  justice. 
He,  therefore,  only  wears  the  mask  of  justice,  and  this  it  is  that  makes  him  a  hypo¬ 
crite. 


7/t 


■ 

f 

fo  «  «  a  a  ooo 

<s  q 

ê  C| 


We  have  already  remarked,  tkat  tlirongliout  this  entire  discourse 
Jesns  Christ  had  the  apostles  more  directly  in  view,  and  that 
amongst  the  precepts  he  gives,  some  only  apply  to  them  and  their 
successors  in  the  ministry.  We  now  call  the  reader’s  attention  to 
one  of  the  latter  class.  “  Give  not  that  which  is  holy  to  dogs,  nei¬ 
ther  cast  your  pearls  before  swine,  lest,  perhaps,  they  trample  them 
under  their  feet,  and,  turning  upon  you,  they  tear  you  (7).”  Which 
signifies  that  we  must  not  expose  holy  things  to  profanation,  nor  an¬ 
nounce  the  Gospel  truths,  when  we  could  not  reasonably  expect 
any  other  fruit  than  to  irritate  those  to  whom  they  are  announced, 
and  to  attract  from  these  individuals  a  persecution  detrimental  to 
the  preacher,  and  perhaps  to  the  whole  Church.  Zeal  should,  there¬ 
fore,  be  intelligent — many  people  will  tell  you  so.  But  intelligence, 
should  not  be  devoid  of  zeal  ;  and,  if  indiscretion  is  blameworthy, 
cowardice  is  more  so.  Let  us  add,  that  it  is  more  common,  because 
human  interests  find  here  a  good  consideration.  In  the  apostles’ 
time,  it  was  necessary  to  recommend  discretion  rather  than  zeal. 
At  other  periods,  the  reverse  was  the  case  :  zeal,  not  discretion,  re¬ 
quired  to  be  inculcated. 

After  having  laid  down  the  law,  Jesus  Christ  had  now  nothing 
more  to  do  but  to  fortify  his  followers  against  the  false  construc¬ 
tions  which  might  be  put  upon  it.  These  were  to  be  of  two  kinds. 
They  might  be  explained,  first  of  all,  by  custom,  which  is,  they  say, 
the  best  interpreter  of  laws.  Jesus  Christ  gives  us  to  understand 
that  this  maxim  has  no  connection  with  his  law.  He  formally  de¬ 
clares  that  the  majority  shall  be  prevaricators,  and  that  the  number 
of  faithful  observers  shall  be  beyond  comparison  the  smallest  of  the 
two  ;  that,  therefore,  his  law  should  be  understood  and  observed  to 


(7)  If  any  one  be  tempted  to  believe  that  Jesus  Christ  acted  contrary  to  his  own 
maxim,  when  he  announced  his  doctrine  to  the  Jews,  to  whom  it  was  useless,  and  to  the 
Pharisees,  whose  fury  it  excited,  we  answer:  1st.  That  many  listened  with  docility  and 
profited  by  his  instructions.  2d.  When  he  taught  the  Jews,  he  taught  all  nations  and 
all  ages,  to  whom  his  doctrine  should  be  repeated.  3d.  The  contradictions  which  it 
drew  upon  him  should,  by  causing  his  death,  occasion  the  redemption  of  mankind. 
Persecution,  even  when  foreseen,  should  not  hinder  preaching  :  it  should  only  suspend 
that  preaching,  which  could  have  no  other  effect  than  exciting  persecution,  or  could  no! 
produce  sufficient  fruit  to  counterbalance  the  evil  of  persecution. 


ii  l 

regg» 

iS 


CHAP.  XVIT.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


141 


the  letter,  or,  if  we  wish  to  explain  it  by  practice,  we  seek  the  true 
construction  in  the  practice  of  the  lesser  number.  The  bad  con¬ 
struction  of  the  false  prophets  was  the  second  rock  that  should  be 
avoided.  Jesus  Christ  teaches  us  how  to  know  these  dangerous 
men,  and  thus  gives  notes  of  them  beforehand  to  those  who  are  sin¬ 
cerely  desirous  of  not  being  seduced.  For  the  false  prophet,  when 
once  he  is  unmasked,  only  takes  in  those  who  wish  to  be  taken  in. 
Here  are  the  very  words  of  the  Saviour  :  (a)  “  Enter  ye  in  by  the 
narrow  gate  ;  for  wide  is  the  gate,  and  broad  is  the  way  that  lead- 
eth  to  destruction,  and  many  there  are  who  go  in  thereat.  O,  how 
narrow  is  the  gate  !”  he  exclaims,  in  a  tone  which  should  strike  dread 
into  every  heart — “  O,  how  narrow  is  the  gate,  and  straight  is  the 
way  that  leadeth  to  life,  and  few  there  are  that  find  it  !”  This  says 
a  great  deal  in  a  few  words.  Directly  he  adds  :  “  Beware  of  false 
prophets,  who  come  to  you  in  the  clothing  of  sheep,”  but  inwardly 
they  are  ravening  wolves.  By  their  fruits  you  shall  know  them  (8). 
Do  men  gather  grapes  of  thorns,  or  figs  of  thistles  ?  Even  so  every 
good  tree  bringeth  forth  good  fruit,  and  the  evil  tree  bringeth  forth 
evil  fruit.  A  good  tree  cannot  bring  forth  evil  fruit,  neither  can  an 
evil  tree  bring  forth  good  fruit  (9).  Every  tree  that  bringeth  not 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  vii:  13  ;  St.  Luke,  vi.  45. 


(8)  That  is  to  say,  by  their  works.  A  work,  if  had,  may  decide  that  the  prophet  is 
false.  A  good  work  does  not  equally  decide  the  true  prophet.  We  have  seen  already 
that  there  are  ostentatious  prayers,  proud  fastings,  and  pharisaical  alms.  Humility  and 
charity  are  the  least  equivocal  marks.  In  vain  may  the  false  prophet  disguise  himself  ;  he 
is  always  despising  and  slandering,  and  he  is  not  slow  in  appearing.  Yet,  a  person  may 
neither  be  humble  nor  charitable,  and  still  not  be  a  false  prophet.  There  are  men  who 
do  wrong,  and  teach  good.  Works  are  not,  therefore,  an  infallible  rule  to  distinguish 
the  true  from  the  false,  and  Jesus  Christ  only  proposes  them  as  a  prudent  rule  to  dis¬ 
cern  between  those  whom  we  ought  to  reprove,  and  those  whom  we  ought,  at  least,  to 
distrust. 

(9)  It  would  be  troublesome  to  reckon  all  the  errors  which  have  been  built  upon  this 
maxim.  The  most  impious  was  that  of  the  Manicheans,  who  made  use  of  it  to  defend 
their  dogma  of  men  born  and  necessitated  to  good,  and  of  men  born  wicked,  and  neces¬ 
sitated  to  evil.  The  most  silly  was  that  of  the  Pelagians,  who  inferred  from  it  that  there 
was  no  original  sin,  because  then  would  a  bad  fruit  spring  from  marriage,  which  is  a 
good  tree.  The  most  generally  known  is  that  which  the  Council  of  Trent  condemns  in 
Protestants,  who  concluded  from  it  that  all  the  actions  of  sinners  and  of  the  unbelieving 
are  so  many  sins. 


.A 1 


w  Jv 

A '-A' 

v# 

a!  ^ 


forth  good  fruit  shall  be  cut  down,  and  shall  be  cast  into  the  fire. 
Wherefore,  by  their  fruits  you  shall  know  them.  A  good  man,  out 
of  the  good  treasure  of  his  heart,  bringeth  forth  that  which  is  good  ; 
and  an  evil  man,  out  of  the  evil  treasure,  bringeth  forth  that  which 
is  evil  :  for  out  of  the  abundance  of  the  heart  the  mouth  speaketh.” 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


CLOSE  OF  THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT. 


Jesus  ended  by  saying  that  which  is  the  natural  conclusion  of  a 
discourse  like  this — that  he  doth  not  give  his  law  to  men  in  order 
to  gratify  their  curiosity,  or  to  furnish  them  with  matter  for  elo¬ 
quence,  but  in  order  that  they  may  observe  it,  and  save  themselves 
by  the  observance.  He  who  shall  have  observed  it  shall  be  saved  ; 
but  he  who  shall  not  have  observed  it  shall  be  condemned,  even  if 
in  other  respects  he  were  a  prophet  and  a  man  of  all  power  ;  for 
these  gifts,  which  God  grants  for  the  good  of  his  Church,  do  not  pre¬ 
suppose  sanctity  in  those  who  receive  them.  Judas,  and  several 
others  in  the  commencement  of  Christianity,  are  a  proof  that  the 
gift  of  miracles  is  not  absolutely  incompatible  with  the  state  of  sin. 
But  had  we  not  this  fact  in  proof,  it  suffices  for  conviction,  to  hear 
the  anticipated  judgment  which  Jesus  Christ  is  going  to  pronounce 
against  several  of  these  prevaricating  prophets  and  reprobate  work- 


The  good  or  bad  tree,  and  the  good  or  bad  man,  have  some  points  of  resemblance  :  it 
is  in  these  points  that  Jesus  Christ  compares  them.  There  are  also  essential  differences 
between  them,  and  it  is  by  comparing  these  differences  that  persons  are  misled.  The 
good  tree  cannot  render  itself  bad,  and  the  good  man  can  render  himself  bad,  by  abusing 
his  liberty.  The  bad  tree  cannot  render  itself  good,  and  the  bad  man  can,  by  his  free 
co-operation  with  grace,  become  good  and  just.  The  bad  tree  cannot  produce  a  good 
fruit,  because  its  productions  are  always  conformable  to  its  nature,  which  is  bad  ;  but 
the  bad  man  may  absolutely  produce  an  action  which  is  not  bad,  because,  being  free,  be 
may  not  always  act  conformably  to  his  bad  disposition.  We,  therefore,  judge  infallibly 
of  the  tree  by  its  fruits,  and  morally  of  the  man  by  his  works.  And,  when  we  speak  of 
the  mar.,  we  mean  his  doctrine  ;  for  this  is  what  is  here  referred  to. 


Hie 

mu 

W 

o  3  o  a  o  o  a  o  «V 

(1)  See  note  3  of  chapter  x.,  page  73. 


chap,  xvm.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


143 


ers  of  miracles,  (a)  “  Why,”  saith.  lie  to  them,  “  do  you  call  me 
Lord,  Lord,  and  do  not  the  things  which  I  say  ?  Not  every  one 
that  saith  to  me,  Lord,  Lord,  shall  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 
Many  will  say  to  me  in  that  day,  Lord,  Lord,  have  not  we  prophe¬ 
sied  in  thy  name  ?  and  done  many  miracles  in  thy  name  ?  And 
then  I  will  profess  unto  them  :  I  never  knew  you  ;  depart  from  me, 
you  that  work  iniquity.” 

Thus,  it  is  by  deeds,  not  by  words,  that  Jesus  Christ  will  recog¬ 
nize  his  own.  We  shall  not  be  commended  for  what  we  shall  have 
said,  or  for  what  we  shall  have  learned,  but  for  what  we  shall  have 
done.  Happy  he  who  shall  have  put  in  practice  the  knowledge 
which  God  has  given  him  of  his  law  !  Unfortunate,  on  the  con¬ 
trary,  he  who,  limiting  himself  to  knowledge,  shall  not  have  pro¬ 
duced  fruit  therefrom  !  But  that  which,  on  that  great  day,  shall 
constitute  the  difference  between  happiness  and  misfortune,  makes 
at  present  the  distinction  between  wisdom  and  folly.  Oh,  how 
many  shall  be  found  truly  wise  whom  we  at  present  treat  as  simple 
and  ignorant  ;  and  how  many  silly  amongst  those  whom  we  now  re¬ 
cognize,  not  merely  as  wise,  but  as  masters  of  wisdom  !  This  is 
what  Jesus  Christ  intimates  to  us  by  these  last  words  :  “  Every  one 
that  cometh  to  me,  and  heareth  my  words,  and  doeth  them,  I  will 
show  you  to  whom  he  is  like.  He  is  like  to  a  man  building  a  house, 
who  digged  deep,  and  laid  the  foundation  upon  a  rock  :  the  rain 
fell,  the  floods  came,  the  winds  blew,  and  they  beat  upon  that  house  ; 
and  it  fell  not,  for  it  was  founded  on  a  rock.  But  he  that  heareth 
these  my  words,  and  doeth  them  not,  shall  be  like  a  foolish  man,  that 
built  his  house  upon  the  sand.  The  rain  fell,  the  floods  came,  the 
winds  blew,  and  they  beat  upon  that  house  ;  it  fell,  and  great  was 
the  fall  thereof.  Jesus,  having  fully  ended  these  words,  the  people 
were  in  admiration  of  his  doctrine.  For  [it  was  again  said ]  he 
was  teaching  them  as  one  having  power,  and  not  as  the  Scribes,  and 
as  the  Pharisees  (1)” 

There  are  reasons  for  believing  that  the  whole  of  this  discourse 
(a)  St.  Luke,  vi.  40-48;  St.  Matthew,  vii.  21-23;  25-29. 


r 


was  not  spoken  then  upon  the  mountain,  but  that  on  the  occasion  of 
the  sermon  which  Jesus  Christ  there  gave,  the  Gospel  reports  sev¬ 
eral  other  maxims  of  the  Saviour,  pronounced  at  other  times,  and 
which,  when  added  to  those  he  proposed  on  this  occasion,  constitute 
a  body  of  doctrine,  which  may  be  regarded  as  the  abridgment  of 
the  Christian  law.  It  might  have  been  observed,  that  we  did  not 
always  constrain  ourselves  to  follow  the  order  in  which  they  are 
found  placed  in  the  sacred  text.  We  have  done  this,  in  order  to 
place  consecutively  those  which  refer  to  the  same  subject.  The  in¬ 
terpreters  are  not  sufficiently  agreed  whether  the  evangelists  them¬ 
selves  ranged  them  in  the  order  in  which  the  Saviour  spoke  them. 
This  order  was  not  necessary,  since  the  Holy  Ghost  did  not  inspire 
them  to  follow  it;  but  we  were  obliged  to  draw  them  together  thus 
in  a  work  which  has  for  its  principal  object  to  connect  their  sacred 
wol’ds,  and  to  compound  from  them  a  consecutive  and  methodical 
narrative. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


THE  LEPER  CLEANSED. - THE  CENTURION  S  SERVANT. - THE  WIDOW  OF  NAIM  S  SON 


RESTORED  TO  LIFE. - JOHN  SENDS  TWO  OF  HIS  DISCIPLES  TO  CHRIST.- 

MENDED  BY  JESUS  CHRIST. 


-HE  IS  COM- 


We  return  to  the  details  of  the  actions  of  the  Saviour,  in  which 
an  attentive  mind  will  find  no  less  instruction  than  in  his  discourses. 
(a)  “  When  he  was  come  down  from  the  mountain,  great  multitudes 
followed  him  :  and  behold  a  leper  came  to  him,  and  adored  him,  be¬ 
seeching  him,  and  kneeling  down,  said  to  him  :  Lord,  if  thou  wilt, 
thou  canst  make  me  clean.  Jesus  having  compassion  on  him,  stretch¬ 
ed  forth  his  hand,  touched  him,  and  saith  to  him  :  I  will  ;  be  thou 
cleansed.  Immediately  the  leprosy  departed  from  the  man,  and  he 
was  made  clean.  Jesus  forthwith  sent  him  away,  and  he  strictly 


M 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  viii.  1,  2  ;  St.  Mark,  i.  40-45  ;  St.  Luke,  v.  12,  13. 


CHAP.  XIX.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  145 

charged  him:  See  thou  tell  no  man(l).  But  go  show  thyself  to 
the  high  priest  (2),  and  for  a  testimony  unto  them,  offer  the  things 
that  Moses  commanded  (3).  But  he  being  gone  out,  began  to  pub¬ 
lish,  and  to  blaze  abroad  the  word  ;  so  that  Jesus  could  not  openly 
go  into  the  city,  but  was  without  in  desert  places.  But  they  flocked 
to  him  from  all  sides  to  hear  him,  and  to  be  healed  by  him  of  their 
infirmities.  And  Jesus”  withdrew  from  them  from  time  to  time,  and 
“  retired  into  the  desert  and  prayed.” 

Charity  soon  obliged  him  to  leave  it,  and  return  to  those  places 
which  he  avoided  with  so  much  care,  (a)  “  He  entered  \then\  into 
Capharnaum,”  where  he  found  at  his  very  arrival  what  his  kind  fore¬ 
sight  had  come  to  seek.  “  The  servant  of  a  centurion,  who  was  deal* 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vii.  1  ;  St.  Matthew,  viii.  6,  7. 


(1)  We  have  already  stated  in  note  5,  chap,  xii.,  page  92,  the  several  reasons  on  ac¬ 
count  of  which  Jesus  Christ  sometimes  exacted  secrecy  from  those  whom  he  had  miracu¬ 
lously  cured.  There  remains  one  difficulty  with  regard  to  this  man.  It  appears  that  he 
was  cured  in  the  sight  of  a  great  number.  Could  Jesus  Christ  reasonably  expect  thatso 
public  an  action  should  remain  secret  ?  It  is  answered,  that  it  was  not  impossible  that 
the  miracle  may  only  have  been  perceived  by  a  very  small  number.  In  the  crowd  a 
leper  may  not  have  been  recognized  as  being  a  leper.  Had  this  man  been  so  recognized, 
would  the  Jews  have  allowed  him  to  push  himself  so  far  forward,  and  to  penetrate  to  the 
very  feet  of  the  Saviour  ?  If  the  disease  might  not  have  been  perceived,  the  cure  might 
equally  have  escaped  so  great  a  number.  The  cure  being  asked  in  so  few  words,  and 
obtained  by  a  simple  touch,  accompanied  by  two  words,  it  might  only  have  been  remark¬ 
ed  by  the  disciples,  who  apparently  surrounded  the  Saviour,  and  concealed  him,  at  least 
in  part,  from  the  eyes  of  the  multitude. 

(2)  Several  interpreters  have  asserted  that  Jesus  Christ  sent  the  cured  leper  to  show 
himself  to  the  priests,  in  order  that  they  might  not  have  it  in  their  power  to  contest  the 
miracle  after  they  themselves  had  recognized  and  declared  it.  There  is  no  appearance 
of  his  having  had  this  design  in  view.  A  person  might  be  cured  of  the  leprosy  by  natu¬ 
ral  means,  and  the  inspection  of  this  man  might  be  an  assurance  of  his  cure,  but  not  of 
the  miraculous  manner  in  which  it  had  been  wrought.  It  was,  therefore,  out  of  defer¬ 
ence  to  the  law  that  Jesus  Christ  obliged  him  to  take  this  step.  But  had  he  not  also 
violated  the  law  by  touching  this  man  ?  Without  here  animadverting  upon  the  incontes- 
tible  titles  which  dispensed  him  from  the  law,  we  may  say  that,  in  appearing  to  depart 
from  the  letter,  he  had  followed  the  spirit  of  it.  The  law  forbade  to  touch  a  leper,  be¬ 
cause  leprosy,  being  a  highly  contagious  disease,  communicated  itself  by  the  touch.  The 
touch  of  Jesus  Christ,  whilst  salutary  to  the  leper  whom  he  touched,  could  not  be  dan¬ 
gerous  to  himself  ;  and  the  law,  which  forbid  contact  that  might  multiply  lepers,  was 
very  far  from  prohibiting  that  contact  which  diminished  the  number  of  lepers. 

(3)  The  rite  for  the  purification  of  lepers  is  to  be  found  in  the  14th  chapter  of  Leviti¬ 
cus,  from  the  2d  to  the  31st  verse,  inclusive. 

10 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 

to  him,  being  sick,  was  ready  to  die.  When  he  had  heard  of  Jesus, 
he  sent  unto  him  the  ancients  of  the  Jews,  desiring  him  to  come  and 
heal  his  servant,  saying  :  Lord,  my  servant  lieth  at  home  sick,  and  is 
grievously  tormented.  When  they  came  to  Jesus,  they  besought 
him  earnestly,  saying  to  him  :  He  is  worthy  that  thou  should  do 
this  for  him  ;  for  he  loveth  our  nation,  and  he  hath  built  us  a  syna¬ 
gogue.”  The  seeking  to  interest  him  by  this  motive  was,  notwith¬ 
standing  whatever  may  have  since  been  said  upon  the  subject,  ac¬ 
knowledging  Jesus  to  be  a  good  citizen.  His  answer  must  have  con¬ 
firmed  them  in  this  idea.  “  I  will  come,  said  he  to  him,  and  heal 
him.” 

“  He  went  with  them,  and  when  he  was  not  far  from  the  house, 
the  centurion,”  whose  faith  had  received  a  new  impulse  sent  his 
friends  to  him,  saying,  on  his  part,  those  words  which  Jesus  Christ 
has  praised  so  highly,  and  which  the  Church  has  treasured  as  the 
expression  of  the  most  profound  humility  :  (a)  “  Lord,  trouble  not 
thyself,  for  I  am  not  worthy  that  thou  shouldst  enter  under  my  roof. 
For  which  cause  neither  did  I  think  myself  worthy  to  come  to  thee  : 
but  say  the  word,  and  my  servant  shall  be  healed.  For  I  also  am 
a  man  subject  to  authority,  having  under  me  soldiers,  and  I  say  to 
one  :  Go,  and  he  goeth  ;  and  to  another  :  Come,  and  he  cometh  ;  and 
to  my  servant  :  Do  this,  and  he  doeth  it.”  This  was  confessing  that 
for  a  much  stronger  reason,  Jesus,  who  was  master  of  all  things,  and 
who  recognized  no  master  in  the  universe,  had  only  to  speak  to  be 
obeyed  by  all  nature.  “  Jesus,  hearing  this,  marvelled  (4),  and  turn¬ 
ing  about  to  the  multitude  that  followed  him,  said  :  Amen,  I  say  to 
you,  I  have  not  found  so  great  faith,  not  even  in  Israel  (5).  And  I 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vii.  6-10;  St.  Matthew,  viii.  11-13. 


(4)  Admiration,  properly  speaking,  is  excited  by  some  unforeseen  occurrence,  or  by 
some  unknown  and  new  object;  it  therefore  always  supposes  some  want  of  previous 
knowledge,  and  cannot  belong  to  Jesus  Christ,  who  knows  and  is  aware  of  every  thing, 
and  who  could  not  be  ignorant,  particularly  of  the  centurion’s  faith,  which  was  his  own 
work,  since  it  had  been  produced  by  his  grace  ;  but  he  assumed  the  air  and  the  tone  of 
admiration  to  conform  to  our  ways  of  acting,  and  to  teach  us  what  we  should  admire. 

(5)  Several  interpreters  except  the  apostles;  all,  the  Blessed  Virgin  and  Saint  John 
the  Baptist.  Jesus  Christ  speaks  here  of  the  nation  in  general,  without  including  special 
vocations  and  privileged  souls.  A  king  may  say,  speaking  of  one  of  his  subjects,  there 


>\H  )TM' 


CHAP.  XIX.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


say  to  you,  that  many  shall  come  from  the  east  and  the  west,  and 
shall  sit  down  (6)  with  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  in  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  (7),  but  the  children  of  the  kingdom  shall  be  cast  out  into 
exterior  darkness.  There  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth. 

’  [Then]  Jesus  said  to  the  centurion,”  through  the  intervention  of 
those  whom  the  latter  had  deputed  :  “  Go,  and  as  thou  hast  believed, 
so  be  it  done  to  thee  (8)  ;  and  the  servant  was  healed  at  the  same 
hour  ;  and  they  who  were  sent  being  returned  to  the  house,  found' 
the  servant  whole  who  had  been  sick.” 

(а)  “  Jesus  went  [after]  into  a  city  called  Naim  :  there  went  with 
him  his  disciples,  and  a  great  multitude.”  We  have  already  seen 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vii.  11—17. 

is  no  one  in  my  kingdom  who  has  such  affection  for  me  as  this  person,  although  the  king 
be  not  ignorant  that  he  is  much  dearer  to  his  wife  and  to  his  children. 

(б)  The  Latin  word  signifies  supper,  which  was  properly,  the  repast  of  the  ancients. 
Scripture  often  compares  to  it  the  happiness  of  heaven.  What  follows  continues  the 
comparison.  Whilst  strangers  shall  be  sitting  there  with  the  patriarchs,  the  children  of 
the  kingdom,  that  is  to  say,  the  Jews,  who,  by  virtue  of  the  promises,  had  that  right  to 
it  which  children  have  to  sit  at  the  table  of  their  father,  shall  be  driven  from  it  and  cast 
out  into  exterior  darkness.  When  supper  is  going  on,  the  light  is  in  the  apartment,  and 
darkness  is  outside.  There  they  shall  weep  from  grief,  and  shall  gnash  then  teeth  with 
rage,  at  seeing  themselves  excluded  from  the  feast  to  which  they  first  of  all  had  been 
called. 

(7)  By  the  kingdom  of  heaven  some  understand  here  the  Church,  or  faith  in  Jesus 
Christ.  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  have  believed  in  the  Messiah  who  was  to  come,  as 
we  believe  in  the  Messiah  who  is  come  ;  they,  therefore,  were  members  of  the  Church 
as  well  as  the  Gentiles.  Moreover,  we  know  that  the  Gentiles  shall  have  their  place  in 
heaven  with  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob.  The  kingdom,  therefore,  is  both  the  Church 
and  heaven,  the  happiness  of  which  is  represented  by  the  feast,  as  exterior  darkness  is 
the  image  of  hell,  the  punishment  of  which  is  expressed  by  weeping  and  gnashing  of 
teeth. 

(8)  Jesus  Christ  appears  to  speak  to  the  centurion  as  if  he  were  present  ;  and  it  seems, 
according  to  Saint  Matthew,  that  in  reality  he  was  present  in  person.  According  to 
Saint  Luke,  he  did  not  deem  himself  worthy  to  present  himself  before  Jesus  Christ,  and 
he  first  deputes  the  ancients  of  the  Jews,  and  then  his  friends.  This  difference  has  in¬ 
duced  the  belief  that  these  were  two  different  occurrences  ;  but  there  is  a  groundwork 
of  resemblance  which  decides  that  it  is  the  same.  In  both  narratives  we  have  a  centu¬ 
rion,  a  sick  servant,  the  same  discourse  of  the  Master,  and  the  same  prayer  to  Jesus 
Christ  not  to  come  to  his  residence,  the  same  faith,  and  on  the  part  of  Jesus  Christ  the 
same  admiration  which  makes  him  say  that  he  has  not  found  such  great  faith  in  Israel. 
With  all  this,  it  is  still  in  any  one’s  power  to  cavil  at  the  difference  ;  but  at  bottom  it  is 
the  same  narrative,  and  good  sense  will  not  permit  us  to  entertain  a  doubt  on  the  subject. 


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tliat  the  Jews  were  in  the  habit  of  interring  their  dead  outside  of 
the  cities,  whether  to  avoid  some  legal  penalty,  or  whether  this  was 
merely  a  salutary  civic  regulation.  “  When,  therefore ,  he  came  nigh 
to  the  gate  of  the  city  (9),  behold,”  by  one  of  those  seeming  chances 
which  were  never  such  to  the  Saviour,  “  a  dead  man  was  carried  out. 
He  was  the  only  son  of  his  mother,  and  she  a  widow,  and  a  great 
multitude  of  the  city  was  with  her.  Whom,  vrhen  the  Lord  had 
seen,  being  'moved  with  mercy  towards  her,  Weep  not,  he  said  to 
her.  And  he  came  near  and  touched  the  bier.  They  that  carried 
it  stood  still.”  Then  assuming  an  absolute  tone,  which  only  suits 
the  sovereign  arbiter  of  life  and  death:  “Young  man,  said  he,  arise, 
I  say  to  thee.  He  that  was  dead  sat  up,  and  began  to  speak  ;  and 
Jesus  gave  him  to  his  mother.  There  came  a  [j religious ]  fear  upon 
them  all,  and  they  glorified  God,  saying  :  A  great  prophet  is  risen 
up  amongst  us,  and  God  hath  visited  his  people.  This  rumor  of 
him  went  forth  throughout  all  Judea,  and  all  the  country  round 
about.” 

The  miracle  at  last  reached  the  ears  of  John,  who,  though  detain¬ 
ed  in  a  prison,  into  which  he  had  been  cast  by  the  incestuous  Herod, 
was  not  kept  in  such  solitary  confinement  as  to  be  deprived  of  out¬ 
side  communication.  There  he  was  visited,  and  in  pursuance  of  the 
practice  of  saints,  who  perform  all  the  good  they  can,  when  they 
cannot  perform  all  they  might  wish  to  do,  he  announced  the  Mes¬ 
siah,  at  least  to  his  disciples,  and  profited  by  the  occasions  which 
were  offered  to  make  him  known  to  them.  That  which  presented 


(9)  The  meeting  of  the  people  who  followed  Jesus,  with  the  crowd  that  accompanied 
the  funeral,  furnished  spectators  to  this  miracle  ;  and  it  is  certain* that  Jesus  Christ  wish¬ 
ed  to  make  it  public.  The  interpreters  add,  besides,  to  the  gathering  the  people  who 
happened  to  be  waiting  at  the  gate  of  the  city  for  the  legal  decisions.  We  read,  in  point 
of  fact,  in  Scripture,  that  the  Israelites  held  there  a  sort  of  court,  where  causes  were 
decided;  but  did  this  custom  still  exist  in  the  time  of  Jesus  Christ?  The  texts  which 
are  cited  with  reference  to  this  matter  are  not  posterior  to  the  times  of  the  kings  of  Juda. 
In  matters  of  custom,  several  centuries  make  great  changes,  especially  among  a  people 
who,  during  various  transmigrations,  might  have  quitted  many  of  its  usages  to  assume 
those  of  the  nation  in  whose  midst  it  dwelt.  It  sometimes  occurs  to  interpreters  to  give 
thus  as  customs  of  the  time  of  Jesus  Christ  those  for  which  we  find  no  example  but  in 
centuries  much  anterior.  Nothing  is  more  uncertain,  and  we  have  thought  that  it  might 
not  be  useless  to  make  this  remark  here. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST, 


itself  on  tlie  occasion  of  .this  miracle  was  one  too  favorable  to  be 
overlooked  by  him.  (a)  “  When,  therefore ,  he  had  heard  in  prison,” 
the  rigor  of  which  this  recital  had  made  him  forget  (“  his  disciples 
told  him  of  all  these  things),  he  called  to  him  two  of  his  disciples, 
and  sent  them  to  Jesus,  saying  :  Art  thou  he  that  art  to  come,  or 
look  we  for  another  ?”  It  is  not  difficult  to  penetrate  his  design. 
John  could  not  be  ignorant  what  Jesus  was,  he  who  made  him  known 
to  others,  nor  could  he  begin  to  doubt  if  he  were  the  Messiah  when 
he  heard  of  him  working  miracles,  after  having  recognized  him  be¬ 
fore  he  had  worked  any.  But  his  disciples,  always  too  much  pre 
possessed  in  favor  of  their  master,  still  doubted  whether  Jesus  was 
preferable  to  him.  John  wished  them  to  see  him  with  their  own 
eyes,  the  evidence  of  which  would  complete  their  conviction,  al¬ 
though,  with  regard  to  them,  it  should  not  have  greater  certainty 
than  the  testimony  they  had  heard  from  his  lips.  The  two  depu¬ 
ties,  who  apparently  were  some  of  the  most  incredulous,  “  when  they 
were  come  unto  Jesus:  John  the  Baptist,”  said  they,  “hath  sent  us 
to  thee,  saying:  Art  thou  he  that  art  to  come,  or  look  we  for  an¬ 
other?”  Before  replying  to  them,  Jesus  did  what  John  had  fore¬ 
seen.  “In  that  same  hour  he  cured  many  of  their  diseases  and 
hurts,”  with  which  they  were  afflicted,  “  and  of  evil  spirits,  which 
possessed  them  :  to  many  that  were  blind  he  gave  sight.  Then , 
making  answer,  he  said  to  John’s  disciples  :  Go,  relate  to  John  what 
you  have  heard  and  seen:  the  blind  see,  the  lame  walk  (10),  the 
lepers  are  made  clean,  the  deaf  hear,  the  dead  rise  again,  to  the  poor 
the  Gospel  is  preached  (11):  blessed  is  he  whosoever  shall  not  be 
scandalized  in  me.” 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xi.  2  ;  St.  Luke,  vii.  18-23. 


fllpf 


(10)  We  read  in  the  35th  chapter  of  Isaiah,  that  in  the  time  of  the  Messiah  the  eyes 
of  the  blind  shall  be  opened,  and  the  ears  of  the  deaf  shall  be  unclosed  ;  that  then  the 
lame  man  shall  leap  as  a  hart,  and  the  tongue  of  the  dumb  shall  be  free.  Jesus  Christ 
manifestly  makes  allusion  to  these  words,  which  allusion  furnishes  the  disciples  of  J ohn 
with  a  double  proof — that  of  his  miracles,  and  the  accomplishment  of  the  prophecies  re¬ 
garding  him. 

(11)  He  who  would  preach  only  for  the  rich,  would  prove  nothing,  for  he  would  not 
even  prove  that  he  is  persuaded  of  the  truths  that  he  preaches.  So  disinterested  a  char¬ 
ity  becomes  a  proof  of  religion,  comparable  to  the  cure  of  the  blind  and  the  resurrection 


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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  1. 


This  answer  is  addressed  to  John,  because  the  demand  was  made 
in  his  name  ;  but,  at  bottom,  it  was  for  the  disciples  it  was  made. 
The  conclusion  of  the  answer  completely  demonstrated  this.  Happy, 
in  point  of  fact,  whosoever  does  not  become  scandalized  in  Jesus 
Christ  !  The  greatest  misfortune  of  the  Jews  was  their  being  scan¬ 
dalized  in  him.  But  this  had  a  particular  application  to  the  disci¬ 
ples  of  John,  who  had  taken  scandal,  because  Jesus  Christ  did  not 
prescribe  to  his  disciples  a  kind  of  life  as  austere  as  what  they  prac¬ 
tised  themselves  ;  and  we  have  not  forgotten  that  they  combined 
with  the  Pharisees  to  make  this  a  cause  of  reproach  against  him. 
Here,  then,  they  found  all  that  they  needed — proof  of  the  mission 
of  Jesus  Christ  by  miracles,  to  which  he  condescended  to  let  them 
be  ocular  witnesses,  and,  moreover,  a  preservative  against  every 
thing  that  could  alienate  them  from  his  person.  Neither  one  nor 
the  other  was  necessary  to  John  the  Baptist.  Wherefore  the  Sa¬ 
viour  had  nothing  to  give  him  but  eulogy,  the  most  magnificent 
that  ever  issued  from  his  sacred  lips,  but  of  which  no  person  could 
have  been  less  worthy  than  the  precursor,  if,  after  having  been  bless¬ 
ed  beforehand  with  so  many  lights,  he  had  been  capable  of  doubt¬ 
ing,  for  one  instant,  that  Jesus  was  truly  the  Messiah. 

For  whether  Jesus  Christ  wished  only  to  praise  John,  or  whether 
his  design  was  to  hinder,  at  the  same  time,  those  who  had  witnessed 
the  deputation  from  believing  that  John  vacillated  in  the  testimony 
he  had  rendered  to  him,  (a)  “  when  the  messengers  were  departed, 
Jesus  began  to  speak  concerning  John,”  and  beginning  by  praise  of 
his  unshakable  firmness,  “  he  began  to  say  to  the  multitudes”  who 
listened  to  him  :  “  What  went  you  out  to  the  desert  to  see  ?  a  reed 
shaken  with  the  wind  ?”  Could  a  soul  so  superficial,  and  a  charac¬ 
ter  so  frivolous,  excite  to  such  a  pitch  your  curiosity  and  your  admi¬ 
ration  ?  “  But  what  went  you  out  to  see  ?  a  man  clothed  in  soft 

garments  ?  Behold,  they  that  are  clothed  in  costly  apparel  and  live 
delicately  are  in  the  houses  of  kings.”  Another  circumstance  which 
gives  weight  to  the  testimony  of  John.  A  man  devoted  to  such  an 

(«)  St.  Luke,  vii.  24-26,  28;  St.  Matthew,  xi.  10-14. 


of  the  dead.  Would  to  Heaven  that  it  had  no  other  point  of  resemblance  to  these  prodi¬ 
gies — that  of  being  as  rare  ! 


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CH  XP.  XIX.  J 

austere  course  of  life,  having  no  wants,  liad  no  interest  in  this  world. 
He  could  not,  therefore,  be  suspected  of  flattery  ;  for  what  profit 
could  he  have  derived  from  it  ?  “  But,”  in  short,  adds  the  Saviour, 

“  what,  then,  went  you  out  to  see  ?  a  prophet  ?  Yea,  I  say  to  you, 
and  more  than  a  prophet.  This  is  he  of  whom  it  is  written  :  Behold, 
I  send  my  angel  before  thy  face,  who  shall  prepare  the  way  before 
thee  (12).  For,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  amongst  those  that  are  born  of 
women,  there  is  not  a  greater  than  John  the  Baptist  (13).  Yet  he 
that  is  lesser  in  the  kingdom  of  God  is  greater  than  he.”  Such  is 
the  superiority  of  the  law  which  commences  at  the  close  of  the  ex¬ 
isting  law,  that  the  first  of  the  one,  in  the  order  of  the  ministry,  is 
the  last  of  the  other.  For  here  a  new  order  of  things  is  actually 
being  established,  and  John,  placed  between  the  two  Testaments, 
terminates  the  ancient,  and  announces  the  new.  “  From  the  days 
of  the  preaching  of  John  the  Baptist  until  now,  the  kingdom  of  heav¬ 
en,”  previously  proposed  to  one  nation  alone,  “  is  open  to  all  people.” 
Let  the  Jews  cease  to  boast  of  the  rights  to  which  they  lay  claim. 
This  is  not  an  inheritance  in  which  children  must  succeed  to  their 


(12)  God  said,  in  Malachy,  chapter  iii.  :  Behold,  I  send  my  angel,  and  he  shall  prepare 
the  way  before  my  face.  In  the  prophet  it  is  the  Son  who  speaks  ;  in  the  evangelist  it 
is  the  Son  who  makes  the  Father  speak;  in  both  cases  it  is  always  God,  and  the  same 
God  ;  and  the  difference  of  the  two  texts  shows  the  distinction  and  the  equality  of  the 
persons.  This  is  the  first  proof  which  Jesus  Christ  gives  of  the  superiority  of  John  over 
all  the  other  prophets  ;  for  he  is  the  only  prophet  who  has  been  foretold.  He  is  called 
angel,  which  signifies  sent,  on  account  of  his  office,  and  also  on  account  of  his  life,  more 
angelical  than  human,  which,  as  Eusebius  reports  (Demon.  Evang.,  lib.  ix.,  chap.  5), 
made  some  believe  that,  in  point  of  fact,  and  by  nature,  John  was  not  a  man,  but  an  an¬ 
gel.  No  doubt  they  tkere  deceived  ;  but  then  it  was  a  matter  in  which  they  might 
easily  be  so. 

(13)  Saint  Matthew  only  says  :  There  has  not  arisen  among  them  that  are  born  of  wo- 
men  a  greater  than  John  the  Baptist.  What  he  says  before  and  after  lets  us  easily  see 
that  it  is  with  reference  to  prophecy  that  John  is  preferred  to  all  that  had  appeared  up 
to  that  time.  Saint  Luke,  who  says  plainly  that  there  is  no  greater  prophet  than  John 
the  Baptist,  does  not  permit  us  to  doubt  any  longer  of  this  being  its  literal  sense.  The 
text  of  Saint  Matthew  has  made  some  believe  that  Saint  John  was  the  greatest  saint,  as 
well  in  the  Old  as  in  the  New  Testament  ;  or,  to  speak  with  more  precision,  that  none 
was  more  saintly  than  he  ;  for  the  text  does  not  exclude  equality.  This  sense,  although 
not  literal,  should  always  be  respected,  because  it  has  been  always  followed  by  antiquity, 
and  the  Church  seems  to  have  adopted  it  in  these  words,  which  it  sings  in  honor  of  the 
holy  precursor  :  No  one  in  this  vast  universe  has  been  more  holy  than  Saint  J ohn. 


üüi.: 


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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 


fathers  ;  it  is  a  conquest  reserved  for  whosoever  shall  have  the  cour¬ 
age  to  carry  it  sword  in  hand  :  it  suffereth  violence,  and  the  “  violent 
bear  it  away.  For  all  the  prophets  and  the  law  prophesied  until 
John.”  But  prophecy  ceases  when  accomplishment  begins.  True, 
you  think  that  Elias  should  be  the  precursor  of  the  Messiah  ;  but 
“  if  you  will  receive  it,  John  is  Elias  that  is  to  come.  He  who  hath 
ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear  (14).” 

Informed  of  what  John  the  Baptist  really  was,  and  of  the  inter¬ 
esting  object  of  his  mission,  (ct)  “  the  people  and  the  publicans,  be¬ 
ing  baptized  with  John’s  baptism,  hearing,  justified  God,”  and  recog¬ 
nized  his  justice  in  the  means  by  which  he  attained  his  ends.  “But 
the  Pharisees  and  the  lawyers,  being  not  baptized  by  John  (15), 
despised  the  council  of  God  against  themselves,”  and  their  inflexible 
stubbornness  in  rejecting  all  the  means  which  God  had  set  in  mo¬ 
tion  to  gain  them  over,  drew  down  upon  them  this  just  reproach  : 

“  Whereunto,  said  he,  shall  I  liken  the  men  of  this  generation,  and 

♦ 

(a)  St.  Luke,  vii.  29-35. 


(14)  Jesus  Christ  sometimes  makes  use  of  this  conclusion  when  his  words  have  a  mys¬ 
terious  and  profound  sense,  or  when  they  propose  a  sublime  perfection.  The  words 
which  he  has  just  spoken  are  of  the  first  kind  ;  and  we  do  not  flatter  ourselves  that  the 
explanation  inserted  in  the  text  removes  all  the  difficulties  :  here  is  an  abstract  thereof, 
which  may  throw  further  light  upon  it.  John  is  declared  to  be  the  greatest  of  the  chil¬ 
dren  of  women,  not  for  his  sanctity,  if  we  confine  ourselves  to  the  literal  sense,  but  for 
his  quality  of  immediate  precursor  of  the  Messiah,  a  quality  which  raises  him  above  all 
the  prophets.  But  the  Church,  which  the  Messiah  came  to  found,  is  so  superior  to  the 
synagogue,  that  the  lowest  of  its  ministers  is,  by  his  ministry,  superior  to  John  himself. 
This  Church  is  actually  established,  and  is  designated  by  the  most  magnificent  characters, 
by  its  universality,  which  embraces  all  people,  called  from  the  four  parts  of  the  world  to 
enter  into  it  as  into  a  conquered  country.  The  preaching  of  John  was  given  to  announce 
its  establishment,  and  the  cessation  of  the  law  and  of  the  prophets,  which  only  served  as 
preparatives  to  it.  The  Jews  were  under  the  persuasion  that  Elias  should  precede  the 
Messiah.  J ohn  has  the  spirit  and  virtue  of  Elias,  and  in  this  matter  their  expectation  is 
already  fulfilled,  -without  reference  as  to  what  shall  happen  at  the  second  coming,  when 
every  one  agrees  that  the  Messiah  shall  be  preceded  by  Elias  in  person. 

(15)  It  was  through  the  baptism  of  John  that  God  wished  to  bring  them  to  the  faith. 
The  contempt  of  the  smallest  grace  made  them  miss  the  decisive  grace  of  salvation.  The 
chain,  being  once  broken,  was  never  more  renewed  for  them.  Let  us  profit  from  every 
thing,  since  the  greatest  things  are  often  hinged  upon  the  smallest,  and  that  it  is 
not  impossible  that  the  very  thing  upon  which  all  depends  seems  to  dwindle  to  a  mere 
trifle. 


fy/L 


vK'T 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 

to  what  are  they  like  ?  They  are  like  to  children  (16)  sitting  in  the 
market-place,  speaking  one  to  another,  and  saying  :  We  have  piped 
to  you,  and  you  have  not  danced  ;  we  have  mourned,  and  you  have 
not  wept.  For  John  the  Baptist  came,  neither  eating  bread  nor 
drinking  wine  ;  and  you  say  :  He  hath  a  devil.  The  Son  of  man  is 
come  eating  and  drinking  ;  and  you  say  :  Behold  a  man  that  is  a 
glutton  and  a  drinker  of  wine,  a  friend  of  publicans  and  sinners. 
Thus  wisdom  is  justified  by  all  her  children,”  not  merely  by  those 
who  have  been  docile  to  1  er  voice,  but  also  by  the  rebellious.  Did 
the  latter  wish  for  an  austere  life  ?  They  found  that  in  Saint  John 
the  Baptist.  Did  they  like  a  common  life  ?  Such  was  the  life  of 
Jesus  Christ.  Take  the  two  opposite  kinds  of  life  :  criticism  of  the 
one  was  apology  for  the  other,  and  meant  respectively  preference  of 
one  to  the  other.  In  this  state  of  things,  to  be  scandalized  at  both 
one  and  the  other,  and  not  submit  to  either,  is  a  declaration  of  pur¬ 
pose  to  be  scandalized  at  every  thing,  and  submit  to  nothing.  As 
regarded  God,  the  means  did  not  fail,  but  they  became  useless,  by 
the  obstinacy  of  the  incredulous,  and  the  reasons  which  the  latter 
advanced  to  elude  them  were  at  the  same  time  the  apology  of  God’s 
conduct,  and  the  condemnation  of  their  own  incredulity.  Let  us 
not  be  surprised  that  they  should  be  included  under  the  common 
denomination  of  children  of  wisdom.  All  the  Jews  had  God  for 
their  legislator,  and  his  wisdom  for  their  director  ;  and,  though  for 
the  most  part  bad  disciples,  they  were  not  the  less  under  her  disci¬ 
pline  ;  and  in  this  sense  all  might  be  called  her  children. 


(16)  It  is  not  the  incredulous  Jews,  it  is  Jesus  Christ  and  Saint  John  who  are  com¬ 
pared  to  children  who  sing  and  weep  ;  and  unbelievers  are  compared  to  children  whom 
others  cannot  induce  by  any  means  to  share  in  their  joys  or  sorrows.  This  mode  of 
comparison  is  not  unexampled  in  Scripture,  which  often  compares  the  whole  to  the 
whole,  leaving  to  the  attentive  reader  the  care  of  distributing  the  different  members  of 
the  comparison. 


iris  11 

WHS 

Ï 

(o  a  a  aaoo  a  ooj 

154 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE  HOLY  WOMEN  WHO  FOLLOWED  JESUS  CHRIST. - HIS  FRIENDS  WISH  TO  SEIZE 

HIS  PERSON. - HEALING  OF  A  BLIND  AND  DUMB  MAN  WHO  WAS  POSSESSED. - 

BLASPHEMY  OF  THE  PHARISEES. — SIN  AGAINST  THE  HOLY  GHOST. 

Meantime  “  Jesus,”  whose  zeal  could  neither  be  blunted  by  con¬ 
tradiction,  nor  exhausted  by  toil,  (a)  “  travelled  through  the  cities 
and  towns,  preaching  and  evangelizing  the  kingdom  of  God.  The 
twelve,”  to  whom  his  examples  were  to  serve  as  lessons  for  the  same 
ministry,  “  were  with  him.  And  [there  also  were]  with  him  certain 
women  (1)  who  had  been  healed  of  evil  spirits  and  infirmities,  viz.  : 
Mary,  who  is  called  Magdalen  (2),  out  of  whom  seven  devils  were 

(a)  St.  Luke,  viii.  1,  2. 


(1)  Perhaps  we  may  be  surprised  that  Jesus  Christ  should  have  suffered  women  in 
his  retinue.  It  was,  says  Saint  Jerome,  an  established  usage  among  the  Jews,  that  wo¬ 
men,  and  especially  widows,  should  follow  their  religious  teachers,  and  administer  to 
their  wants.  The  custom  took  away  the  scandal,  and  assuredly  the  Jews  took  no  scandal 
at  Jesus  on  this  account,  since  they  never  made  any  reproach  to  him  concerning  it, 
whilst  they  calumniated  him  upon  every  thing  else.  The  apostles  conducted  themselves 
in  the  same  way  as  their  divine  Master.  Saint  Paul  decides  positively  that  they  had  a 
right  to  do  so.  If  he  did  not  avail  himself  of  this  right,  it  was  out  of  precaution  for  the 
Gentiles,  who,  not  being  aware  of  this  usage,  might  thereupon  take  scandal.  The  her¬ 
etics  have  much  too  far  abused  it  ;  and  you  will  find  very  few  sects,  indeed,  who  have 
failed  to  avail  themselves  of  it.  We,  therefore,  have  a  right  to  this  usage  founded  on 
the  example  of  Jesus  Christ.  We  have,  in  the  example  of  Saint  Paul,  reserve,  if, 
when  availing  ourselves  of  the  right,  there  be  apprehensions  lest  people  should  be  scan¬ 
dalized  ;  and  in  heretics,  we  have  the  abuse  ;  the  consequences  of  which  should  make 
those  persons  tremble  who  are  so  badly  advised  as  to  attach  themselves  to  these  false 
teachers..  For,  if  she  who  serves  the  apostle  shall  have  the  same  reward  as  he,  the  pun¬ 
ishment  of  the  heresiarch  shall  therefore  be  reserved  for  her  who  shall  have  served  the 
heresiarch. 

(2)  The  reader  has  seen,  page  104,  Chap.  XIV.,  the  reasons  on  account  of  which  we  do 
not  distinguish  her  from  the  penitent  woman,  nor  from  Mary,  the  sister  of  Lazarus,  and 
of  Martha.  Some  interpreters  understand  by  the  seven  demons,  the  vices  from  which 
she  was  delivered.  Others  hold  that  she  really  was  possessed  by  seven  demons,  whom 
Jesus  Christ  expelled  from  her  body  by  the  virtue  of  his  word.  Those  who  declare 
themselves  to  be  of  this  opinion  should  add,  that  this  deliverance  preceded,  and  appa¬ 
rently  occasioned  the  conversion  of  Magdalen. 


CHAP.  XX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


155 


gone  fortli  ;  Joanna,  tlie  wife  of  Cliusa,  Herod’s  steward  ;  Susanna, 
and  many  others  who  ministered  unto  him  of  their  substance.” 
They,  in  this  way,  all  contributed  their  part  to  the  apostolical  func¬ 
tions,  and  deserved  to  share  the  recompense  thereof  ;  for  the  sup¬ 
porting  an  apostle  is  preaching  by  his  mouth,  since  he  could  not 
preach  if  he  were  diverted  from  it  by  the  care  of  procuring  the 
necessaries  of  life. 

During  the  course  of  this  mission,  those  who  accompanied  him 
(a)  “  came  to  a  house”  to  rest  themselves  ;  but  “  the  multitude  com- 
eth  together  again,  so  that  they  could  not  so  much  as  eat  bread.” 
Meantime  reports  of  what  he  had  done  were  spreading  throughout 
the  country.  “  When  his  friends  had  heard  of  it,  they  went  out  to 
lay  hold  on  him  (3)  ;  for  they  said  :  He  is  become  mad.”  These 
good  people  could  not  persuade  themselves  that  he  whom  they  had 
seen  reared  amongst  them,  and  like  one  of  themselves,  could  be  a 
prophet  and  a  worker  of  miracles.  They  concluded,  therefore,  from 
the  rumors  afloat  about  him,  that  he  had  lost  his  wits,  and  thought 
they  performed  the  office  of  good  friends  by  seizing  his  person  ;  for 
it  does  not  appear  to  have  been  a  malicious  act  on  their  part.  This 
was  that  weakness  usual  to  persons  of  limited  understanding,  and 
who,  having  received  no  education,  are  incapable  of  believing  any 
thing  beyond  the  sphere  of  their  sight,  or  the  range  of  their  fancy. 

(a)  St.  Mark,  iii.  20,  21. 


(3)  There  is  something  here  which  creates  embarrassment,  viz.  :  it  seems,  by  the 
sequel,  that  Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesus,  was  with  them.  To  believe  that  she  had  the 
same  idea  of  Jesus  which  they  had  conceived,  and  that  she  shared  in  the  design  of  seiz¬ 
ing  him,  is  a  thing  the  very  thought  of  which  strikes  us  with  horror  ;  but  it  is  not  diffi¬ 
cult  to  exculpate  her  from  this.  1st.  Although  it  may  be  probable  enough,  jmt  it  is 
not  certain  that  this  is  the  same  occasion  whereon  Jesus  got  notice  that  his  mother  and 
his  brothers  were  waiting  for  him  at  the  door  ;  it  is  not,  therefore,  certain  that  Mary 
was  to  be  found  present  upon  this  occasion,  because  this  only  could  occur  in  the  case  of 
its  being  certain  that  the  fact  occurred  on  one  and  the  same  occasion.  2d.  Supposing 
even  that  it  were  the  same  occasion,  Mary  might  have  been  ignorant  of  their  design,  and 
have  come  with  them,  impelled  by  the  desire  of  seeing  her  son.  Perhaps  they  had  even 
induced  her  to  join  with  them,  hoping  that  the  son,  assured  by  the  presence  of  his 
mother,  would  let  himself  the  more  easily  be  drawn  into  the  snare  which  they  wished  to 
lay  for  him.  Whatever  may  be  the  case,  we  should  reject  as  impiety  the  very  thought, 
that  Mary  could  have  towards  her  son  the  idea  which  his  relatives  entertained,  and  that 
she  took  part  in  their  plotting. 


156 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

Now,  they  had  not  seen  the  miracles  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  they  could 
not  imagine  that  he  whom  they  had  seen  in  the  lowliness  of  infancy, 
and  in  the  obscurity  of  a  poor  workshop,  was  become  suddenly  such 
an  extraordinary  man.  Perhaps  that  at  the  same  time  some  free¬ 
thinker  passed  the  same  judgment  upon  him  ;  for  extrefnes  meet  : 
and  as  the  simple  believe  nothing  beyond  what  they  see,  the  subtle 
admit  nothing  beyond  what  they  understand,  as  if  the  mind’s  eye 
had  not  limits  as  certain,  and  marked  as  clearly,  as  the  sight  of  the 
body.  Wherefore,  to  measure  the  extent  of  possibility  by  the  nar¬ 
row  sphere  of  our  knowledge,  is,  in  both  cases,  the  cause  of  error  ; 
and  they  are  as  like  each  other  in  their  principle  as  in  their  conse¬ 
quences.  Lastly,  this  low  idea  entertained  of  Jesus  Christ  by  his 
friends,  is  a  convincing  assurance  to  us,  that  during  the  thirty  years 
he  had  passed  at  Nazareth,  he  allowed  nothing  to  escape  him  which 
could  raise  the  suspicion  of  what  he  was,  and  that  the  only  virtues 
perceptible  in  him  were  only  those  suitable  to  his  age  and  condition 
— virtues  ever  estimable,  and  scarcely  noticed  by  men,  who  only  re 
mark  and  esteem  virtue  of  a  wonderful  and  dazzling  cast.  Yet 
these  virtues  of  each  condition  and"  age,  when  they  are  practised 
with  inviolable  fidelity,  and  from  sublime  motives,  are  virtues  which 
command  the  approbation  of  God  and  the  admiration  of  his  angels. 
For,  was  there  ever  an  object  so  worthy  of  both  as  this  young  arti¬ 
san,  unknown  to  all  the  world,  and,  after  him,  as  Mary,  his  holy 
mother,  shut  up  in  the  same  cabin,  covered  with  the  same  obscu¬ 
rity,  and  similarly  occupied  in  manual  labor,  of  no  consideration  in 
the  eyes  of  men  ? 

Still,  it  does  not  appear  that  the  Saviour’s  friends  pushed  any  fur¬ 
ther  the  project  they  had  formed  against  his  person;  whether  they 
were  enlightened  by  his  grace,  or  arrested  by  his  power,  or  whéther 
he  escaped  from  them,  by  rendering  himself  invisible  to  their  eyes, 
as  he  did  on  another  occasion.  However  the  matter  occurred,  we  do 
not  read  that  he  permitted  them  to  lay  hands  upon  him,  nor  did  he 
discontinue  those  practices  which  had  given  rise  to  their  strange 
mistake.  For  it  was  (a)  “  then  was  offered  to  him  one  possessed 
with  a  devil,  blind  and  dumb,  and  he  healed  him,  so  that  he 
spoke  and  saw.  All  the  multitudes  were  amazed,  and  said  :  Is  not 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  22-24;  St.  Mark,  iii.  22  ;  St.  Luke,  xi.  15,  16. 


- 


Il\ 


N* 


this  the  son  of  David  (4)  ?  The  Scribes,  who  were  come  down 
from  J erusalem,  and  the  Pharisees,  hearing  it,  said  :  He  hath  Beel¬ 
zebub,  and  he  casteth  out  devils  by  Beelzebub,  the  prince  of  devils. 
Others,  tempting,  ashed  of  him  a  sign  from  heaven.” 

We  recognize  in  these  traits,  in  addition  to  the  dark  thoughts  of 
envy,  incredulity  and  its  pitiful  subterfuges.  The  people,  on  the 
contrary,  who  had  neither  passions  nor  predilections,  had  judged 
correctly  that  the  author  of  the  great  prodigy  they  had  witnessed 
must  needs  be  the  Messiah.  For  the  people  never  err,  when  they 
follow  that  upright  sense  which  is  common  to  all  men,  and  which  is 
the  more  accurate  and  sure,  inasmuch  as  it  is  the  less  mixed  up  with 
science  and  subtlety.  But  if  this  has  given  ground  for  the  assertion 
that  the  voice  of  the  people  is  the  voice  of  God,  signifying  that  the 
people’s  judgments  participate,  in  some  manner,  in  the  infallibility 
of  the  divine  judgments,  still  it  is  far  from  being  as  unchangeable. 
Nothing  is  so  easy  as  to  make  the  people  change  their  ideas  and 
sentiments,  and  to  make  them  pass  in  a  moment  from  admiration  to 
contempt,  and  from  love  to  hatred.  And  this  was  precisely  what 
the  envious  and  the  incredulous  actually  aimed  at  bringing  about. 
Scattered  through  the  crowd,  they  had  spread  the  atrocious  cal¬ 
umny  which  we  have  just  heard,  when  the  Saviour,  in  order  to 
caution  that  weak  and  inconstant  multitude  against  these  base  de¬ 
signs,  silenced  the  tongues  of  the  calumniators,  by  making  them 
feel  the  absurdity  of  the  reproach  they  cast  upon  him,  and  the  enor¬ 
mity  of  the  crime  they  thereby  committed. 

( a )  “  Knowing  then  their  thoughts,”  and  aware  of  their  pernicious 
designs,  “  and  after  he  had  called  them  together,  Jesus  said  to  them 
in  parables  :  How  can  Satan  cast  out  Satan  ?  Every  kingdom  di¬ 
vided  against  itself  shall  be  brought  to  desolation  ;  and  if  a  house 
be  divided  against  itself,  that  house  cannot  stand.  And  if  Satan 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xi.  17,  18;  St.  Mark,  iii.  23-26;  St.  Matthew,  xii.  25,  26. 


(4)  By  excellence,  the  Son  of  David,  that  is  to  say,  the  Messiah.  This  name  had 
been  consecrated  by  tradition  with  that  signification.  But  was  not  the  crowd  who  spoke 
thus  composed  of  Gentiles  ?  We  should  be  driven  to  say  so,  if  it  were  true,  as  some 
have  dreamed,  that  Gentiles  alone  gave  to  the  Messiah  the  title  of  Son  of  David. 


»... 
i  to-. 


£ 


158  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I. 

cast  out  Satan,  he  is  divided  against  himself.  How,  then,  shall  his 
kingdom  stand  ?  He  cannot  stand,  but  hath  an  end.” 

Although  the  irreconcilable  enemies  of  union,  still  do  the  demons 
unite  to  divide  and  to  injure.  They  are  wise  enough  to  see  that, 
unless  there  be  a  certain  confederacy  amongst  them,  none  of  their 
designs  can  succeed.  This  union  is  that  of  cabal  and  faction.  Too 
faithfully  imitated  by  the  wicked,  it  renders  them  but  too  effective 
for  mischief  ;  whilst  unhappy  divisions  often  cause  the  failure  of  the 
enterprises  which  the  virtuous  would  wish  to  undertake  for  good 
desmus.  But,  although  this  first  answer  of  the  Saviour  silenced  his 
enemies,  he  yet  adds  a  second,  which  exhibits  to  the  Pharisees  their 
condemnation,  in  their  own  sentiments  and  in  their  conduct.  For, 
in  all  the  cases  that  ever  arose  in  which  demons  were  expelled,  ex¬ 
cept  when  expelled  by  Jesus  Christ,  the  Pharisees  constantly  attrib¬ 
uted  the  act  to  divine  power,  and  it  never  occurred  to  their  minds 
that  such  acts  could  be  the  result  of  a  compact  with  Satan.  To  ac¬ 
cuse  Jesus  Christ  alone  of  this,  was,  therefore,  showing  upon  their 
part  the  most  glaring,  and,  at  the  same  time,  the  most  iniquitous 
partiality.  Such  is  the  sequel  deducible  from  these  words. 

(a)  “You  say  that  through  Beelzebub  I  cast  out  devils.  How,  if 
I  cast  out  devils  by  Beelzebub,  by  whom  do  your  children  cast  them 
out  (5)  ?”  You  have  -always  acknowledged  that  it  was  in  the  name 
of  God.  “  Therefore  they  shall  be  your  judges.”  For,  what  shall 
you  answer  to  the  reproach  they  will  make  you  for  having  stigma- 

fa)  St.  Luke,  xi.  18. 


(5)  An  expression  used  in  Scripture,  when  intending  to  say  those  of  your  nation.  The 
ancients  understood  it  with  reference  to  the  apostles,  who  expelled  the  demons  by  the 
power  which  Jesus  Christ  had  given  to  them.  The  majority  of  modern  interpreters  un¬ 
derstand  it  with  reference  to  the  Jewish  exorcists,  who  employed  with  success  against 
the  demons  certain  formulas  of  conjuration  which  Solomon  had  taught  them,  as  Josephus 
reports,  Book  viii.  of  Jewish  Antiquities,  chapter  ii.  If  the  first  opinion  has  in  its  favor 
the  most  respectable  authorities,  the  second  has  more  apparent  reasons.  1st.  It  appears 
that  Jesus  Christ  had  not  yet  given  to  his  apostles  the  power  of  expelling  demons,  or  at 
least  that  the  apostles  had  not  as  yet  exercised  it.  2d.  Supposing  that  they  had  then 
already  exercised  it,  this  power  being  the  same  at  bottom  as  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
Pharisees  might  have  equally  attributed  it  to  the  prince  of  demons,  as  Jesus  Christ  even 
gives  us  to  understand  by  these  words  :  If  they  have  called  the  good  man  of  the  house 
Beelzebub,  how  much  more  them  of  his  household! — (Matthew,  x.) 


(6)  It  is  not  blasphemy  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  considered  as  the  third  person  of  the 
adorable  Trinity,  but  against  the  Spirit  of  God,  author  of  the  wonders  which  Jesus  Christ 


CHAP.  XX. J  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  159 

tized  as  a  diabolical  operation  in  me  what  you  regard  in  them  as  a 
divine  work  ?  (a)  “  But,”  adds  Jesus  Christ,  “  if  I,  by  the  finger  of 

God,  cast  out  devils,  doubtless  the  kingdom  of  God  is  come  upon 
you.” 

This  was  the  main  truth  which  Saint  John  had  announced  at  the 
outset,  which  Jesus  Christ  never  ceased  repeating,  which  he  had 
proved  by  all  the  miracles  he  had  hitherto  worked,  but  of  which 
the  expulsion  of  demons  was  in  some  sort  a  more  direct  proof.  For 
this  was  a  direct  proof  of  the  destruction  of  the  kingdom  of  Satan, 
which  kingdom  could  only  be  annihilated  by  the  coming  of  the 
kingdom  of  God, — a  truth  which  the  Saviour  makes  manifest  by 
this  comparison  :  “  How  can  any  one  enter  into  the  house  of  the 
strong,  and  rifle  his  goods,  unless  he  first  bind  the  strong  ?  When 
a  strong  man  armed  keepeth  his  court,  those  things  are  in  peace 
which  he  possesseth.  But  if  a  stronger  than  he  come  upon  him  and 
overcome  him,  he  will  take  away  all  his  armor  in  which  he  trusted, 
and  will  distribute  his  spoils.” 

These  spoils  wrested  from  Satan  are  the  men  whose  arms  and 
bodies  he  possessed,  and  who  are  delivered  from  his  tyranny  by  the 
power  of  Jesus  Christ.  Wherefore,  his  defeat  is  certain,  and  the 
conqueror  can  no  longer  be  mistaken. 

And  this  is  so  evident,  that  it  would  be  criminal  to  act  with  in¬ 
difference  or  neutrality  towards  Jesus  Christ,  as  he  assures  us  by 
these  words  which  he  distinctly  adds  :  (b)  “  He  that  is  not  with  me, 
is  against  me  ;  and  he  that  gathereth  not  with  me,  scattereth.” 
Hence,  what  must  be  their  crime  who  declare  against  him  with 
that  excess  of  malignity  and  fury  which  goes  to  the  extent  of  at¬ 
tributing  to  the  infernal  spirits  the  works  of  his  almighty  power  ? 
And  should  we  be  astonished  at  his  immediately  drawing  this 
dreadful  conclusion  ?  “  Therefore,  I  say  to  you,  every  sin  and  blas¬ 

phemy  shall  be  forgiven  men  ;  but  the  blasphemy  of  the  Spirit  shall 
not  be  forgiven  (6).  And  whoever  shall  speak  a  word  against  the 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  28,  29  ;  St.  Luke,  ( b )  St.  Matthew,  xii.  30-32  ; 

xi  21,  22.  St.  Mark,  iii.  29. 


160 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

Son  of  man,  it  shall  be  forgiven  him  ;  but  he  that  shall  speak  against 
the  Holy  Ghost,  it  shall  not  be  forgiven  him,  neither  in  this  world 
nor  in  the  world  to  come  (7).  He  shall  never  have  forgiveness,  and 
shall  be  guilty  of  an  everlasting  sin.”  He  spoke  thus  to  them,  “  be¬ 
cause  they  said  :  He  hath  an  unclean  spirit  (8).” 


operated.  Were  we  to  understand  it  in  tlie  first  sense,  we  should  believe  that  the  Eu- 
nomians,  who  denied  the  divinity  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  were  the  most  hardened  of  all  sin¬ 
ners.  Yet,  Saint  Chrysostom  says  that  they  were  seen  returning  in  crowds  to  the  bo¬ 
som  of  the  Church.  By  blasphemy  against  the  Son  of  man,  the  interpreters  understand 
commonly  the  reproachful  calumnies  of  the  Jews,  which  only  affected  the  humanity  of 
the  Saviour,  for  example,  when  they  said  that  he  loved  good  cheer  and  wine,  that  he 
favored  sinners,  &c.,  &c.  These  reproaches  were  always  highly  criminal.  Still,  because 
they  only  attacked  directly  his  divinity,  Jesus,  the  meekest  of  men,  seems  to  account 
them  as  nothing,  and  is  not  unwilling  to  let  it  be  known  how  ready  he  is  to  pardon 
them. 

(7)  Therefore,  there  is  some  remission  in  the  other  world  ;  and  the  Protestants,  who 
deny  it,  and  who  consequently  reject  purgatory  and  prayer  for  the  dead,  are  refuted  by 
this  single  saying. 

(8)  This  expression  decides  what  is  the  sin  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  is  here  in 
question.  It  is  visibly  that  which  the.  Pharisees  committed,  by  attributing  to  the  demon 
the  works  of  Jesus  Christ,  which  had  the  Spirit  of  God  for  author.  I  leave  it  to  theolo¬ 
gians  to  examine,  if  there  be  other  sins  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  what  they  are,  and  how 
many  should  be  reckoned  of  this  class.  I  content  myself  with  remarking  that,  among 
the  sins  which  are  committed  in  the  world,  that  which  approaches  nearest  to  the  sin  of 
the  Pharisees,  is  to  attribute  to  hypocrisy,  or  to  any  other  vicious  principle,  the  virtues 
of  the  saints,  which  the  Spirit  of  God  operates  by  his  grace— a  sin  as  common  as  it  is 
enormous  ;  but  it  remains  for  us  to  see  in  what  sense  it  is  said  that  it  shall  never  be  par¬ 
doned. 

Saint  Augustine,  and,  after  him,  the  majority  of  interpreters,  regard  this  passage  as  one 
of  the  most  difficult  to  explain.  The  difficulty  arises  from  the  fact  that  the  Church  does 
not  recognize  any  sins  to  be  absolutely  irrémissible,  and  that  this  seems  to  be  declared 
such.  We  are,  therefore,  forced  to  say,  that  when  Jesus  Christ  assures  that  it  shall 
never  be  pardoned,  he  does  not  advance  any  thing  further  than  that  the  remission  shall 
be  more  rare  and  more  difficult.  We  agree  that  this  mitigated  interpretation  is  with 
difficulty  adjusted  to  the  strong  and  absolute  expressions  which  the  Saviour  employs 
here.  Nevertheless,  we  find,  even  in  this  passage,  matter  to  justify  it.  Those  who  have 
asserted  that  sin  or  blasphemy  against  the  Son  of  man  is  merely  a  venial  sin,  have  as¬ 
serted  an  absurdity  :  this  sin  is  mortal  and  irrémissible  in  its  nature,  whether  in  this 
world  or  in  the  other,  if  it  be  not  expiated  by  penance.  Yet  Jesus  Christ  says  simply 
and  absolutely,  that  he  shall  be  pardoned,  remittetur.  Does  he  wish  to  give  us  to  un¬ 
derstand  that  it  shall  be  so  always  ?  No,  but  that  it  shall  be  so  easily  and  so  often,  in 
comparison  with  the  sin  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  shall,  therefore,  only  be  par¬ 
doned  rarely,  and  with  difficulty.  In  a  word,  Jesus  Christ  says  absolutely  of  the  sin 
against  the  Son  of  man,  that  it  shall  be  pardoned,  as  he  says  absolutely  of  the  sin  against 


CHAP.  XX.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  161 

Finally,  inasmuch  as  the  expulsion  of  the  demons  is  evidently  a 
good  work,  there  exists  only  one  more  consequence  to  be  drawn, 
viz.,  that  Jesus  Christ,  the  author  of  this,  was  good — -that  is  to  say, 
holy  and  irrépréhensible,  and  that  those  who  calumniated  him  so 
atrociously  were  wicked  and  corrupt.  The  Saviour  did  not  leave 
these  perverse  men  to  remain  ignorant  of  this.  “  Either  make  the 
tree  good,  he  again  said  to  them,  and  its  fruit  good  ;  or  make  the 
tree  evil,  and  its  fruit  evil  ;  for  by  the  fruit  the  tree  is  known.  O, 
generation  of  vipers,  how  can  you  speak  good  things,  whereas-  you 
are  evil  ?  For  out  of  the  abundance  of  the  heart  the  mouth  speak- 
eth.  A  good  man,  out  of  a  good  treasure,  bringeth  forth  good 
things  ;  and  an  evil  man,  out  of  an  evil  treasure,  bringeth  forth  evil 
things  (9).  But  I  say  to  you,  that  every  idle  word  that  men  shall 
speak,  they  shall  render  an  account  for  it  at  the  day  of  judgment  ; 
for  by  thy  words  thou  shalt  be  justified,  and  by  thy  words  thou 
shalt  be  condemned.”  The  latter  words  of  the  Saviour  give  us  to 
understand  that  the  Pharisees  reckoned  as  of  little  consequence  the 
sins  of  the  tongue  ;  and  those  immediately  preceding  were  meant  to 
inform  us  how  rigorously  blasphemous  words  shall  be  punished  at 
that  exact  and  severe  judgment,  in  which  an  idle  word  shall  not  re¬ 
main  unpunished. 


the  Holy  Ghost,  that  it  shall  not  be  pardoned.  It  does  not  occur  to  our  mind  to'  be¬ 
lieve  that  the  first  shall  be  always  pardoned  ;  neither,  therefore,  should  we  conclude  that 
the  second  shall  never  be  pardoned. 

(9)  Habitually,  and  not  always.  See  Note  9  of  Chapter  XVII.,  page  141.  It  is  not 
necessary  for  the  truth  of  moral  propositions,  that  they  should  never  suffer  exceptions. 
They  are  true  when  the  things  are,  generally  speaking,  such  as  these  propositions  an¬ 
nounce. 

11 


162 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


CHAPTER  XXL 

THE  SIGN  OF  JONAS. - THE  NINIVITES. - THE  QUEEN  OF  SABA. - THE  EXPELLED  DE¬ 
MON  ENTEES  IN  AGAIN. - EXCLAMATION  OF  A  WOMAN. - THE  MOTHEE  AND  BEETH- 

BEN  OF  JESUS. - PAEABLE  OF  THE  SEED. 

(a)  “  Then  some  of  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  answering  him,  said  • 
Master,  we  would  see  a  sign.”  Apparently  these  petitioners  were 
the  same  who  had  already  asked  him  for  a  heavenly  sign.  Jesus 
had  left  them  unanswered,  because  he  should  first  reply  to  the 
odious  accusation  we  have  just  spoken  of.  These  inquisitive  and 
artful  men  renewed  the  tempting  solicitation,  and  ( b )  “  the  multi¬ 
tudes  running  together,”  to  see  the  wonder  they  expected,  “Je¬ 
sus  began  to  say:  This  generation  is  wicked  and  adulterous;  it 
asketh  a  sign,  and  a  sign  shall  not  be  given  it,  but  the  sign  of  Jo¬ 
nas  the  prophet  (1).  For  as  Jonas  was  a  sign  to  the  Ninivites, 
so  shall  the  Son  of  man  also  be  to  this  generation.  As  then  Jo¬ 
nas  was  in  the  whale’s  belly  three  days  and  three  nights  (2),  so 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  38.  (b)  St.  Luke,  xi.  29,  30  ;  St.  Matthew,  xii.  40. 


(1)  Jesus  Christ  refuses  to  them  the  miracle  which  they  asked,  and  he  promises  one 
to  them  which  they  did  not  ask.  Was  it  reasonable  that  the  divine  power  should  be 
subservient  to  their  caprices,  and  that  it  should  perform  the  miracles  which  they  wished 
for,  because  they  did  not  wish  to  yield  submission,  in  consequence  of  those  which  it 
wrought?  Yet,  if  we  are  even  slightly  acquainted  with  the  genius  of  incredulity,  we 
shall  not  hesitate  to  believe  that  they  were  highly  puffed  up  after  the  refusal,  and  that 
they  said  more  than  once,  and  with  an  air  of  triumph  :  Why  does  he  not  work  the  mira¬ 
cle  which  is  asked  of  him  ? 

(2)  Jesus  Christ  was  not  three  entire  days  and  three  entire  nights  in  the  bosom  of  the 
earth  ;  he  only  passed  there  one  entire  day  and  one  entire  night,  with  a  part  of  two 
other  days  and  of  two  other  nights.  It  is  in  this  sense  it  is  said  that  he  passed  there 
three  days  and  three  nights.  Here  is  the  way  in  which  this  is  explained.  We  must 
just  reckon  the  entire  day  from  midnight  unto  midnight.  We  do  so  thus  :  and  although 
this  was  not  the  Jewish  mode,  it  was  that  of  the  Egyptians,  whom  all  people  then  re¬ 
garded  as  legislators  in  astronomy,  and  that  of  the  Romans,  the  masters  of  the  world, 
and  particularly  of  Judea,  where  it  is  natural  to  think  that  they  partly  introduced  this 
usage,  as  well  as  in  the  other  countries  of  their  domination  ;  for  they  dated,  apparently, 
the  public  transactions  according  to  their  ordinary  manner  of  reckoning  the  days.  Sup- 


I  €i 

yq>  )v  % 

d 


M 


'3Wi 


CHAP.  XXI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


shall  the  Son  of  man  be  in  the  heart  of  the  earth  (3)  three  days 
and  three  nights.” 

This  sign,  more  wonderful  than  that  of  Jonas,  since  it  is  more 
wonderful  to  come  forth  alive  from  the  bosom  of  the  earth,  after 
having  entered  it  dead,  than  to  come  forth  alive  from  a  fish,  which 
a  living  man  had  entered — this  sign,  I  say,  according  to  God’s  inten¬ 
tion,  was  to  be  for  the  Jews  a  sign  of  conviction  and  salvation  ;  but 
because  Jesus  Christ  foresaw  that  their  incredulity  would  render  it 
useless,  he  proposes  it  to  them  here  as  a  sign  of  judgment  and  of 
condemnation,  the  equity  and  rigor  of  which  are  justified  with  re¬ 
gard  to  them  by  the  example  of  the  Ninivites.  He  proceeds,  there¬ 
fore,  as  follows  :  (a)  “  The  men  of  Ninive  shall  rise  in  judgment  with 
this  generation,  and  shall  condemn  it  :  because  they  did  penance  at 
the  preaching  of  Jonas  ;  and  behold  a  greater  than  Jonas  here.  The 
Queen  of  the  South  shall  rise  in  judgment  with  this  generation,  and 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  41-45  ;  St.  Luke,  xi.  24,  26. 


posing  this  to  be  the  case,  there  exist  no  longer  any  difficulties.  Jesus  Christ,  having 
died  on  Friday  at  three  o’clock,  after  mid-day,  and  being  almost  immediately  taken  down 
from  the  cross,  may  have  been  laid  in  the  tomb  before  sunset,  which  was  then  after  six 
o’clock.  This  is  the  more  likely,  as  the  repose  of  the  festival,  which  obliged  the  Jews  to 
suspend  their  work,  commenced  at  sunset.  Thus  Jesus  Christ  shall  have  passed  in  the 
bosom  of  the  earth  the  part  of  the  day  which  remained  from  his  deposition  in  the  sepul¬ 
chre  until  sunset.  From  sunset  until  midnight  there  are  about  six  hours  of  the  night 
which  belong  to  Friday.  We  therefore  have  already  part  of  a  day,  and  of  the  night  of 
Friday,  passed  in  the  tomb.  The  Saturday  does  not  puzzle  us.  As  to  Sunday,  we  have 
firstly,  the  part  of  the  night  which  commenced  at  midnight,  when  Saturday  closed  ;  and 
as  to  the  day,  although  it  be  held  that  the  Lord  rose  before  sunrise,  he  may  not  have 
risen  until  the  day  gleamed  with  sufficient  light  to  enable  us  to  say  truly  that  it  was  day. 
And  that  period  of  light,  or  day,  passed  in  the  tomb,  if  it  were  only  to  have  lasted  for  a 
moment,  suffices  to  enable  us  to  say  with  truth  that  he  was  there  upon  the  day  of  Sunday. 

(3)  There  is  in  the  Latin  text  in  corde  terra,  in  the  heart  of  the  earth  :  this  word  is 
usually  understood  with  reference  to  the  bosom  of  the  earth,  in  which  the  body  of  the 
Lord  was  inclosed.  Yet  as  this  is  the  only  passage  where  Scripture  makes  use  of  this 
mode  of  speech  to  express  a  sepulchre,  and  as,  besides,  the  Hebrew  phrase  also  signifies 
the  centre  of  the  earth,  an  expression  too  strong  for  the  sepulchres,  which  we  may  say 
were  only  on  the  surface,  Catholic  interpreters  have  thought,  with  reason,  that  it  should 
also  be  understood  with  reference  to  Limbo,  whither  the  holy  soul  of  the  Saviour  descend¬ 
ed  immediately  after  his  death.  Saint  Paul  has  said,  in  the  same  sense,  that  Jesus  Christ 
descended  into  the  lower  parts  of  the  earth  (Ephes.  iv.).  This  truth  is  of  faith  ;  it  forms 
a  part  of  the  Apostles’  Creed,  and  we  do  not  see  upon  what  grounds,  nor  for  what  reasoD 
Protestants  insist  on  rejecting  it. 


[El 


164  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I 

shall  condemn  it  :  because  she  came  from  the  ends  of  the  earth  to 
hear  Solomon  ;  and  behold  a  greater  than  Solomon  here.” 

It  was  on  the  occasion  of  a  man  being  possessed  by  the  demon  that 
Jesus  said  all  this.  He  closes  by  a  sort  of  parable,  in  which,  under 
the  figure  of  a  man  repossessed  after  deliverance,  he  announces  to 
the  Jews  the  increase  of  their  crimes,  and  the  excess  of  their  future 
misfortunes.  “  When  the  unclean  spirit,”  said  he  to  them,  “  is  gone 
out  of  a  man,  he  walketh  through  dry  places,  seeking  rest,  and  not 
finding,  he  saith  :  I  will  return  into  my  house  whence  I  came  out  ; 
and  coming,  he  findeth  it  empty,  swept,  and  garnished.  Then  he 
goeth,  and  taketh  with  him  seven  other  spirits  more  wicked  than 
himself.  They  enter  in,  and  dwell  there  :  and  the  last  state  of  that 
man  becomes  worse  than  the  first.  So  shall  it  be  also  to  this  wick¬ 
ed  generation.” 

There  are  several  ways  of  explaining  this  parable,  but  we  pass 
them  over  to  confine  ourselves  to  its  clear  signification.  This  is,  that 
the  Jewish  nation,  so  often  criminal  and  so  often  penitent,  having 
again  given  entrance  to  the  demon  by  its  outrageous  contempt  for 
the  person  of  the  Saviour,  his  doctrine  and  his  miracles,  shall  again 
become  more  criminal  and  more  unfortunate  than  it  had  ever  been 
before.  The  event  too  truly  justified  the  prophecy,  and  the  applica¬ 
tion  tested  by  every  day’s  experience,  in  the  case  of  relapsing  sinners, 
is  but  too  highly  justified  by  experience. 

(a)  “  As  he  spoke  these  things,  it  came  to  pass,  a  certain  woman 
from  the  crowd  lifting  up  her  voice,”  midst  the  murmuring  of  the 
Pharisees,  “  said  to  him  :  Blessed  is  the  womb  that  bore  thee,  and 
the  paps  that  gave  thee  suck.”  She  envied,  as  is  usual  with  those 
of  her  sex,  the  happiness  of  her  who  had  brought  into  the  world  a 
man  so  wonderful,  and  wished  that  herself  could  have  been  that 
happy  mother.  Jesus  Christ  instructed  her,  by  informing  her  that 
there  was  a  happiness  preferable  even  to  that  of  such  an  exalted  ma¬ 
ternity,  and  consoled  her  by  giving  her  to  understand  that  she  could 
procure  for  herself  this  happiness.  “Yea,  rather,”  he  said,  “blessed 
are  they  who  hear  the  word  of  G-od,  and  keep  it.”  This  expression 
was  not  meant  to  depreciate  that  inestimable  happiness  which  the 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xi.  27,  28. 


CHAP.  XXI.]  OF  OUB  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  165 

mother  of  God  has  foretold  in  her  canticle  should  be  celebrated  by 
all  the  nations  of  the  earth.  Much  less  did  it  convey  that  the  Bless¬ 
ed  Virgin  had  not  cherished  the  word  of  God,  or  failed  to  practise 
it  herself.  The  expression  merely  denoted  how  preferable  was  the 
happiness  of  her  fidelity  to  that  of  her  maternity  :  that  her  fidelity 
surpasses  in  point  of  fact  her  maternity,  inasmuch  as  she  would  not 
have  been  the  happiest  of  all  creatures,  if  she  had  not  been  the  most 
faithful. 

This  was  the  moment  which  the  Son  of  God  had  chosen  to  estab¬ 
lish  that  great  maxim,  that  by  perfect  observance  of  the  law  of  God, 
we  unite  ourselves  to  him  by  closer  and  stronger  ties  than  those  of 
flesh  and  blood.  To  imprint  it  still  more  deeply  on  the  mind,  he 
contrived  the  following  transaction,  which  furnished  him  with  an  oc¬ 
casion  to  repeat  it.  (a)  “  As  he  was  yet  speaking  to  the  multitudes, 
his  mother  and  his  brethren  (4)  stood  without,  wishing  to  speak  to 
him.  They  could  not  come  at  him  for  the  crowd.  Standing  with¬ 
out.  they  sent  unto  him,  wishing  to  speak  to  him.  The  multitude 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xii.  46-49,  50  ;  St.  Luke,  viii.  19  ;  St.  Mark,  iii.  31-33. 


(4)  Those  who  would  say  that  after  the  birth  of  Jesus  Christ  the  Blessed  Virgin  had 
several  children  by  Saint  Joseph,  who  are  here  called  the  brothers  of  the  Lord,  would 
renew  the  heresy  of  the  infamous  Helvidius,  who  was  victoriously  opposed  by  Saint  Je¬ 
rome.  The  Greeks,  and  among  the  Latins,  Saint  Hilarius  and  Saint  Ambrose,  who  are 
followed  on  this  point  by  some  moderns,  have  thought  that  the  brothers  of  the  Lord 
were  children  of  Saint  Joseph,  born  from  a  first  wife,  whom  he  had  before  he  married 
the  Blessed  Virgin.  Saint  Jerome  has  also  refuted  this  opinion,  and  the  perpetual  vir¬ 
ginity  of  the  holy  husband  of  Mary  is  recognized  at  the  present  day  by  the  common  be¬ 
lief  of  the  faithful.  It  is  not,  nevertheless,  an  article  of  faith,  although  the  Cardinal  Pe¬ 
ter  Damien  seems  to  assert  it  in  a  letter  which  he  wrote  to  Pope  Nicholas  II.  We,  there¬ 
fore,  should  believe  that  the  brothers  of  the  Lord  were  only  his  cousins.  Four  of  them 
are  known  to  us — James  the  Lesser,  Joseph,  Jude  or  Thaddeus,  and  Simon.  Saint  Mat¬ 
thew  says  expressly  that  the  two  first  were  the  sons  of  Mary,  the  wife  of  Cleophas,  or  of 
Alpheus,  supposing  that  these  two  names  belong  to  the  same  man  ;  or,  if  they  be  two 
different  men,  the  daughter  of  one  and  wife  of  the  other.  Now,  this  Mary  is  called  by 
Saint  John  sister  of  the  mother  of  Jesus,  which  no  longer  leaves  us  in  ignorance  of  the 
sense  in  which  her  sons  misriit  have  been  called  the  brothers  of  the  Lord.  Those  who  do 

O 

not  wish  to  allow  that  Saint  Joachim  and  Saint  Anne  have  had  other  children  besides 
the  Blessed  Virgin,  say  that  Mary  of  Cleophas  was  her  aunt,  or  her  cousin-german.  Be 
it  so.  This  belief  is  pious,  and  Scripture  may  have  employed  here  the  name  of  sister,  as 
it  makes  use  of  that  of  brothers  with  regard  to  those  who  were  only  the  cousins  of  the 
Saviour. 


In] 


1 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


who  sat  about  him  say  unto  him  :  Behold,  thy  mother  and  thy  breth¬ 
ren  stand  without,  seeking  thee.  Answering  them,  he  said  :  Who 
is  my  mother,  and  who  are  my  brethren  ?  And  looking  round  about 
on  them  who  sat  about  him,  and  stretching  forth  his  hand  towards 
his  disciples,  he  saith:  Behold  my  mother  and  my  brethren;  for 
whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven,  he  is  my 
brother,  and  my  sister,  and  my  mother  (5).” 

We  shall  add  to  what  we  have  already  said,  that  this  instruction 
was  not  for  Mary,  who  was  too  enlightened  to  be  ignorant  of  the 
truth  it  comprises,  too  humble  to  think  of  valuing  herself  upon  her 
maternity,  and,  at  the  same  time,  too  faithful  an  observer  of  the 
will  of  the  heavenly  Father,  to  require  any  other  prop  or  stay. 
These  words  had  reference,  therefore,  to  the  other  relatives  of  the 
Saviour,  and  to  all  the  Jewish  nation.  The  former,  for  the  most 
part,  did  not  yet  believe  in  him  ;  the  majority  of  the  nation  were 
never  to  believe  in  him  ;  and  it  was  proper  that  all  should  have  no¬ 
tice  that  his  relatives  and  fellow-citizens,  if  incredulous  and  prevari¬ 
cating,  should  become  strangers  to  the  new  alliance,  and  that,  by 
the  merit  of  an  active  and  submissive  faith,  strangers  would  be 
judged  worthy  of  being  admitted  in  their  place. 

(a)  “  Again,  when  a  great  multitude  was  gathered  together,  and 
hastened  out  of  the  cities  to  Jesus,  the  same  day,  he  going  out  of 
the  house,  sat  by  the  sea-side,  and  began  to  teach.  And  great  mul¬ 
titudes  were  gathered  unto  him,  so  that  he  went  up  into  a  boat,  and 
sat  in  the  sea,  and  all  the  multitude  was  upon  the  land  by  the  sea¬ 
side.  He  taught  them  many  things  in  parables,  and  said  unto  them, 
in  his  doctrine  :  Hear  ye.  The  sower  went  out  to  sow  his  seed  ;  and 
as  he  sowed,  some  fell  by  the  wayside,  and  the  birds  of  the  air 
came  and  ate  it  up.  And  others  fell  upon  stony  ground,  where  it 
had  not  much  earth,  and  it  shot  up  immediately,  because  it  had  no 
depth  of  earth;  but  when  the  sun  was  up,  it  was  scorched,  and 

(a)  St.  Luke,  viii.  4-6  ;  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  1  ;  St.  Mark,  iv.  1-9. 


(5)  By  faith  we  become,  says  Saint  Gregory,  the  brethren  of  Jesus  Christ;  but  a  per¬ 
son  becomes  in  some  manner  his  mother,  by  whose  preaching  Jesus  Christ  is  formed  in 
the  heart  of  his  audience,  according  to  this  expression  of  Saint  Paul  :  My  little  children, 
of  whom  I  am  in  labor  again,  until  Christ  be  formed  in  you  (Galatians,  iv.  19). 


I  Cf.,. 

V . .  * 


CHAP.  XXI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


167 


N 


rf*5 


'  ' 


withered  away,  because  it  had  no  root  and  no  moisture.  And  some 
fell  among  thorns  ;  the  thorns  grew  up  and  choked  it,  and  it  yielded 
no  fruit.  Some  fell  upon  good  ground,  grew  up  and  increased  ;  and 
they  yielded  fruit,  some  one  hundred-fold,  some  sixty-fold,  and  some 
thirty-fold.  Saying  these  things,  he  cried  out:  He  that  hath  ears 
to  hear,  let  him  hear.” 

(a)  “  And  when  he  was  alone,  the  twelve  that  were  with  him 
asked  him  the  sense  of  this  parable,  and  said  to  him,”  on  this  sub¬ 
ject  :  “  Why  speakest  thou  to  them  in  parables  ?  Because,  he  an¬ 
swered,  to  you  it  is  given  to  know  the  mystery  of  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  ;  but  to  them  that  are  without,  all  things  are  done  in  par¬ 
ables  (6)  ;  for  he  that  hath,  to  him  shall  be  given,  and  he  shall 
abound  :  but  he  that  hath  not,  from  him  shall  be  taken  away  that 
also  which  he  hath.  Therefore  do  I  speak  to  them  in  parables,  be¬ 
cause  seeing,  they  see  not  (7),  and  hearing,  they  hear  not  ;  neither 

(a)  St.  Mark,  iv.  10,  11,  12  ;  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  10-17  ;  St.  Luke,  viii.  10,  x.  24  ; 

St.  Mattliew,  xiii.  13. 


(6)  Saint  Augustine  assigns  as  the  reason  for  this  difference,  that  the  first  were  pre¬ 
destined,  and  the  latter  reprobate.  The  reason  has  not  been  admitted  by  the  majority 
of  ancient  and  modern  interpreters  ;  and,  in  point  of  fact,  Judas,  one  of  the  twelve,  was 
reprobate,  and  it  is  not  credible,  that  among  the  multitude,  to  whom  Jesus  Christ  spoke 
only  in  parables,  there  was  not  some  of  the  elect.  The  reason  of  the  preference  given 
to  the  first  over  the  second  should  be  taken  from  their  actual  disposition.  The  good  use 
which  the  first  made  of  the  lights  that  were  communicated  to  them,  deserved  for  them 
an  increase  thereof,  and  the  Jatter  deserved  the  diminution,  on  account  of  the  abuse  or 
the  little  use  they  made  thereof.  This  explanation  appears  to  be  that  of  Jesus  Christ 
himself,  who  presently  adds  :  For  he  that  hath,  to  him  shall  he  given,  and  he  shall 
abound  :  but  he  that  hath  not,  that  is  to  say,  who  hath  a  little,  from  him  shall  be  taken 
away  that  also  which  he  hath,  that  is  to  say,  the  little  which  he  hath.  This  saying,  re¬ 
peated  in  several  passages  of  the  Gospel,  has  everywhere  the  same  sense. 

(7)  We  give  here  the  translation  of  Saint  Matthew.  Saint  Mark  and  Saint  Luke, 
when  reporting  the  same  words,  make  a  remarkable  difference.  Instead  of  saying,  be¬ 
cause  seeing  they  see  not,  they  make  the  Saviour  say,  that  seeing  they  may  not  see  ;  that 
is  to  say,  that  the  first  gives  their  preceding  blindness  as  cause  of  the  withdrawal  of 
light,  and  that  the  two  others  give  the  withdrawal  of  light  as  cause  of  their  subsequent 
blindness.  Both  are  true.  Jesus  Christ  makes  use,  in  their  regard,  of  the  veil  of  par¬ 
ables,  because  they  had  not  wished  to  open  their  eyes  to  the  pure  and  sparkling  light  of 
his  miracles  and  of  his  doctrine,  exposed  in  all  its  simplicity  and  all  its  clearness  ;  and 
because  he  made  use,  in  their  regard,  of  the  veil  of  parables,  they  should  see  much  less 
than  they  had  previously  seen.  Nevertheless,  the  intention  of  Jesus  Christ  was  not  to 
leave  them  absolutely  without  light  :  parables  were  not  necessary  for  this  ;  his  silence 


fm  ™ 

If  J 

V\\  1 1  /  y 


168 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


do  they  understand.  And  the  prophecy  of  Isaias  is  fulfilled  in  them, 
who  saith  :  By  hearing  you  shall  hear,  and  shall  not  understand  ; 
and  seeing  you  shall  see,  and  shall  not  perceive,  for  the  heart  of  this 
people  is  grown  gross  :  with  their  ears  they  have  been  dull  of  hear¬ 
ing,  and  their  eyes  they  have  shut,  lest  at  any  time  they  should  see 
with  their  eyes,  and  hear  with  their  ears,  and  understand  with  their 
hearts,  and  be  converted,  and  I  should  heal  them.  But  blessed  are 
your  eyes,  because  they  see,  and  your  ears,  because  they  hear.  For, 
amen,  I  say  to  you,  many  prophets  and  just  men  have  desired  to 
see  the  things  that  you  see,  and  to  hear  the  things  that  you  hear, 
and  have  not  heard  them.” 

Then,  reverting  to  the  explanation  which  they  asked,  “  Jesus  saith 
to  them  :  Are  you  ignorant  of  this  parable  ?  And  how  shall  you 
know  all  parables  ?  Hear  you,  therefore,  the  parable  of  the  sow¬ 
er  (8)  :  The  seed  is  the  word  of  God  ;  he  that  soweth,  soweth  the 
word  ;  they  by  the  wayside,  where  the  word  is  sown,  are  they  that 
hear.  As  soon  as  they  have  heard,  immediately  Satan  cometh,  and 
taketh  out  the  word  that  was  sown  in  their  hearts,  lest  believing, 
they  should  be  saved  (9).  .  And  they  that  received  the  seed  upon 
stony  ground,  are  they  who,  when  they  hear,  receive  the  word  with 
joy  ;  and  these  have  no  root  in  themselves.  They  believe  for 
a  while  (10)  ;  and  then,  when  tribulation  and  persecution  ariseth 


would  have  sufficed  :  he  only  wished  to  diminish  the  lights  ;  and  what,  in  point  of  fact, 
is  a  parable,  but  a  light  shrouded  in  a  cloud,  which  covers  jt  in  part,  and  which  lets  it 
be  partly  seen  ? 

(8)  The  parable,  and  the  explanation  which  follows,  would  be  only  a  useless  specula¬ 
tion,  if  this  saying  of  Saint  Augustine  were  not  true  :  Each  individual  renders  himself 
good  or  bad  ground — good,  by  the  good  use  of  grace  ;  bad,  by  the  abuse  of  liberty, 
which  ever  retains  the  power  to  use  or  not  to  use  grace. 

(9)  There  is  scarcely  any  appearance  that  the  divine  word  fructifieth,  when  it  falls 
upon  a  heart  as  badly  prepared  as  is  a  high-road  to  receive  the  seed  of  the  laborer. 
Still  it  hath  a  virtue,  regarding  which  the  demon  is  ever  uneasy.  A  word  heard  by 
chance  has  produced  more  than  once  the  most  abundant  and  the  most  unhoped-for 
fruits.  Satan  is  not  unaware  of  this  ;  and,  to  make  sure  of  his  aim,  he  hurries  to  snatch 
away  this  seed,  which  might  be  already  regarded  as  lost. 

(10)  They  believed,  therefore,  and  on  their  part  it  was  not  hypocrisy.  We  agree  that 
they  were  cowards  !  let  us  not  say  that  they  were  deceitful  or  perfidious.  When  sin  is 
manifest,  we  must  desire  to  justify  the  guilty  ;  but  justice  does  not  permit  to  make  him 
more  guilty  than  he  is,  and  charity  inclines  rather  to  excuse  evil  deeds  than  to  exaggei  • 
ate  them. 


r/n\V 


CHAP.  XXI.] 


OF  OUE  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


169 


because  of  the  word,  they  are  presently  scandalized,  and  in  time  of 
temptation,  they  fall  away.  That  which  fell  amongst  thorns,  are 
they  who  have  heard  the  word  ;  but  the  cares  of  this  world,  the  de¬ 
ceitfulness  of  riches  (11),  the  pleasures  of  this  life,  and  the  lusts 
after  other  things,  entering  in,  choke  the  word,  and  it  is  made  fruit¬ 
less  (12).  But  that  on  the  good  ground,  are  they  who  hear  the 
word  in  a  good,  and  a  very  good  heart,  keep  it,  and  bring  forth 
fruit  in  patience,  the  one  thirty  to  one ,  another  sixty,  and  another  a 
hundred.” 

Yet,  this  explanation  which  Jesus  Christ  gave  to  the  apostles 
alone,  was  not  destined  only  for  them,  but  was  to  be  communicated 
by  them  to  all  nations.  They  were  the  lamps  which  the  Father  of 
the  family  was  trimming,  and  setting,  and  lighting,  in  order  that  they 
might  one  day  illumine  his  entire  house,  that  is,  his  Church.  This 
is  what  Jesus  Christ  gives  them  to  understand,  by  repeating  those 
words  which  he  had  already  said  on  another  occasion  :  (a)  “No 
man,  lighting  a  candle,  covereth  it  with  a  vessel,  or  putteth  it  under 
a  bed  ;  but  setteth  it  upon  a  candlestick,  that  they  who  come  in  may 
see  the  light.  For,”  added  he,  speaking  of  the  shining  publicity 
which  the  doctrine  he  then  explained  to  them  in  secrecy  should  one 
day  have,  “  there  is  not  any  thing  secret  that  shall  not  be  made 
manifest,  nor  hidden  that  shall  not  be  known  and  come  abroad.” 

(a)  St.  Mark,  iv.  21-23  ;  St.  Luke,  viii.  16-18. 


He  who  abandons  persecuted  truth  may  only  be  weak  ;  but  if  he  combines  with  those 
who  persecute  it,  he  is  perfidious. 

(11)  It  might  be  translated  the  deceitful  riches.  They  are  so  principally,  inasmuch 
as  they  promise  a  felicity  which  they  do  not  give.  We  think  that  in  doubling  our 
store  we  shall  double  our  happiness  :  that  expectation  is  never  realized,  and  it  often 
happens  ii;  the  exact  reverse  :  increase  of  riches  generally  brings  increase  of  care  and 
trouble. 

(12)  There  are  three  sorts  of  hearers  with  whom  the  divine  word  produces  no  fruit. 
1st.  Those  who  pay  no  attention  to  it,  or  whose  entire  attention  is  limited  to  hearing  it 
as  the  word  of  man.  2d.  Those  whose  mind  is  attentive,  but.  whose  heart  is  not  dis¬ 
posed  to  put  it  in  practice.  3d.  Those  whose  mind  is  attentive,  and  whose  heart  is  well 
disposed,  but  who,  instead  of  meditating  when  they  have  heard  it,  deliver  themselves  up 
to  the  cares  and  distractions  of  the  world.  In  the  first  class  it  produces  nothing  ;  in 
the  second  it  produces  words  ;  and  the  fruits  which  it  produces  in  the  third  class  are 
almost  immediately  stifled  when  formed.  Three  opposite  dispositions  make  it  fructify — 
attention,  good-will,  recollection,  and  meditation. 


•  VA  'V.cJ  Aj'  I J! 

m 


P%î 


fÿlWy 


But  as  this  prophecy,  the  accomplishment  of  which  was  to  be  con¬ 
fided  to  their  care,  was  not  yet  as  clear  to  them  as  it  subsequently 
was,  Jesus  warned  them  to  meditate  on  the  sense  thereof:  “  If  any 
man  hath  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear.” 

And,  to  awaken  their  attention  farther,  “  he  said  to  them  :  Take 
heed,  therefore,  what  you  hear.  In  what  measure  you  shall  mete 
it  shall  be  measured  to  you  again,  and  more  shall  be  given  to  you 
for  he  that  hath,  to  him  shall  be  given  ;  but  whosoever  hath  not 
that  also  which  he  thinketh  he  hath  shall  be  taken  away.”  This 
was  not  the  first  time  that  Jesus  Christ  gave  them  to  understand 
these  two  truths  ;  but,  when  applied  to  the  existing  circumstances, 
they  became  to  the  apostles  a  powerful  exhortation  to  diffuse  abun¬ 
dantly  the  lights  he  had  communicated  to  them,  persuaded  that  the 
diffusion  of  these  lights  would  merit  for  them  an  increase  thereof, 
whereas  they  would  be  withdrawn  from  him  who  attempted  to  with¬ 
hold  them  from  others. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

P  ARABLES  OF  THE  COCKLE,  OF  THE  MUSTARD-SEED,  OF  THE  LEAVEN,  A  Tim  OF  THE 

NET  CAST  INTO  THE  SEA. - PREACHING  OF  JESUS  CHRIST  AT  NAZARETH. - PROPHET 

WITHOUT  HONOR  IN  HIS  OWN  COUNTRY. 

Whether  what  follows  was  spoken  on  another  day,  or  whether, 
which  does  not  appear  unlikely,  after  having  conversed  for  some 
time  apart  with  his  discipl.es,  Jesus  began  again  immediately  to  ad¬ 
dress  the  multitude  :  (a)  “  He  proposed  to  them  another  parable, 
saying  :  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  likened  to  a  man  that  sowed  good 
seed  in  his  field.  But  while  men  were  asleep,  his  enemy  came  and 
sowed  cockle  among  the  wheat,  and  went  away.  And  when  the 
blade  was  sprung  up,  and  had  brought  forth  fruit,  then  appeared 
also  the  cockle.  The  servants  of  the  good  man  of  the  house  com¬ 
ing,  said  to  him  :  Sir,  didst  thou  not  sow  good  seed  in  thy  field  ? 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  24-30. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


Whence,  then,  hath  it  cockle  ?  And  he  said  to  them  :  An  enemy 
hath  done  this.  The  servants  said  to  him  :  Wilt  thou  that  we  go 
and  gather  it  up  ?  No,  he  said,  lest  perhaps  gathering  up  the  cockle, 
you  root  up  the  wheat  also  together  with  it  (1).  Suffer  both  to  grow 
until  the  harvest,  and  in  the  time  of  the  harvest  I  will  say  to  the 
reapers  (2)  :  Gather  up  first  the  cockle,  and  bind  it  into  bundles  to 
burn  ;  but  the  wheat  gather  ye  into  my  barn.” 

Without  pausing  then  for  the  explanation  of  this  parable,  which 
his  disciples  desired,  but  which  they  would  not  venture  to  ask  their 
Divine  Master  for  fear  of  interrupting  him,  (a)  “  Jesus”  continued, 
and  “  said  :  So  is  the  kingdom  of  God,  as  if  a  man  should  cast  seed 
into  the  earth  ;  and  should  sleep  and  rise  night  and  day,  the  seed 
should  spring  and  grow  up  night  and  day  whilst  he  knoweth  not  (3)  : 

(a)  St.  Mark,  iv.  26-29. 


(1)  Wherefore,  if  it  were  evident  that,  in  gathering  the  cockle,  we  should  not  root  up 
the  wheat,  we  should  gather  it,  since  the  father  of  the  family  gives  no  other  reason  for 
leaving  it.  Another  consequence. — Therefore  the  doubt  alone,  whether  if,  when  gather¬ 
ing  the  cockle,  we  may  not  root  up  the  wheat,  obliges  us  to  leave  it,  since  the  father  of 
the  family  does  not  say  absolutely,  You  should  root  up  the  wheat,  but  lest  perhaps  you 
may  root  it  up.  In  the  application  we  oftener  meet  doubt  than  evidence  to  the  contrary, 
and  the  cases  in  which  the  cockle  should  be  left  are  much  more  common  than  those  in 
which  it  must  be  prematurely  gathered.  Note  that  it  is  on  account  of  the  wheat  that 
the  cockle  is  spared,  and  not  upon  its  own  account  ;  if  we  let  it  grow,  it  is  only  to  cast  it 
into  the  fire. 

(2)  The  reapers  seem  distinguished  from  the  servants  ;  the  first  are  the  angels,  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  Saviour’s  explanation.  As  he  does  not  say  who  the  servants  are,  we  may  be 
permitted  to  seek  it,  and  it  is  natural  to  think  that  they  are  the  ministers  of  his  Church. 
Those  whom  he  speaks  of  here  are  not  altogether  faultless.  The  sleepers  give  to  the  en¬ 
emy  time  and  opportunity  to  sow  the  cockle.  The  ardent  would  root  it  up  immediately 
when  it  appeared.  These  faults  are  not  so  opposite  that  they  may  not  be  met  with  in 
the  same  persons.  We  may  be  too  fond  of  sleeping,  and  not  be  overwise  when  we  awake. 
May  we  not  also  say  that  this  great  zeal  was  the  consequence  of  negligence  ?  The  mis¬ 
chief  had  occurred  through  their  fault  ;  hence  their  vexation  and  their  impatient  desire  to 
root  it  up. 

(3)  Jesus  Christ  was  never  really  to  abandon  his  Church  ;  but  would  appear  to  aban¬ 
don  it  when,  ascending  to  heaven,  he  should  deprive  it  of  his  sensible  presence.  The  state 
of  apparent  weakness  in  which  he  left  it  might  make  his  disciples  apprehend  lest  it  should 
disappear  with  its  founder,  and  that  the  epoch  of  its  birth  was  only  that  of  its  ruin.  Je¬ 
sus  Christ  teaches  them  here  that  the  seed  of  the  word,  being  once  cast  by  his  divine 
hands,  shall  not  fall  in  vain  upon  that  blessed  earth  ;  and  that  when  he  shall  appear  to 
be  the  least  occupied  concerning  it,  they  shall  see  it  grow  and  ripen  before  their  eyes,  as 


■*>  '  : 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part 


For  the  earth  of  itself  bringeth  forth  fruit,  first  the  blade,  then  the 
ear,  afterwards  the  full  corn  in  the  ear  (4)  :  and  when  the  fruit  is 
brought  forth,  immediately  he  putteth  in  the  sickle,  because  the  har¬ 
vest  is  come.” 

Two  other  parables  directly  followed  this  one,  and  the  three  have 
the  same  object,  viz.,  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ,  hidden  at  first  like 
seed  in  the  bosom  of  the  earth,  but  afterwards  making  its  appear¬ 
ance,  and  by  imperceptible  degrees  arriving  at  maturity  :  small  as 
the  mustard-seed,  which  springs  up  above  all  the  vegetable  tribe, 
and  whose  tall  stem  almost  equals  the  height  of  the  trees  ;  or  like 
paste,  whose  size  is  considerably  increased  by  a  little  leaven.  Here 
they  are  as  pronounced  by  the  Saviour.  He  said  then  to  them  fur¬ 
ther  :  (a)  “  To  what  shall  we  liken  the  kingdom  of  God,  or  to  what 
parable  shall  we  compare  it  ?  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like  to  a 
grain  of  mustard-seed,  which  a  man  took  and  sowed  in  his  field.  It 
is  the  least  of  all  the  seeds  that  are  in  the  earth  ;  but,  when  it  is 
sown,  it  groweth  up  and  becometh  greater  than  all  the  herbs  ;  and 
shooteth  out  great  branches,  so  that  the  birds  of  the  air  may  dwell 
under  the  shadow  thereof.”  He  spoke  to  them,  in  few  words,  the 
other  parable  :  (£)  “  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like  to  leaven,  which 
a  woman  took  and  hid  in  three  measures  of  meal,  until  the  whole 
was  leavened.  Jesus  spoke  all  these  things  in  parables  to  the  mul¬ 
titude.  With  many  such  parables  he  spoke  to  them  the  evangelical 
word,  according  as  they  were  able  to  hear.”  For  this  simple  style, 
which  merely  presented  to  them  those  images  with  which  they  were 
familiar,  was  most  on  a  level  with  their  minds,  and  the  mist  in  which 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  31-33  ;  St.  Mark, 
iv.  30-32. 


(b)  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  33-35  ;  St.  Mark, 
iv.  33,  34. 


the  wheat  which  the  laborer  has  sown  in  i.  •».  field  grows  without  his  putting  a  hand  near 
it.  It  is  true,  that  the  inaction  of  the  latter  is  real,  and  that  of  Jesus  is  only  apparent  ; 
for  he  alone  giveth  growth  to  the  seed  by  the  secret,  but  real  and  always  active,  virtue  of 
his  grace.  Wherefore  it  is  merely  under  the  aspect  of  appearances  that  they  are  here 
compared  to  one  another. 

(4)  Grace  has  its  progression  as  well  as  nature,  imperceptible  from  day  to  day,  hut 
perceptible  from  time  to  time.  We  cannot  too  earnestly  desire  its  growth,  hut  we  should 
know  how  to  await  it.  Precocious  fruits  do  not  ripen  ;  and  a  stem  when  too  luxuriant 
exhausts  itself  and  withers. 


CHAP,  xxn.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


173 


these  figures  partly  shrouded  truths,  the  full  blaze  of  which  the  peo¬ 
ple  could  not  endure,  proportioned  the  light  to  their  present  capa¬ 
city.  (a)  “  Therefore  without  parables  Jesus  did  not  speak  to  them, 
that  it  might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken  by  the  prophet  :  I  will 
open  my  mouth  in  parables  ;  I  will  utter  things  hidden  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world  ;  but  apart  he  explained  all  things  to  his 
disciples.” 

“Having  sent  away  the  multitudes,  he  came  into  the  house,  and 
his  disciples  came  to  him,  saying  :  Expound  to  us  the  parable  of  the 
cockle  of  the  field.  Jesus  made  answer  and  saith  to  them  :  He  that 
soweth  the  good  seed  is  the  Son  of  man.  The  field  is  the  world  ; 
the  good  seed  are  the  children  of  the  kingdom  ;  but  the  cockle  are 
the  children  of  the  wicked  one  (5).  The  enemy  that  sowed  them  is 
the  devil.  The  harvest  is  the  end  of  the  world.  The  reapers  are 
the  angels.  Even,  therefore,  as  cockle  is  gathered  up  and  burned 
with  fire,  so  shall  it  be  at  the  end  of  the  world.  The  Son  of  man 
shall  send  his  angels,  and  they  shall  gather  out  of  his  kingdom  all 
scandals,  and  them  that  work  iniquity;  and  shall  cast  them  into 
the  furnace  of  fire.  There  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth. 
Then  shall  the  just  shine  as  the  sun  in  -the  kingdom  of  their  Father.” 

After  the  exposition  of  this  parable,  Jesus  proceeded  to  propose 
some  others  to  his  disciples.  Since  he  wished  that  their  understand¬ 
ing  of  them  should  be  the  fruit  of  their  close  attention,  he  warns 
them  according  to  his  custom  :  “  He  that  hath  ears  to  hear,  let  him 
hear  afterwards  he  continues  to  speak  thus  :  “  The  kingdom  of 
heaven  is  like  unto  a  treasure  hidden  in  a  field  :  which  a  man  hav¬ 
ing  found,  hid  it,  and  for  joy  thereof,  goeth  and  selleth  all  that  he 
hath,  and  buyeth  that  field.  Again,  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like 
to  a  merchant  seeking  good  pearls  :  who,  when  he  had  found  one 
pearl  of  great  price,  went  his  way  and  sold  all  that  he  had,  and 
bought  it.  Again,  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like  to  a  net  cast  into 
the  sea,  and  gathering  together  of  all  kinds  of  fishes  :  which,  when 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  36-52. 


(5)  The  wicked  can  become  good.  If  they  do  not  become  such,  they  serve  at  least  to 
exercise  and  perfect  the  good.  These  are  two  reasons  for  which  Saint  Augustine  says 
that  God  suffers  them  to  remain  on  earth. 


174  TH K  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  £pART  L 

it  was  filled,  they  drew  out,  and  sitting  by  the  shore,  they  chose  out 
the  good  into  vessels,  but  the  bad  they  cast  forth.  So  shall  it  be  at 
the  end  of  the  world.  The  angels  shall  go  out,  and  shall  separate 
the  wicked  from  the  just  (6),  and  shall  cast  them  into  the  furnace  of 
fire.  There  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth.” 

The  bad  fish  caught  with  the  good  in  the  same  net,  and  the  cockle 
sowed  with  the  good  seed  in  the  same  field,  are  two  different  images 
of  one  and  the  same  thing.  That  is,  in  the  profession  of  the  same 
faith  and  in  the  bosom  of  the  same  Church,  the  mixture  of  the  wick¬ 
ed  with  the  good  during  this  life,  and  the  separation  to  be  made  at 
the  end  of  the  world.  The  apostles,  to  whom  Jesus  Christ  had  just 
explained  the  first  of  these  two  parables,  had  no  difficulty  in  compre¬ 
hending  the  second.  The  two  which  precede  the  first  of  these  have 
another  object,  viz.,  the  inestimable  value  of  the  evangelical  doctrine, 
and  the  profound  wisdom  of  the  man  who  sacrifices  all  that  he  has 
to  insure  its  possession  to  himself.  These  latter  parables  are  so  clear, 
that  it  was  not  requisite  to  explain  them  for  the  disciples.  Where¬ 
fore,  when  Jesus  Christ  said  to  them  :  (a)  “  Have  ye  understood  all 
these  things  ?  Yes,  they  say  to  him.  Therefore,”  added  he,  wish¬ 
ing  to  teach  them,  by  a  new  figure,  the  use  they  should  make  of  the 
treasures  wherewith  he  had  enriched  them,  “  therefore  every  Scribe 
instructed  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like  to  a  man  who  is  a  house¬ 
holder,  who  bringeth  forth  out  of  his  treasure  new  things  and  old,” 
in  order  that  all  his  household  may  be  abundantly  provided. 

“  When  Jesus  had  finished  these  parables,  he  passed  from  thence 
and  came  to  Nazareth,  his  own  country,  where  he  was  brought  up  ; 
and  his  disciples  followed  him.  When  the  Sabbath-day  was  come, 
Jesus  went  into  the  synagogue,  according  to  his  custom,  and  began 
to  teach.  He  rose  up  to  read.  The  book  of  Isaias  the  prophet  was 
delivered  to  him,  and  as  he  unfolded  the  book,  he  found  the  place 
where  it  is  written  :  The  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me  (7)  ;  where- 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  51-54;  St.  Luke,  iv.  .16-21  ;  St.  Mark,  vi.  1,  2. 

(6)  This  eternal  separation  of  the  wicked  from  the  good,  followed,  for  the  latter,  by- 
eternal  happiness,  and  for  the  others  by  eternal  misfortune,  explains  in  one  word  all  that 
we  might  be  inclined  to  reckon  inexplicable  in  the  conduct  of  Providence. 

(7)  He  found  there  what  he  wished  to  find.  There  is  nothing  chance  to  him  who 
knows  every  thing. 


1  Ci 


K 


ite= 


>1 


CHAP.  XXII.]  ' 

fore  he  hath  anointed  me  (8)  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  poor  ;  he 
hath  sent  me  to  heal  the  contrite  of  heart  (9)  ;  to  preach  deliverance 
to  the  captives,  and  sight  to  the  blind  ;  to  set  at  liberty  them  that 
are  bruised  ;  to  preach  the  acceptable  year  of  the  Lord,  and  the  day 
of  reward  (10).  When  he  had  folded  the  book,  he  restored  it  to 
the  minister,  and  sat  down.  The  eyes  of  all  in  the  synagogue  were 
fixed  on  him,  and  he  began  to  say  to 'them  :  This  day  is  fulfilled  this 
Scripture  in  your  ears.” 

That  decisive  announcement,  which  was  to  them  who  heard  it  an 
abstract  of  all  the  discourses  which  Jesus  Christ  had  hitherto  made 
unto  them,  and  which  in  a  twinkling  brought  them  all  thronging 
back  on  their  recollection,  made  at  the  outset  a  great  impression  on 
the  whole  assembly.  But,  by  one  of  those  strange  revolutions  which 
we  sometimes  see  occurring  in  the  public  mind,  they  passed  imme¬ 
diately  from  admiration  to  envy — from  envy  to  contempt,  slander, 
incredulity,  and,  at  last,  to  a  transport  of  fury.  “  All  gave  [then  at 
first ]  testimony  to  him,  and  they  wondered  at  the  words  of  grace 


(8)  Invisible  unction — operated  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  diffused  himself  with  all  his 
gifts  into  the  holy  humanity  of  the  Saviour  at  the  moment  of  his  incarnation.  Regal  and 
sacerdotal  unction — by  which  he  has  been  consecrated  monarch  of  the  universe,  and  eter¬ 
nal  pontiff  of  the  new  law.  Thus,  although  he  has  not  received  the  material  and  sensible 
sign  thereof,  Jesus  Christ  is  very  truly  said  to  have  received  the  unction  (expressed  by 
the  name  of  Christ),  because  he  received  the  effect  of  it  in  all  its  plenitude,  and  in  a  de¬ 
gree  of  excellence  infinitely  superior  to  that  received  by  all  those  to  whom  the  same  name 
is  given  in  Scripture. 

(9)  This  prophecy  had  partly  its  accomplishment  in  the  miracles  which  Jesus  Christ 
has  wrought  to  cure  corporal  evils.  But,  to  reach  its  perfect  sense,  we  should  under¬ 
stand  it  with  reference  to  the  sad  effects  of  sin  in  souls,  and  the  powerful  remedies  which 
Jesus  Christ  was  capable  of  bringing  to  bear  upon  them,  and  which  he  actually  did. 

(10)  We  read  in  the  text,  the  day  of  reward — diem  retributionis.  It  is  generally  un¬ 
derstood  of  the  last  judgment  ;  and  what  further  favors  this  explanation  is,  that  this  day, 
which  is  here  called  the  day  of  reward ,  is  called  by  Isaiah  the  day  of  vengeance — dies 
ultiones.  Yet  it  has  been  remarked  that  Jesus  Christ,  after  having  read  the  prophecy, 
adds  presently  :  This  day  is  fulfilled  this  Scripture  in  your  ears.  Therefore  some  con¬ 
clude  that  the  allusion  here  was  not  to  the  last  judgment,  and  they  consequently  call 
the  day  of  reward  the  day  of  liberality  and  of  grace.  This  explanation  appears  to  them 
the  more  natural,  as  the  day  of  reward  is  to  be  found  placed  immediately  after  the  accepta¬ 
ble  year  of  the  Lord.  All  this  is  more  specious  than  solid.  Jesus  Christ  hath  come  to 
announce  present  mercy  and  the  judgment  to  come:  the  prophet,  that  he  shall  preach 
both  one  and  the  other.  It  is  not  necessary  for  him  to  judge  actually  in  order  to  accom¬ 
plish  the  prophecy — the  preaching  of  it  is  sufficient. 


lllli'!' 


/ 

4  €i 


lÀ 


! 


A 


MV 


i\ 


m 


mi 


9: 


that  proceeded  from  his  mouth,  and  they  said  :  How  came  this  man 
by  all  these  things  ?  and  what  wisdom  is  this  that  is  given  to  him, 
and  such  mighty  works  are  wrought  by  his  hands  ?” 

But  a  moment  before,  and  they  spoke  the  language  of  admiration. 
Now  it  is  that  of  envy,  contempt,  spite,  and  scandal.  “  Is  not  this,” 
added  they,  “  is  not  this  the  carpenter  ?  Is  not  this  the  carpenter’s 
son  (11),  the  son  of  Joseph,  the  son  of  Mary,  the  brother  of  James 
and  Joseph,  Simon  and  Jude  ?  And  his  sisters,  are  they  not  all  with 
us?  Whence,  therefore,  hath  he  all  these  things  ?  And  they  were 
scandalized  in  his  regard.” 

Yet,  Jesus  had  worked  but  few  miracles  at  Nazareth,  and  those 
few  had  but  little  lustre.  He  who  was  prodigal  of  them  elsewhere, 
seemed  parsimonious  of  them  with  regard  to  his  fellow-citizens. 
This  was  for  reasons  worthy  of  his  wisdom.  He  was  willing  to  ex¬ 
plain  them  to  these  people  ;  but,  as  his  miracles  were  apparently  the 
principal  subject  of  their  great  eagerness  to  see  him,  being  deceived 
on  this  point,  they  no  longer  valued  his  reasons,  and  spite  drove 
them  to  extreme  violence  against  his  person.  These  are  the  words 
which  gave  occasion  to  this,  outbreak  :  ( a )  “  He  said  to  them  then  : 
Doubtless  you  will  say  to  me  this  similitude  :  Physician,  heal  thy¬ 
self.  As  great  things  as  we  have  heard  done  in  Capharnaum,  do 
also  here  in  thy  own  country  (12).  Amen,  I  say  to  you,”  added  he, 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  57  ;  St.  Luke,  iv.  23,  24. 


(11)  In  Latin,  faber.  This  word  signifies  a  tradesman  or  an  artisan,  without  deter¬ 
mining  the  sort  of  work — only  it  excludes  delicate  workmanship.  It  therefore  leaves 
undecided  the  trade  in  which  he  was  engaged  during  the  thirty  years  of  his  hidden  life. 
Some  have  said  that  it  was  masonry  ;  others,  that  he  worked  at  an  iron  forge.  The  most 
universal  and  most  ancient  opinion  is,  that  Jesus  Christ  exercised  with  Saint  Joseph  the 
trade  of  carpenter.  Now,  that  God  should  draw  forth  a  prophet  from  the  shop  of  a 
carpenter,  was  what  the  Nazarenes  never  could  persuade  themselves.  They  would  have 
no' difficulty  in  believing  him,  if  God  had  drawn  him  forth  from  some  famous  academy; 
for  the  principle  of  their  incredulity  was  constantly  this  :  God  cannot  make  a  prophet 
out  of  a  carpenter.  Reduce  back  all  unbelievers  to  their  first  principle,  you  will  find  no¬ 
thing  more  weighty  than  this  assertion — it  is  always,  God  cannot  do  it. 

(12)  The  consideration  which  we  procure  for  ourselves  in  our  own  country  is  a  much 
more  precious  acquisition,  and,  in  some  way,  more  properly  our  own,  than  what  we  ac¬ 
quire  among  strangers.  Such,  at  least,  is  the  opinion  of  men,  which  is  sufficient  to 
justify  the  application  that  the  Saviour  here  makes  of  the  proverb  :  Physician,  heal 
thyself. 


//  "■ 


7 


p  S:  , 

kw  "I 


\t 


-</«g 


CHAP.  XXII.] 

“  no  prophet  is  accepted  in  his  own  country.  He  is  not  without 
honor,  save  in  his  own  country  and  in  his  own  house.” 

Wherefore,  he  cannot  work  many  miracles  there  ;  for  where  there 
is  but  little  consideration  for  his  person,  little  faith  could  be  placed 
in  his  words.  Now  miracles,  which  are  usually  the  reward  of  faith, 
must  not  be  lavished  on  incredulity.  And  to  show  that  such  had 
been,  at  all  times,  the  conduct  of  God,  (a)  “  In  truth,”  pursues  the 
Saviour,  “  in  truth  I  say  to  you  :  There  were  many  widows  in  the 
days  of  Elias  in  Israel,  when  heaven  was  shut  up  three  years  and 
six  months,  when  there  was  a  great  famine  throughout  all  the  earth  : 
and  to  none  of  them  was  Elias  sent,  but  to  Sarepta  of  Sidon,  to  a 
widow  woman.  And  there  were  many  lepers  in  Israel  in  the  time 
of  Eliseus  the  prophet,  and  none  of  them  was  cleansed  but  Naaman, 
the  Syrian.” 

Thus  they  should  not  expect  to  be  more  highly  favored  than  the 
Israelites  then  were  ;  and  Jesus  Christ  gave  them  sufficiently  to  un¬ 
derstand  that  the  fault  was  their  own. .  Why  did  they  not  correct 
themselves,  if  they  sought  to  be  better  treated  ?  And,  since  disdain 
for  his  person,  and  incredulity  to  the  words  of  him  whom  they 
should  at  least  regard  as  the  messenger  of  God,  rendered  them  un¬ 
worthy  of  the  favor  of  heaven,  why  did  they  not  strive  to  render 
themselves  worthy  by  listening  to  him  with  docility  and  respect  ? 
It  was  to  bring  them  to  this  point  that  Jesus  Christ  spoke  to  them 
after  this  fashion.  But  there  are  always  perverse  hearts,  who  turn 
remedies  into  poison,  and  grace  itself  into  a  stumbling-block  and  a 
rock  of  scandal.  The  truth  which  should  light  up  intelligence  in 
their  minds  served  only  to  complete  their  blindness.  On  hearing 
these  words,  “  all  they  in  the  synagogue  hearing  these  things,  were 
filled  with  anger.  They  rose  up  on  the  instant ,  and  thrust  him  out 
of  the  city.”  They  sought  not  merely  to  banish  him  ;  their  fury 
went  so  far  as  to  attempt  his  life.  “  That  they  might  cast  him 
down  headlong  (13),  they  brought  him  to  the  brow  of  the  hill 

(a)  St.  Luke,  iv.  25-30. 


(13)  Saint  Ambrose  and  Bede  judge  them  more  culpable  than  those  who  crucified 
the  Saviour,  because  the  latter  preserved,  at  least,  the  form  of  justice,  whereas  those  of 
Nazareth  followed  without  any  form  the  motions  of  a  brutal  fury.  We  hazard  the  opin- 

12 


~rm — ]  pv?  wp 


178 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 

whereon  their  city  was  built.  But  Jesus,  passing  through  the  midst 
of  them,  went  his  way,”  at  a  moderate  pace,  without  seeming  to  fear 
them,  and  without  receiving  any  hurt.  Whether  he  diffused  a  mist 
before  their  eyes  to  hinder  them  from  seeing  him,  or  whether  he 
bound  their  hands  by  invisible  chains — take  it  either  way,  it  must 
have  been  a  miracle  ;  but  it  was  almost  the  only  one  he  wrought  in 
his  own  country.  “  For,”  adds  the  sacred  text,  (a)  “  he  could  not 
do  any  miracle  there  (14),  on  account  of  their  unbelief,  only  that  he 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xiii.  58  ;  St.  Mark,  vi.  5,  6. 


ion,  contrary  to  their  view,  that  the  crime  is  more  enormous  where  there  is  more  reflec¬ 
tion,  and  that,  comparing  these  two  attempts,  one  is  murder,  and  the  other  assassina¬ 
tion  ;  besides,  that  the  most  criminal  injustice  is  that  which  clothes  itself  in  the  form  of 
justice. 

(14)  Not  if  we  merely  contemplate  his  absolute  power,  but  with  respect  to  the  ra¬ 
tional  exercise  of  power,  and  consistently  with  a  certain  order  which  his  wisdom  has 
freely  established,  from  which  he  may  deviate  when  it  pleaseth  him,  but  from  which  he 
very  rarely  does  deviate.  We  have  already  seen  that,  according  to  this  order,  God,  gen¬ 
erally  speaking,  grants  miracles  to  faith,  and  refuses  them  to  incredulity.  The  latter 
will  perhaps  ask  if  that  be  not  tantamount  to  saying  that  miracles  are  accorded  to  cre¬ 
dulity,  and  that  they  are  refused  to  enlightened  and  diffident  reason.  It  is  a  sufficient 
answer,  that  this  conduct  of  God  is  highly  worthy,  and  good  sense  alone  tells  us’  that 
graces  should  be  measured  out  according  to  the  use  which  is  made  of  them,  and  that, 
consequently,  they  should  be  redoubled  for  those  who  profit  by  them,  and  be  retrenched 
from  those  who  abuse  them.  The  inhabitants  of  Nazareth  belong  to  the  latter  class. 
Jesus  Christ  had  wrought  some  miracles  among  them,  and  rumor  had  informed  them  of 
those  which  he  had  wrought  at  Capharnaum.  This  was  enough  to  make  them  believe  ; 
and  had  they  believed,  haying  this  sufficient  proof,  prodigies  would  have  been  multiplied 
in  their  favor.  But,  by  not  believing,  they  deserved  that  Jesus  Christ  should  in  some 
manner  weaken  this  proof  in  their  regard,  very  far  from  fortifying  it.  We  should  say 
the  same  thing  with  reference  to  the  miracles  upon  which  religion  is  founded.  They 
form,  for  every  straightforward  and  impartial  mind,  a  more  than  sufficient  proof.  God 
will  not  perform  other  miracles  for  those  who  do  not  believe  ;  and  he  will  perform  them 
for  those  who  already  believe.  On  his  part,  this  is  goodness  towards  the  latter,  and  jus¬ 
tice  with  regard  to  the  others.  And,  when  I  say  that  God  will  perform  fresh  miracles, 
I  suppose,  what  is  true,  that  miracles  have  never  ceased  in  the  Church.  They  have 
been  wrought  in  the  Church  from  its  birth,  and  they  shall  be  wrought  in  it  until  the  con¬ 
summation  of  ages.  The  verbal  process  of  canonizations  is  a  judicial  and  incontestable 
proof  for  all  the  period  which  has  elapsed  since  that  period  when  these  proceedings 
commenced — the  very  period  with  reference  to  which  doubts  might  more  readily  be  en¬ 
tertained  as  to  the  gift  of  miracles  having  remained  in  the  Church.  But  it  has  been  re¬ 
marked,  and  we  may  again  remark,  that  miracles  follow  faith  ;  that  is  to  say,  that  the 
more  faith  there  is,  the  more  miracles  there  are,  and  that  the  source  of  miracles  is  al¬ 
most  entirely  dried  up  in  places  where  faith  is  dead  or  dying.  Thus,  incredulity  in  mir- 


OF  O UK  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


acles  is  the  cause  of  the  withdrawal  of  miracles,  and  the  mystery  of  the  parables  was  in 
punishment  of  incredulity  of  the  doctrine  which  had  been  so  publicly  promulgated.  The 
conduct  of  God  sustains  itself,  and  all  his  judgments  are  justified. 


cured  a  few  that  were  sick,  laying  his  hands  upon  them  ;  and  he 
wondered  because  of  their  unbelief.”  He  who  had  wondered  at  the 
faith  of  a  Gentile,  found  in  his  fellow-citizens  a  prodigy  of  infidelity 
capable  of  causing  him  equal  surprise.  These  two  prodigies  are 
daily  renewed — that  of  faith  to  an  heroic  pitch  amongst  barbarous 
nations  at  the  first  glimmerings  they  descry  of  evangelical  truth  ; 
and,  in  the  bosom  of  Christianity,  the  prodigy  of  incredulity  rising 
to  downright  personal  ha'tred  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  most  furious 
demonstrations  against  his  religion  and  its  ministers. 

These  proceedings,  which  obliged  the  Saviour  to  quit  his  ungrate¬ 
ful  country,  were  unable  to  repress  his  zeal.  True,  he  abandoned 
to  their  reprobate  senses  these  self-blinded  individuals,  who  had 
passed  the  sentence  upon  themselves,  that  they  were  unworthy  of 
the  eternal  life  which  his  mercy  had  come  to  offer  them.  But  it 
was  only  to  seek  elsewhere  minds  more  docile  and  hearts  better  dis¬ 
posed.  (a)  “  He  went  about  all  the  cities  and  towns,  teaching  in 
their  synagogues,  and  preaching  the  Gospel  of  the  kingdom,  and 
healing  every  disease  and  every  infirmity.  And,  seeing  the  multi¬ 
tudes”  of  people  who  crowded  to  him  from  all  parts,  “  he  had  com¬ 
passion  on  them,  because  they  were  distressed,  and  lying  like  sheep 
that  have  no  shepherd.” 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  35,  36. 


i  1  xafrwah* 

fi-  1 

6 

180 


IHE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  L 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

MISSION  OF  THE  TWELVE  APOSTLES. - INSTRUCTIONS  AND  ADVICE  THAT  JESUS  GIVES 

THEM. 

(a)  “  Then  lie  saitli  to  his  disciples  :  The  harvest  indeed  is  great, 
but  the  laborers  are  few.  Pray  ye  therefore  the  Lord  of  the  har¬ 
vest  that  he  send  forth  laborers  into  his  harvest.”  We  cannot  ra¬ 
tionally  doubt  the  execution  of  this  order,  or  tl^at  all  the  disciples 
made  the  prayer  prescribed  by  their  Divine  Master.  It  could  not 
fail  to  be  heard,  since  he  who  was  to  hear  it  was  no  other  than  he 
who  invited  them  to  make  the  petition.  (£)  “  Then  calling  together 
his  twelve  apostles,  he  gave  them  power  and  authority  over  all  dev¬ 
ils,  to  cast  them  out,  and  to  heal  all  manner  of  diseases,  and  all  man¬ 
ner  of  infirmities.  He  began  to  send  them  two  and  two,”  in  order 
that  they  might  aid  one  another,  and  that  there  might  be  every¬ 
where  two  witnesses  to  the  same  truth.  “  The  names  of  the  twelve 
apostles  are  these” — as  we  have  seen  before,  yet  they  are  ranged 
here  in  an  order  somewhat  different  from  the  first,  and  we  believe 
from  that  in  which  they  were  associated.  “  The  first,  Simon,  who  is 
called  Peter,  and  Andrew  his  brother  ;  James  the  son  of  Zebedee, 
and  John  his  brother  ;  Philip  and  Bartholomew  ;  Thomas  and  Mat¬ 
thew,  the  publican;  James  the  son  of  Alpheus,  and  Thaddeus;  Si¬ 
mon  the  Canaanean,  and  Jndas  Iscariot,  who  also  betrayed  Jesus.” 

(c)  “  He  commanded  them  that  they  should  take  nothing  for  the 
way  but  a  staff  only  :”  even  this  they  were  merely  to  make  use  of 
for  a  support,  for  we  shall  presently  see  that  he  did  not  allow  them 
to  make  use  of  it  for  self-defence.  This  explains  the  apparent  con¬ 
tradiction  of  the  staff  now  allowed  and  now  forbidden.  In  addition, 
he  enjoined  upon  them  “that  they  should  take  no  scrip,  no  bread, 
no  money  in  their  purse,  but  to  be  shod  with  sandals,  and  that  they 
should  not  put  on  two  coats.”  An  unwavering  confidence  in  Provi 
dence  was  to  be  then  substituted  for  all  these  provisions.  But  W; 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  ix.  37,  38. 
(c)  St.  Mark,  vi.  8,  9 


(b)  St.  Luke,  ix.  1,  2  ;  St.  Matthew,  x. 
1  ;  St.  Mark,  vi.  7. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


181 


CHAP.  XXHI.] 

must  hear,  from  the  very  lips  of  the  Saviour,  the  admirable  regula¬ 
tions  which  he  gave  to  them,  and,  in  their  persons,  to  their  successors 
in  the  apostolic  ministry  ;  for  they  equally  regard  the  latter,  except¬ 
ing  the  first,  which  even  may  also  serve  to  teach  them  that  they  ought 
I  not  to  go  elsewhere  than  whither  they  are  sent,  and  that  if  it  be  crim¬ 
inal  to  preach  without  a  mission,  it  would  also  be  a  crime  to  step  ever 
so  little  beyond  its  prescribed  bounds. 

(a)  “  J esus  commanded  his  apostles,  saying  :  Go  ye  not  into  the 
way  of  the  Gentiles,  and  into  the  cities  of  the  Samaritans  enter  ye 
not  ;  but  go  ye  rather  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel  ;  and 
going,  preach,  saying  :  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand.  Heal  the 
sick,  raise  the  dead,  cleanse  the  lepers,  cast  out  devils.  Freely  have 
I  you  received,  freely  give.  Do  not  possess  gold,  nor  silver,  nor  mon¬ 
ey  in  your  purses  ;  nor  scrip  for  your  journey,  nor  two  coats,  nor 
shoes,  nor  a  staff.”  Be  assured,  however,  that  no  necessary  shall  be 
wanting  to  you,  “  for  the  workman  is  worthy  of  his  meat.  Into  what¬ 
ever  city  or  town  you  shall  enter,  inquire  who  in  it  is  worthy  ;  there 
abide,  until  you  go  thence  (1).  When  you  go  into  the  house,  salute 
it,  saying  :  Peace  be  to  this  house  ;  and  if  that  house  be  worthy,  your 
peace  shall  come  upon  it  ;  but  if  it  be  not  worthy,  your  peace  shall 
return  to  you  (2).  Whosoever  shall  not  receive  you,  nor  hear  your 
words,  going  forth  out  of  that  house  or  city,  shake  off  the  dust  from 
your  feet  for  a  testimony  to  them  (3).  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  it  shall 
be  more  tolerable  for  the  land  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah  in  the  day 
of  judgment  than  for  that  city.” 

This  advice  might  suffice  to  the  apostles  for  this  first  mission  ;  it 
was  to  be  rather  brief  :  no  persecution  awaited  them  there,  and  it 
was  merely  a  slight  essay  of  those  missions,  wherein,  cross  in  hand, 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  x.  5  ;  St.  Mark,  vi.  11. 


(1)  It  is  said  in  Saint  Luke:  And  whatsoever  house  you  shall  enter  into,  abide  there, 
and  depart  not  from  thence.  There  would  be  levity  in  doing  so  without  reason,  or  a  del¬ 
icacy  very  unbecoming  in  an  apostle,  if  done  from  the  hope  of  better  treatment  ;  and 
whatever  was  the  motive,  the  host  thus  left  would  certainly  have  cause  to  complain. 

(2)  The  good  that  you  have  wished  them  shall  come  to  pass  in  one  way  or  the  other. 

(3)  Dust  on  the  feet  is  the  proof  of  the  journey  ;  and  to  shake  off  this  dust  was,  on  the 
part  of  the  apostles,  equivalent  to  saying:  We  are  come,  and  you  have  not  wished  to  re¬ 
ceive  us.  This  is  the  way  in  which  that  action  rendered  testimony  against  the  inhabitants 


182 


THE  HISTOKY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[PART  L 


they  should  confront  all  the  powers  of  the  universe,  and,  without 
other  weapons  than  patience,  range  all  people  under  the  law  of  the 
Master,  who  sent  them.  As  yet,  they  were  incapable  of  the  latter 
missions,  because  they  were  not  yet  “  clad  with  virtue  from  on  high.” 
Still,  before  he  imparted  to  them  strength  for  these,  he  wishes  to 
convey  to  them  a  knowledge  of  them,  and  he  proceeds  to  do  so  by 
the  following  words,  rapidly  sketching  before  their  eyes  the  terrible 
picture  of  the  combats  +hey  should  have  to  endure,  they  and  their 
first  disciples  ;  for  we  have  in  this  picture  an  historical  sketch  of  the 
three  first  ages  of  the  Church.  This  prophetic  picture  could  not  be 
otherwise  than  highly  useful  to  each  and  every  one  amongst  them. 
Besides,  as  it  contained  instructions  relative  to  the  various  trials 
through  which  they  were  to  pass,  by  seeing  that  they  were  foretold, 
the  apostles  would  be  less  surprised,  and  less  alarmed  when  they 
came  upon  them  ;  and  the  accomplishment  of  this  part  of  the  proph¬ 
ecy  guarantied  the  truth  of  those  passages  which  announced  their 
victories  and  their  crowns.  Hence  the  Saviour  continues  thus  : 

(a)  “  Behold,  I  send  you  as  sheep  in  the  midst  of  wolves.  Be  ye, 
therefore,  wise  as  serpents  and  simple  as  doves  (4).  But  beware  of 
men”  (meaning  those  whom  he  has  just  called  wolves).  “  For  they 
will  deliver  you  up  in  councils,  and  they  will  scourge  you  in  their 
synagogues.  And  you  shall  be  brought  before  governors  and  be¬ 
fore  kings  for  my  sake,  for  a  testimony  (5)  to  them  and  to  the  Gen¬ 
tiles.  But  when  they  shall  deliver  you  up,  take  no  thought  how  or 
what  to  speak  ;  for  it  shall  be  given  you  in  that  hour  what  to  speak. 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  x.  16-42. 


(4)  Meekness  and  simplicity  are  the  primary  virtues  which  Jesus  Christ  prescribes  to 
the  apostles.  They  should  neither  oppose  force  to  violence  nor  wiles  to  malice.  The 
prudence  of  the  serpent  considerably  perplexes  the  commentators^  We  know  that  this 
animal  has  a  lively  and  piercing  glance.  It  is  natural  to  think  that  Jesus  Christ  enjoins 
his  disciples  to  be  clear-sighted  like  the  serpent,  in  order  to  discover  the  snares  of  their 
enemies,  and  to  avoid  them  by  flight  or  by  concealment  ;  for  he  leaves  them  no  other 
means  of  defending  themselves  against  them. 

(5)  Much  more  by  the  testimony  of  blood  than  by  that  of  speech.  This  it  was  which 
caused  the  name  of  martyrs,  which  signifies  witnesses,  to  be  given  to  them  who  sealed 
with  their  blood  the  truths  of  the  Gospel.  For  if  there  be 'no  greater  love  than  to  give 
ime’ s'  life  for  those  whom  we  love,  there  is  no  stronger  persuasion  than  to  shed  our  blood 
in  support  of  our  cause. 


(S 


Vf 

m>  A 


For  it  is  not  you  that  speak,  but  the  spirit  of  your  Father  that  speak- 
eth  in  you.”  Moreover,  it  is  not  merely  on  the  part  of  your  fellow- 
citizens  that  you  shall  encounter  so  violent  a  persecution.  “The 
brother  also  shall  deliver  up  the  brother  to  death,  and  the  father 
the  son  :  and  the  children  shall  rise  up  against  their  parents,  and 
shall  put  them  to  death  ;  and  you  shall  be  hated  by  all  men  for  my 
name’s  sake  :  but  he  that  shall  persevere  unto  the  end,  he  shall  be 
saved.” 

Meantime,  Jesus  Christ,  who  wishes  that  his  disciples  should  be 
intrepid  under  the  sword  of  persecution,  would  not  that  an  indis¬ 
creet  zeal  should  thrust  them  under  its  blows.  Wherefore,  he  adds, 
“  When  they  shall  persecute  you  in  this  city  (6),  flee  into  another  (7 ). 
Amen,  I  say  unto  you  :  You  shall  not  finish  all  the  cities  of  Israel 
till  the  Son  of  man  come  (8).” 

(6)  Persecution  is  an  equivocal  sign  of  truth  or  virtue.  The  wicked  suffer  it  as  well 
as  the  good,  the  Jews  as  well  as  the  Christians,  heretics  as  well  as  Catholics,  and  ranters 
as  well  as  apostles.  Happy  those  who,  like  the  latter,  suffer  it  for  justice  !  It  is  not  the 
pain,  it  is  the  cause  which  makes  the  martyr. — Saint  Augustine. 

(7)  Flight  was  not  merely  allowed  the  apostles,  it  was  prescribed  to  them:  it  pre¬ 
served  to  the  growing  Church  her  first  pastors,  and,  by  dispersing  them,  it  was  instru¬ 
mental  to  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel.  In  subsequent  times  it  has  been  commanded 
or  permitted,  or  forbidden  according  to  circumstances.  It  is  even  commanded  to  the 
pastor,  when  his  presence  would  more  injure  the  Church  than  his  absence  :  it  is  permit¬ 
ted  to  him,  when  the  persecution  is  levelled  against  him  alone,  and  that  his  ministry  can 
be  easily  supplied  by  others  :  it  is  prohibited  to  him  when  his  flock  would  in  consequence 
thereof  encounter  notable  damage.  This  is  the  case  wherein  he  must  give  his  life  for  his 
flock.  It  rarely  occurs  that  flight  is  prohibited  to  those  who  are  not  pastors,  and  it  is 
commanded  to  them,  when  the  knowledge  they  have  of  their  weakness  makes  them  ap¬ 
prehend  that  they  may  fall  under  the  effect  of  persecution  :  in  this  case  we  should  prefer 
our  own  salvation  to  that  of  others. 

(8)  Several  interpreters  think  that  these  words  were  said  to  the  apostles  ;  others  con¬ 
tend  that  they  regard  those  amongst  their  successors  who  shall  preach  the  Gospel  in  the 
time  of  Anti-Christ.  According  to  the  first  interpretation,  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  man 
should  be  understood  with  inference  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem;  according  to  the 
second,  what  are  here  called  the  cities  of  Israel  are  the  Christian  cities  which,  at  the  end 
of  the  world,  shall  have  apostatized  from  the  faith,  and  shall  persecute  its  preachers  : 
each  interpretation  has  its  difficulties.  Nevertheless,  as  these  difficulties  are  less  than 
those  which  are  to  be  met  in  the  other  ways  of  explaining  this  text,  the  most  probable 
thing  we  can  say  here  is,  that  each  of  these  interpretations  is  the  correct  one.  In  the 
first  case,  the  prophecy  must  have  been  understood  by  the  apostles  ;  in  the  second  case, 
it  shall  be  understood  at  the  end  of  ages  ;  in  either  case,  Jesus  Christ  shall  not  have  made 
it  in  vain.  For  as  we  have  already  remarked,  although  nothing  is  useless  in  Scripture,  it 
does  not,  therefore,  follow  that  all  therein  should  be  equally  useful  for  all  times. 


Y/Ï 


>v 


-''A!'/ 


■Hsn  j  »nij7ï«Ui  *"i  ''i*r  1  |  ’‘''''  hi 


184  THE  HISTOKY  OF  THE  LIFE  *  -[PART  L 

If  he  announces  to  them  great  sufferings,  he  presents  to  them  at 
the  same  time  great  motives.  Of  these  his  own  example  is  the  first. 
“  The  disciple,”  said  he,  “  is  not  above  the  Master,  nor  the  servant 
above  the  Lord.  It  is  enough  for  the  disciple  that  he  be  as  his  Mas¬ 
ter,  and  the  servant  as  his  Lord.  If  they  have  called  the  good  man 
of  the  house  Beelzebub,  how  much  more  them  of  his  household.” 
We  may  conceive  that  this  motive  had  much  greater  force,  when 
men’s  rage,  passing  from  words  to  the  most  sanguinary  deeds,  had 
fastened  to  the  cross  the  Master  and  the  Lord.  “Therefore  fear 
them  not,”  said  the  Saviour,  “  for,”  despite  the  fury  of  the  world, 
“  nothing  is  covered”  in  the  doctrine  which  I  teach  you  “  that  shall 
not  be  revealed  ;  nor  hid,  that  shall  not  be  known.  That  which  I 
tell  you  in  the  dark,  speak  ye  in  the  light  :  and  that  which  you  hear 
in  the  ear,  preach  ye  upon  the  house-tops  (9).” 

God  alone  is  to  be  feared,  and  he  shields  them  with  his  almighty 
protection  :  new  motives  of  confidence,  which  the  Saviour  proposes 
in  these  words  :  “  Fear  ye  not  them  that  kill  the  body,  and  are  not 
able  to  kill  the  soul  (10).  But  rather  fear  him  that  can  destroy 
both  soul  and  body  into  hell.  Are  not  two  sparrows  sold  for  a  far¬ 
thing  ?  and  not  one  of  them  shall  fall  to  the  ground  without  your 
Father.  But  the  very  hairs  of  your  head  are  all  numbered.  Fear 
not,  therefore  :  better  are  ye  than  many  sparrows.”  Lastly,  gather¬ 
ing  into  one  focus  what  must  form  the  main  objects  of  their  desires 
and  of  their  fear  :  “  Every  one,  said  he,  that  shall  confess  me  before 
men,  I  will  also  confess  him  before  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven  ; 
but  he  that  shall  deny  me  before  men,  I  will  also  deny  him  before 
my  Father  who  is  in  heaven.” 

It  was  further  necessary  to  fortify  the  disciples  against  another 
trial,  less  terrible  in  appearance,  yet  often  more  formidable  in  effect 
than  tyrants  and  tortures  :  that  is,  what  they  should  have  to  under¬ 
go.  on  the  part  of  their  own  relatives.  Several  amongst  them  were 


(9)  Amongst  the  Jews  the  roofs  of  the  houses  were  flat,  which  makes  the  figure  more 
appropriate  than  if  the  roofs  had  been  of  the  same  form  as  ours. 

(10)  They  should  not  be  feared  for  two  reasons.  1st.  They  cannot  take  away  the  life 
of  the  soul.  2d.  They  can  take  away  the  life  of  the  body  by  torments.  For  they  would 
be  much  more  formidable  if  the  body  could  suffer  always  without  dying  ;  but  it  soon  per¬ 
ishes,  and  in  perishing,  it  snatches  away  from  them  their  victim,  and  disappoints  their  fury. 


CHAP.  XX ni.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


to  use  the  utmost  violence  ;  but  others  were  only  to  employ  persua¬ 
sion  and  tears.  The  finest  minds  are  most  sensible  to  the  latter  ; 
and  then  almost  reproach  themselves  with  the  virtuous  resistance, 
as  if  it  were  a  criminal  act.  Be  silent,  flesh  and  blood,  and  learn  at 
last,  that  all  fear  should  give  way  to  the  fear  of  the  Most  High — 
his  love  soars  far  above  all  other  love.  For  this  is  the  meaning  of 
these  words,  so  terrifying  to  nature,  and  yet  so  conformable  to  the 
light  of  reason,  since  they  merely  express  the  rights  of  God,  those 
rights  which  there  would  be  as  much  blindness  as  impiety  in  dis¬ 
puting  with  him.  Let  us,  then,  hearken  to  these  warnings,  the  same 
which  issued  from  the  lips  of  him  who  is  truth  itself.  “  Do  not 
think  that  I  came  to  send  peace  upon  the  earth.  I  came  not  to 
send  peace,  but  the  sword  (11).  For  I  am  come  to  set  a  man  at 
variance  against  his  father,  the  daughter  against  her  mother,  and 
the  daughter-in-law  against  the  mother-in-law  ;  and  a  man’s  enemies 
shall  be  they  of  his  own  household.  He  that  loveth  father  or 
mother  more  than  me,  is  not  worthy  of  me  ;  and  he  that  loveth  son 
or  daughter  more  than  me,  is  not  worthy  of  me.  He  that  taketh 
not  up  his  cross  and  followeth  me,  is  not  worthy  of  me.  He  that 
findeth  his  life,  shall  lose  it  ;  and  he  that  shall  lose  his  life  for  me, 
shall  find  it.” 

Jesus  Christ  concludes  this  discourse  by  the  magnificent  promises 
he  makes  to  those  who  shall  exercise  charity  and  hospitality  towards 
his  disciples.  These  promises  are  evidence  of  the  tenderness  he  en¬ 
tertained  for  them,  and  a  fresh  encouragement  against  the  persecu¬ 
tions  which  he  had  foretold  them.  By  inviting  all  men  to  do  good 
to  them,  he  shows  us  how  well  he  loves  them,  and  that  if  he  allows 
them  to  be  ill-used,  it  is  only  to  perfect  their  virtue,  and  enrich 


(11)  He  does  not  say  war,  where  combatants  fight  on  both  sides,  because  his  disciples, 
who  were  to  receive  the  blows,  should  not  return  them.  He  therefore  says  the  sword  ; 
that  is  to  say,  as  appears  by  the  ensuing  words,  the  separation  of  the  heart  on  one  side, 
and  on  the  other,  bodily  separation,  by  the  impossibility  of  dwelling  together.  More¬ 
over,  we  must  not  understand  this  as  meaning  that  Jesus  Christ  should  be  the  author  of 
the  division  :  he  shall  merely  be  the  occasion  thereof.  He  comes  to  establish  the  Gos¬ 
pel,  which  shall  be  received  by  some,  and  refused  by  others.  The  latter  wish  to  eradi¬ 
cate  it  from  the  hearts  of  the  others,  and  with  this  design  shall  persecute  them.  Here 
we  have  a  division  established  ;  but  it  is  visible  that,  if  the  Gospel  be  the  occasion  of  it, 
its  enemies  are  the  true  authors  thereof. 


»  m  "^'l  ^  1  | 


8f  ii| 


vJV 


186 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 

their  crown.  Wherefore,  as  if  he  had  again  said  to  them,  Go,  then, 
without  fear  ;  already  assured  of  my  protection,  you  will  ever  find 
men  who  will  deem  it  meritorious  to  entertain  you  kindly,  and  to 
share  with  you  their  goods,  he  continues  in  these  terms  :  u  He  that 
receiveth  you,  receiveth  me  ;  and  he  that  receiveth  me,  receiveth 
him  that  sent  me.  He  that  receiveth  a  prophet  in  the  name  of  a 
prophet,  shall  receive  the  reward  of  a  prophet  ;  and  he  that  receiv¬ 
eth  a  just  man  in  the  name  of  a  just  man,  shall  receive  the  reward 
of  a  just  man.  Whosoever  shall  give  to  drink  to  one  of  these  little 
ones  a  cup  of  cold  water  only  in  the  name  of  a  disciple,  amen,  I  say 
to  you,  he  shall  not  lose  his  reward.” 

(a)  “  When  Jesus  had  made  an  end  of  commanding  his  twelve 
disciples,  he  passed  from  thence  to  teach  and  preach  in  their  cities. 
The  apostles  going  forth  [also\  went  about  through  the  towns, 
preaching  the  Gospel,  and  healing  everywhere.  They  preached  that 
men  should  do  penance  ;  they  cast  out  many  devils,  and  anointed 
with  oil  many  that  were  sick,  and  healed  them  (12).” 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

DECAPITATION  OF  SAINT  JOHN. - MULTIPLICATION  OF  THE  LOAVES  AND  FISHES. - 

JESUS  WALKS  ON  THE  WATER,  AND  SUPPORTS  PETER. 

( b )  “  Now  Herod  the  tetrarch  heard  the  fame  of  Jesus,  for  his 
name  was  made  manifest.  He  heard  all  things  that  were  done  by 
Jesus,  and  he  was  in  doubt,  because  it  was  said  by  some  :  John  the 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xi.  1  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  6  ;  (6)  St.  Matthew,  xiv.  1,  2-5  ;  St.  Mark, 

St.  Mark,  vi.  12,  13.  vi.  14-20  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  7—9. 


(12)  The  Council  of  Trent  declares  that  the  sacrament  of  extreme  unction  is  insinuated 
by  these  words.  Therefore,  two  sorts  of  persons  are  deceived — those  who  say  that  it  is 
here  clearly  established,  and  those  who  say  that  these  words  have  no  reference  to  it. 
But  the  error  of  the  second  is  more  malignant  and  more  dangerous  than  that  of  the  first. 
In  what  relates  to  the  proof  of  revealed  dogmas,  we  deceive  ourselves  more  innocently 
by  addition  than  by  subtraction. 


*4 

4  ^  it 


/> 


c\V,  r^î': 


i\ 


4-j 


CHAP.  XXIV.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


Baptist  is  risen  again  from  the  dead,  and,  therefore,  mighty  works 
show  forth  themselves  in  him.  Others  said  it  is  Elias  hath  appear¬ 
ed  ;  and  others,  that  one  of  the  old  prophets  had  risen  again.  But 
Herod  said  :  John  I  have  beheaded  ;  but  who  is  this  of  whom  I 
hear  such  things  ?  And  he  sought  to  see  him.”  Still,  carried  away 
by  popular  opinion,  “  he  said  to  his  servants  :  This  is  John  the  Bap¬ 
tist,  whom  I  beheaded  ;  he  is  risen  from  the  dead.  For  Herod  him¬ 
self  had  sent  and  apprehended  John,  and  bound  him  in  prison,  for 
the  sake  of  Herodias,  wife  of  Philip,  his  brother,  because  he  had 
married  her;  for  John  said  to  Herod  :  It  is  not  lawful  for  thee  to 
have  thy  brother’s  wife.  Herod,  having  a  mind  to  put  him  to  death, 
feared  the  people,  because  they  esteemed  him  as  a  prophet.  Now, 
Herodias  laid  snares  for  him,  and  was  desirous  to  put  him  to  death, 
and  could  not,  for  Herod  feared  John,  knowing  him  to  be  a  just 
and  holy  man  ;  and  kept  him,  and  when  he  heard  him,  did  many 
things,  and  heard  him  willingly.” 

The  holy  precursor’s  life  was  not  the  more  secure  on  this  account. 
Virtue  may  coerce  the  wicked  to  esteem  it  ;  but  this  estimation  does 
not  lessen  the  natural  hatred  they  entertain  towards  virtue.  He, 
therefore,  who  had  only  abstained  from  murder  through  fear  of 
men,  was  but  too  well  disposed  to  commit  the  same  out  of  compla¬ 
cency  for  a  woman.  '  All  she  wanted  was  the  occasion,  which  was 
not  long  in  presenting  itself,  (a)  “  A  convenient  day  was  come, 
when  Herod  made  a  supper  for  his  birth-day  for  the  princes,  and 
tribunes,  and  the  chief  men  of  Galilee.  When  the  daughter  of 
Herodias  had  come  in,  and  had  danced,  and  had  pleased  Herod, 
and  them  that  were  at  table  with  him,  the  king  said  to  the  damsel, 
with  an  oath  :  Ask  of  me  what  thou  wilt,  and  I  will  give  it  thee, 
though  it  be  the  half  of  my  kingdom.”  The  habits  of  the  country 
did  not  permit  the  presence  of  women  on  these  occasions  ;  we  must 
not,  then,  be  astonished  at  the  absence  of  Herodias.  Her  daughter, 
who  was  merely  a  child,  might  appear  there  a  few  moments  without 
any  consequence.  But  the  child  had  already  sufficient  understand¬ 
ing  to  conceive  that  she  ought  not  to  decide  on  the  request  which 
it  was  proper  to  make — “  Who,”  therefore,  “  when  she  was  gone  out, 
said  to  her  mother,”  after  having  recounted  to  her  the  promise  and 


^W</% 


AV  _  j 

%  Ci 


u 


\ 


\x 


\  ï. 


188 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  1 


the  oath  of  the  king  :  “  What  shall  I  ask  ?  The  head  of  John  the 
Baptist,  said  the  mother.  And  when  she  was  come  immediately 
with  haste  to  the  king,  (a)  being  instructed  before  by  her  mother 
she  asked,  saying  :  I  will  that  forthwith  thou  give  me  in  a  dish  the 
head  of  John  the  Baptist.  The  king  was  struck  sad  :  yet,  because 
of  his  oath,  and  for  them  that  were  with  him  at  table  (1),”  he  would 
not  incur  the  shame  of  breaking  his  promise,  or  mortify  the  girl  by 
refusing  her  request  ;  he  would  not  displease  her,  but,  “  sending  an 
executioner,  he  commanded  that  his  head  should  be  brought  in  a 
dish.  The  executioner  beheaded  him  in  the  prison,  and  brought 
his  head  in  a  dish,  and  gave  it  to  the  damsel,  and  the  damsel  gave 
it  to  her  mother.”  Thus  the  head  of  the  greatest  of  men  was  made 
the  price  of  a  dance  ;  and,  after  this  transaction,  the  world  should 
be  fully  convinced  that  there  is  no  crime  too  dark  for  an  abandoned 
woman  to  exact,  or  a  weak  and  passionate  man  to  grant.  “  Which 
John’s  disciples  hearing,  came  and  took  the  body,  and  laid  it  in  a 
tomb.  Then  they  came  and  told  Jesus.  Which,  when  Jesus  had 
heard,  he  retired  from  thence  by  a  boat.” 

We  do  not  see  for  what  ,  reason  the  death  of  John  the  Baptist 
should  make  him  apprehensive  of  a  similar  fate.  But  what  we  can¬ 
not  see,  he  knew  ;  and  he  might  have  a  certainty  of  what  appears 
unlikely  to  us.  Yet,  what  we  read  in  Josephus  the  historian  may 
throw  some  light  upon  this  point.  He  says  that  Herod  put  John 
the  Baptist  to  death,  because  he  feared,  lest  he  should  excite  a  sedi¬ 
tion.  He  deceives  himself,  or,  rather,  he  wishes  to  deceive  the  world, 
as  to  the  real  cause  of  this  assassination,  which  was  no  other  than 
the  one  recounted  by  the  evangelists.  But  there  is  a  strong  pre¬ 
sumption  that  Herod,  to  exonerate  himself,  at  least  in  part,  from 
the  odium  of  so  great  a  crime,  disseminated  the  rumor  that  John 
the  Baptist  had  been  secretly  trying  to  cause  an  insurrection  amongst 
the  , people.  He  was  a  saint,  the  object  of  public  veneration,  and  he 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xiv.  8. 


(1)  It  is  not  unlikely  that  they  seconded  the  request  of  the  daughter,  and  that  they 
solicited  the  king  to  grant  it  to  her.  What  was  occurring  before  their  eyes  taught 
them  the  heavy  risk  they  might  incur  who  should  have  the  misfortune  to  displease  the 
favorite. 


^  |  vmj  '“"(ij  'iff/rç  ]  pWTÏiïfîp 


MIE  miLïïo  ®IF  MHAlIil 


~c»\vvr^ 


CHAP.  XXIY, 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


had  made  for  himself  several  disciples  :  on  what  ground,  then,  could 
they  accuse  him  of  sedition  ?  Now  all  these  traits  belonged  also  to 
Jesus  ;  and,  moreover,  he  was  a  worker  of  miracles.  Herod,  who  as 
yet  knew  nothing  of  him,  would  not  be  long  in  ignorance.  Might 
he  not,  when  he  became  aware  of  his  history,  conceive  the  design  of 
putting  him  to  death,  under  the  same  pretext,  inasmuch  as  Jesus 
resembled  John  in  so  many  ways  ?  His  death  could  not  be  attrib¬ 
uted  to  the  solicitations  of  Herodias.  Sedition  would  have  been 
the  sole  apparent  cause  of  it,  and  by  this  means  Herod  would  have 
given  more  likelihood  to  that  pretended  cause  for  the  death  of  John, 
by  extending  the  same  treatment  to  all  those  who  were  similarly 
situated,  although  they  did  not  come  in  collision  with  the  adulteress. 
In  one  word,  Herod  might  say:  The  proof  that  I  have  sacrificed 
John  to  the  public  safety,  and  not  to  the  vengeance  of  a  woman,  is, 
that  I  have  treated  Jesiis  in  the  same  way,  a  person  as  dangerous 
as  himself,  and  against  whom  this  woman  had  no  cause  of  com¬ 
plaint.  Those  who  say  that  there  were  too  many  witnesses  of  the 
true  cause  of  John’s  death,  to  leave  it  in  his  power  to  substitute 
another,  must  be  ignorant  of  the  fact,  that  the  people  may  be 
brought  to  believe  every  thing  you  wish,  even  if  there  were  one 
hundred  witnesses  to  the  contrary.  And,  in  point  of  fact,  Josephus 
assigns  no  other  cause  for  this  foul  deed,  than  the  fear  which  Herod 
entertained  lest  John  should  excite  a  sedition.  He  therefore  be¬ 
lieved  this  ;  or,  what  comes  almost  to  the  same  thing,  he  hoped  to 
make  it  believed,  although  he  lived  at  a  period  when  some  of  those 
who  assisted  at  that  fearful  festival  might  still  be  living. 

Thus  the  Man-God,  who  is  ignorant  of  nothing  which  can  happen 
in  any  possible  conjuncture,  might  know  the  designs  which  Herod 
had  formed  against  him,  if  he  had  remained  longer  within  reach  to 
feel  its  effects  ;  and  this  knowledge  may  have  been  the  motive  for 
his  retreat.  But  it  seems  that  to  this  reason  there  was  joined  a  sec¬ 
ond  :  (a)  “  The  apostles,  when  they  were  returned”  from  their  mis¬ 
sion,  “  coming  together  to  Jesus,  related  to  him  all  things  that  they 
had  done  and  taught.”  They  required  a  little  relaxation  after  such 
great  labor.  “  Jesus  said  to  them  :  Come  apart  into  a  desert  place, 

( a )  St.  Mark,  vi.  30-34  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  10,  11  ;  St.  John,  vi.  1-4. 


190 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIEE 


[part  L 

and  rest  a  little  ;  for  there  were  many  coming  and  going,  and  they 
had  not  so  much  as  time  to  eat.  Going  up  then  into  a  ship,  they 
went  aside  into  a  desert  place  apart  which  belongeth  to  Bethsaida, 
over  the  sea  of  Galilee,  which  is  that  of  Tiberias.  They  saw  them 
going  away,  and  many  knew  ;  they  ran  flocking  thither  on  foot 
from  all  the  cities,  and  were  there  before  him.  A  great  multitude 
followed  him,  because  they  saw  the  miracles  which  he  did  on  them 
that  were  diseased.  Jesus,  going  out  of  the  ship,  saw  a  great  mul¬ 
titude,  and  he  had  [  that ]  compassion  on  them”  which  he  was  accus¬ 
tomed  to  feel  on  beholding  them,  “  because  they  were  as  sheep  not 
having  a  shepherd.  He  received  them,  went  up  into  a  mountain, 
and  there  he  sat  with  his  disciples.  How  the  pasch,  the  festival- 
day  of  the  Jews,  was  near  at  hand.  Jesus  began  to  teach  them 
many  things.  He  spoke  to  them  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  healed 
them  who  had  need  of  healing.” 

( a )  “  When  the  day  was  now  far  spent,  his  twelve  disciples  came 
to  him,  saying  :  This  is  a  desert  place,  and  the  hour  is  now  past  ; 
send  them  away,  that,  going  into  the  next  villages  and  towns  round 
about,  they  may  buy  themselves  victuals  (2).  He  answering,  said 
to  them  :  They  have  no  need  to  go,  give  you  them  to  eat  (3).  And 
they  said  to  him  :  Let  us  go  and  buy  bread  for  two  hundred  pence, 
and  we  will  give  them  to  eat  (4).  When  Jesus,”  who,  from  the  top 

(a)  St.  Mark,  vi.  35  ;  St.  Matthew,  xiv.  15, *16  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  12  ;  St.  John,  vi.  5-7. 


(2)  These  people  forgot  even  the  care  of  providing  nourishment,  in  order  to  seek  the 
kingdom  of  God  and  his  justice.  They  found  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  we  are  going  to 
see  that  nourishment  did  not  fail  them. 

(3)  This  was  the  prophesying  of  what  was  going  to  take  place.  These  people  were 
fed,  in  point  of  fact,  from  the  hands  of  the  apostles,  and  out  of  the  little  stock  which 
they  had  for  provisions.  Pastors,  do  not  ever  despair  to  be  enabled  to  provide  for  the 
wants  of  your  people  :  give  what  you  have,  ask  from  God  what  you  have  not,  and  you 
shall  witness  miracles. 

(4)  This  appears  as  if  said  ironically.  But  as  the  same  thing  is  said  by  Saint  Andrew, 
in  a  serious  and  affirmative  tone,  it  is  more  natural  to  think  that  the  apostles  made  this 
proposition  as  if  they  both  wished  and  had  it  in  their  power  to  execute  it,  supposing  that 
Jesus  Christ  had  taken  them  at  their  word.  If  their  faith  may  seem  weak  on  this  occa¬ 
sion,  they  at  least  give  marks  of  a  very  unco'mmon  charity.  1st.  They  are  attentive  to 
the  wants  of  the  people,  and  they  are  careful  in  representing  them  to  their  divine  Master. 
2d.  They  propose  to  go  and  purchase  bread,  and  to  employ  a  sum  which  would  have 
apparently  exhausted  the  common  purse.  3d.  Lastly,  they  sacrificed  the  little  provisions 


v>' 


CHAP.  XXIV.  J  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  191 

of  a  mountain  lie  had  ascended,  could  discover  the  entire  plain,  “had 
lifted  up  his  eyes,  and  seen  that  a  very  great  multitude  cometh  unto 
him,  he  said  to  Philip  :  Whence  shall  we  buy  bread  that  these  may 
eat  ?  And  this  he  said  to  try  him  ;  for  he  himself  knew  what  he 
would  do.  Philip  answered  him  :  Two  hundred  pennyworth  of 
bread  are  not  sufficient  for  them,  that  every  one  may  take  a  little.” 
He  should  have  added  :  But  if  we  are  deficient  in  human  means, 
your  power  can  easily  supply  them.  It  was  this  act  of  faith  which 
Jesus  gave  him  an  opportunity  to  make,  yet  he  did  not  do  it.  But 
the  avowal  which  Philip  made  of  the  impossibility  of  providing  food 
for  so  many  mouths,  was  in  itself  a  proof  of  the  miracle  which  the 
Saviour  was  going  to  operate.  To  render  it  more  evident,  (a)  “  He 
said  to  the  apostles  :  How  many  loaves  have  you  ?  go  and  see  ;  and 
when  they  knew,  Andrew  the  brother  of  Simon,  one  of  his  disciples, 
saith  to  him  :  There  is  a  boy  here  that  hath  five  barley  loaves  and 
two  fishes  ;  but  what  are  these  among  so  many,  unless  perhaps  we 
should  go  and  buy  some  food  for  all  the  multitude  ?  Now,  there 
were  about  five  thousand  men,  besides  women  and  children.  There¬ 
upon,  he  commanded  them  that  they  should  make  them  all  sit  down 
by  fifties  in  a  company  upon  the  green  grass.  And  they  sat  down 

in  ranks  by  hundreds,  and  by  fifties  (5).” 

/ 

(a)  St.  Mark,  vi.  38-40  ;  St.  John,  vi.  8-10  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  13-15  ;  St.  Mat¬ 
thew,  xiv.  21. 


which  remained  for  themselves.  The  faith  was,  therefore,  weak  :  nevertheless,  the  char¬ 
ity  appears  not  to  have  been  so.  The  fact  is,  there  was  in  this  charity  more  of  natural 
compassion,  or  of  generosity,  than  of  charity,  properly  speaking.  For  charity  is  only 
such,  inasmuch  as  it  is  set  in  motion  by  motives  of  faith.  Nevertheless,  this  tender  and 
effective  compassion  is  still  a  virtue,  and  a  disposition  very  favorable  to  the  increase  of 
faith  and  the  perfection  of  charity. 

(5)  Saint  Luke  says  that  Jesus  Christ  gave  orders  to  his  apostles  to  distribute  the 
people  in  companies  of  fifty.  He  adds,  that  they  did  what  was  enjoined  upon  them. 
Still,  according  to  Saint  Mark,  they  made  up  companies — some  of  fifty,  others  of  one 
hundred  ;  which  might  make  it  be  thought  that  they  did  not  obey  to  the  letter.  If 
this  be  regarded  as  a  difficulty,  the  following  explanation  may  serve  for  the  solution  : — 
The  apostles  made  each  company  consist  of  fifty  men.  It  may  have  been  remarked, 
that  the  women  and  little  children  are  not  counted  ;  but  there  is  every  appearance  that 
they  did  not  separate  the  women  from  their  husbands,  nor  the  little  children  from  their 
mothers,  which  would  have  made  several  companies  of  one  hundred  persons,  although 
in  each  company  there  were  only  fifty  men. 


/b  v 

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«G 


192 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


"[part  I. 


(a)  “  Jesus  took  the  five  loaves  and  two  fishes,  and  looking  up  to 
heaven,  he  blessed  them  ;  he  then  broke  the  loaves  and  gave  to  his 
disciples,  to  set  before  them  that  were  sat  down.  In  like  manner 
also  he  divided  the  two  fishes  among  them  all,  as  much  as  they  could 
eat.  They  did  all  eat,  and  were  filled.  When  they  were  filled,  Je¬ 
sus  said  to  his  disciples  :  Gather  up  the  fragments  that  remain  (6), 
lest  they  be  lost.  They  gathered  up,  therefore,  and  filled  twelve 
baskets  (7 )  with  the  fragments  of  the  five  barley  loaves,  which  re¬ 
mained  over  and  above  to  them  that  had  eaten.  They  also  took  up 
the  leavings  of  the  fishes.  Those  men,  when  they  had  seen  what  a 
miracle  Jesus  had  done,  said:  This  is  of  a  truth  the  prophet  that  is 
to  come  into  the  world.  Jesus  therefore,  when  he  knew  that  they 
would  come  to  take  him  by  force,  and  make  him  king,  immediately 
obliged,  his  disciples  to  go  up  into  the  ship,  that  they  might  go  be¬ 
fore  him  over  the  water  to  Bethsaida,  whilst  he  dismissed  the  peo¬ 
ple  ;  and  when  he  had  dismissed  them,  he  fled  again  into  the  mount¬ 
ain  himself  alone  (8).  He  went  up  into  it  to  pray  ;  and  when  it  was 
evening  he  was  there  alone  (9).” 

It  must  have  been  perceptible  that  neither  Jesus  Christ  nor  his 
disciples  enjoyed  the  repose  they  sought  to  find  in  solitude.  Nature 


(a)  St.  Mark,  vi.  41-46  ;  St.  John,  vi.  12-15  ;  St.  Matthew,  xiv.  23. 


(6)  Thus  the  eucharistie  bread  satiates  an  entire  world,  and  is  not  consumed.  We 
have  just  seen  that  Jesus  Christ  employed,  upon  this  occasion,  the  same  ceremonies  as  at 
the  institution  of  the  eucharist.  He  shall  soon  tell  us  himself  that  this  miracle  was  the 
figure  of  it. 

(7)  Miraculous  multiplication,  the  ordinary  fruit  which  springs  from  alms-deeds.  Per¬ 
haps  it  is  the  most  common  of  all  prodigies.  Every  thing  is  not  written  ;  but  we  may 
not  hesitate  to  surmise  that,  amongst  those  persons  who  give  great  alms,  there  are  to  be 
found  some  who  have  experienced  it  more  than  once. 

What  remained  to  the  apostles  far  surpassed  what  they  had  given.  No  one  ever  grows 
poor  by  giving  alms,  but  very  often  an  individual  becomes  rich  by  so  doing.  This  virtue 
has  the  promises  for  the  present  and  for  the  future  life. 

(8)  After  this  flight  of  the  Saviour,  there  was  one  crime  for  which  he  should  not  have 
been  suspected,  viz.,  that  of  aspiring  to  royalty.  It  was,  nevertheless,  for  this  pretended 
crime  that  he  was  soon  after  judged,  condemned,  and  crucified.  Nothing  so  little  sur¬ 
prises  those  who  have  observed  the  extreme  excesses  to  which  the  blindness  of  passion 
urges  on  judicial  iniquity. 

(9)  He  did  not  require,  in  order  to  compose  his  mind,  either  solitude  or  the  silence  of 
night  ;  but  both  one  and  the  other  are  necessary  to  us,  and  he  wished  to  instruct  us. 


I  ’.A. 


i 


\U\vv 


r^rr 


•o  a  ®  a  a  «  « 


— _ 


did  require  it  ;  yet  charity  cannot  be  satisfied  to  grant  the  comfort 
to  itself,  whilst  there  remain  wants  to  be  alleviated.  In  such  cir¬ 
cumstances  the  truly  charitable  forget  themselves,  and  derive  their 
very  strength  from  exhaustion.  After  a  journey  so  very  fatiguing, 
the  disciples  had  not  a  more  tranquil  night.  To  obey  the  order  they 
had  just  received,  (a)  “  when  evening  was  come,  they  went  down  to 
the  sea,  and  when  they  had  gone  up  into  the  ship,  they  went  over 
the  sea  to  Capharnaum.”  But  ere  they  arrived,  their  faith  was  again 
tested  by  many  trials.  “  It  was  now  dark,  and  Jesus  was  not  come 
to  them.”  We  have  seen  already  that  “  he  himself  was  alone  on 
the  land.  But  the  boat  in  the  midst  of  the  sea  was  tossed  with  the 
waves,  for  the  sea  arose,  by  reason  of  a  great  wind  that  blew.  Je¬ 
sus  seeing  them  laboring  in  rowing,  for  the  wind  was  against  them, 
about  the  fourth  watch  of  the  night  (10),  he  cometh  to  them  walk¬ 
ing  upon  the  sea,  and  he  would  have  passed  them.  When  they  had 
rowed,  therefore,  about  five-and-twenty  or  thirty  (11)  furlongs  (12), 
they  see  Jesus  walking  upon  the  sea,  and  drawing  nigh  to  the  ship, 
and  they  were  afraid.  It  is  an  apparition,  say  they,  troubled,  and 
they  cried  out  for  fear  ;  for  they  all  saw  him,  and  were  troubled. 
Immediately  Jesus  spoke  to  them,  saying  :  Be  of  good  heart,  it  is  I, 

(a)  St.  John,  vi.  16-21  ;  St.  Mark,  vi.  47-52  ;  St.  Matthew,  xiv.  24,  26,  28-32. 


(10)  Towards  three  o’clock  in  the  morning.  The  night  was  divided  into  three  military- 
watches,  each  of  which  lasted  three  hours.  The  moon  was  then  at  its  full,  since  it  was 
the  time  of  Easter  ;  therefore  the  disciples  might  easily  see  Jesus  Christ,  but  they  could 
not  recognize  him.  The  Saviour’s  delay  had  then  the  effect  which  it  is  accustomed  to 
have  every  time  that  God  seems  to  forget  his  servants  in  their  tribulations.  He  tests 
their  faith,  he  exercises  their  patience,  he  renders  them  sensible  of  the  necessity  of  succor 
from  on  high,  he  obliges  them  to  recognize  and  adore  the  all-powerful  protector  from 
whom  salvation  cometh — salvation  which  could  no  longer  be  hoped  for,  but  from  him 
alone. 

(11)  It  is  only  consistent  with  truth  to  advance  as  uncertain  that  concerning  which  one 
has  not  entire  certainty,  and  there  is  nothing  in  this  repugnant  to  divine  inspiration.  The 
Holy  Ghost  may  have  inspired  the  sacred  writers  to  recount  things  precisely  as  they  knew 
them,  or  as  they  recollected  them,  supposing,  nevertheless,  that  in  their  recollections  or 
their  knowledge  there  was  merely  uncertainty  ;  for  if  there  were  error,  the  inspiration 
would  have  rectified  it.  This  is  also  applicable  to  the  two  or  three  measures  which  were 
contained  in  the  watering-pots  at  the  marriage  of  Cana. 

(12)  Eight  furlongs  make  one  Italian  mile,  and  sixteen  furlongs  make  one  of  the  com- 


% 


fear  ye  not.  Lord,  said  Peter,  making  answer,  if  it  be  thou  (13), 
bid  me  come  to  thee  upon  the  waters.  Come,  he  said  :  and  Peter, 
going  down  out  of  the  boat,  walked  upon  the  water  to  come  to  Je¬ 
sus.  But  seeing  the  wind  strong,  he  was  afraid,  and  when  he  began 
to  sink,  he  cried  out  :  Lord,  save  me.  Immediately  Jesus  stretching 
forth  his  hand,  took  hold  of  him,  and  said  to  him  :  O  thou  of  little 
faith,  why  didst  thou  fear  ?  The  disciples  were  willing,  therefore,  to 
take  him  into  the  ship,  and  he  went  up  to  them  into  the  ship.  And 
when  he  and  Peter  were  come  up  into  the  boat,  the  wind  ceased  ; 
and  they  were  far  more  astonished  within  themselves  (for,”  in  the 
trouble  in  which  they  were,  “  they  understood  not  concerning  the 
loaves,  for  their  heart  was  blinded)  ;  and  presently  the  ship  was  at 
the  land  to  which  they  were  going.”  This  was  the  fourth  miracle 
which  Jesus  Christ  wrought  in  their  presence  :  he  had  walked  upon 
the  waters;  he  had  made  Peter  do  the  same;  he  had  hushed  the 
tempest  ;  and,  lastly,  he  had  caused  them  to  make  in  a  moment  the 
passage  of  several  hours.  So  many  prodigies  operated  one  after  an¬ 
other,  caused  the  bandage  to  fall  from  their  eyes,  (a)  “  They  that 
were  in  the  boat  came  and  adored  him,  saying  :  Indeed  thou  art  the 
Son  of  God  (14). 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xiv.  33-35  ;  St.  Mark,  vi.  53-5 6. 


f/lWx 


'  </ 


(13)  Calvin,  who  reproaches  Saint  Peter  with  fifteen  mortal  sins,  finds  out  two  against 
him  here.  One  is  that  of  infidelity,  for  having  said  to  Jesus  Christ,  If  it  be  thou  :  there¬ 
fore  he  doubted,  concludes  Calvin.  The  other  is  that  of  presumption,  for  having  wished 
to  walk  upon  the  water,  like  his  Master.  Catholic  interpreters  find  here,  on  the  contrary, 
grounds  for  admiring  the  faith  of  this  great  apostle,  and  the  fervor  of  his  love.  There 
was  no  infidelity  in  doubting  whether  he  who  walked  upon  the  water  was  Jesus  Christ, 
since  they  did  not  see  him  distinctly  enough  to  be  assured  of  the  fact  ;  and  there  was  as 
much  faith  in  walking  upon  it  at  his  word,  supposing  that  it  was  he,  as  there  was  great 
love  in  doing  so  from  the  desire  of  sooner  joining  him.  Jesus  Christ,  by  telling  him  to 
come,  and  by  working  so  great  a  miracle  in  his  favor,  seals  with  his  approbation  all  the 
favorable  interpretations  which  may  be  given  to  this  act  of  the  chief  of  the  apostles.  It 
is  true  that  in  the  moment  of  danger  his  faith  wavered — that  is  to  say,  that  his  faith,  veyy 
lively  in  the  first  instance,  appeared  feeble  in  the  second.  Let  it  be  noticed,  nevertheless, 
that  what  Jesus  Christ  reproaches  him  with  is  not  infidelity,  but  merely  the  smallness  of 
his  faith.  Calvin  should  have  confined  himself  to  this  ;  but  it  was  a  difficult  matter  for 
him  to  spare  Saint  Peter,  whom  he  regarded,  with  reason,  as  the  founder  of  the  papacy. 

(14)  An  evangelist  has  already  told  us  that  the  apostles  had  embarked  in  order  to  go 
to  Capharnaum.  Another  makes  the  bark  arrive  now  at  Genesareth,  which  creates  in 


$  4N> 
4  ^  M 


j""  F* 


“  When  Jesus  and  his  disciples  had  passed  over,  they  came  into 
the  land  of  Genesareth,  and  set  ashore.  Immediately  when  they 
were  gone  out  of  the  ship,  the  men  of  that  place  knew  Jesus,  and, 
running  through  the  whole  country,  they  brought  in  beds  those  that 
were  sick  where  they  heard  he  was.  And  whithersoever  he  entered, 
into  towns  or  into  villages  or  cities,  they  laid  the  sick  in  the  streets, 
and  besought  him  that  they  might  touch  but  the  hem  of  his  garment. 
And  as  many  as  touched  him  were  made  whole.” 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

DISCOURSE  OF  JESUS  CHRIST  ON  THE  EUCHARIST. - MURMUR  OF  THE  JEWS. 

(a)  “  The  next  day,”  after  the  multiplication  of  the  loaves,  “  the 
multitude  that  stood  on  the  other  side  of  the  sea  saw  that  there  was 
no  other  ship  but  one  ;  that  Jesus  had  not  entered  into  the  ship  with 
his  disciples  ;  but  that  his  disciples  were  gone  away  alone.”  They 
were  at  a  loss  to  know  what  was  become  of  him  ;  and  this  people, 
still  proposing  to  proclaim  him  king,  sought  for  him  in  vain,  when 
“  other  ships  came  in  from  Tiberias  nigh  unto  the  place  where  they 
had  eaten  [miraculous^  bread,  the  Lord  giving  thanks.  When, 
therefore,  they  saw  that  Jesus  was  not  there,  nor  his  disciples,”  pre¬ 
suming,  moreover,  that  whatever  was  the  case,  he  had  gone  to  re¬ 
join  them,  “  they  took  shipping,  and  came  to  Capharnaum,  seeking 
for  Jesus.  When  they  found  him  on  the  other  side  of  the  sea,”  either 
that  same  day,  or  perhaps  the  day  after,  “  they  said  to  him,”  with  sur- 

(a)  St.  John,  vi.  22-27. 


embarrassing  difficulty  for  the  interpreters.  All  agree  that  Jesus  went  successively  ti» 
these  places,  which  were  not  far  distant  from  one  another.  But  some  state  that  he  first 
arrived  at  Capharnaum,  in  order  to  go  afterwards  to  Genesareth.  Others  state  that  he 
disembarked  at  Genesareth,  whence  he  proceeded  almost  immediately  to  Capharnaum. 
It  would  be  too  long  to  report  their  reasons  ;  and  the  question,  which  is  not  very  impor¬ 
tant,  would  not,  after  a  full  report,  be  any  thing  clearer  than  it  now  is. 


196 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

prise:  “Rabbi,  when  earnest  thou  hither?”  Instead  of  satisfying 
their  curiosity,  Jesus,  who  wished  to  instruct  them,  deemed  it  more 
proper  to  disclose  to  them  the  interested  motive  of  their  great  eager¬ 
ness  to  find  him.  “He  answered  them  [therefore]:  Amen,  amen,  I 
say  to  you,  you  seek  me,  not  because  you  have  seen  miracles,  but  be¬ 
cause  you  did  eat  of  the  loaves  and  were  filled.  Labor  not  for  the 
meat  which  perisheth,  but  for  that  which  endureth  unto  life  everlast¬ 
ing  (1),  which  the  Son  of  man  will  give  you,  for  him  hath  God  the 
Father  sealed”  by  the  prodigies  which  attest  the  truth  of  his  mis¬ 
sion,  and  which  are,  as  it  were,  the  letters  patent  by  which  God 
declares  to  all  men  that  it  i3  himself  who  sends  him,  and  that  all 
his  words  should  be  received  as  the  express  declaration  of  the  di¬ 
vine  will. 

An  idle  life,  passed  amid  the  abundance  of  good  things,  was,  as 
we  see,  the  sole  attraction  to  this  people,  and  this  the  bread  miracu¬ 
lously  multiplied  made  them  hope  from  Jesus  Christ.  The  first  of 
these  hopes  is  already  destroyed  by  this  word  of  the  Saviour  :  “  La¬ 
bor  ?  Neither  will  he  let  the  other  exist,  at  least  in  the  manner 
they  had  conceived  it.  Nevertheless,  as  he  has  just  spoken  to  them 
of  a  nourishment  which,  according  to  the  meaning  they  attached  to 
his  words,  should  hinder  them  from  dying,  their  appetite,  excited 
by  so  flattering  a  hope,  makes  them  consent  to  labor.  The  only 


(1)  Some  heretics  have  concluded,  from  this  expression,  that  it  is  forbidden  to  work 
for  our  living.  They  should  have  further  concluded  that  it  is  forbidden  to  eat,  since  Saint 
Paul  said  :  If  any  man  will  not  work,  neither  let  him  eat;  but  their  logic  did  not  go  quite 
so  far.  We  must  toil  in  order  to  live,  in  fulfilment  of  that  sentence  pronounced  against 
the  human  race  :  In  the  sweat  of  thy  brow  shalt  thou  eat  thy  bread.  But  there  are  two 
different  lives  :  the  life  of  the  body  and  the  life  of  the  soul — the  present  life  and  the  fu¬ 
ture  fife.  The  body  perishes,  the  soul  perisheth  not  ;  the  present  life  is  short,  the  future 
life  shall  be  eternal.  To  prefer  the  first  to  the  second — to  do  every  thing  for  the  former 
and  nothing  for  the  latter — is  the  disorderly,  but  too  common,  state  of  things,  which  Je¬ 
sus  Christ  reproves  by  this  expression  :  Labor  not  (principally)  for  the  meat  which  perish¬ 
eth,  but  for  that  which  endureth  unto  life  everlasting. 

We  must  toil  from  necessity,  but  also  from  virtue  ;  we  must  toil,  but  we  may  do  so 
from  the  motive  of  fulfilling  the  will  of  God  ;  we  must  labor  to  procure  ourse  lves  the 
bread  which  is  necessary  for  the  support  of  this  mortal  life,  but,  above  all,  in  order  to 
share  that  immortal  life,  which  shall  be  the  recompense  of  necessary  labor,  sanctified  by 
similar  motives.  This  labor  practically  harmonizes  J esus  Christ  with  Saint  Paul  ;  and, 
by  means  of  the  nourishment  which  perisheth,  worketh  out  that  which  endureth  unt« 
life  everlasting. 


jm 

J 

MÛ  ? 


CHAP.  XXV.] 

thing  they  had  yet  to  hear  was,  by  what  labor  they  should  merit 
this  nourishment.  “  They  said,  therefore,  unto  him  :  What  shall  we 
do  that  we  may  work  the  works  of  God  ?  Jesus  answered,  and  said 
to  them  :  This  is  the  work  of  God,  that  you  believe  in  him  whom  he 
hath  sent  (2).” 

This  was  but  the  commencement,  and  the  effort  was  not  very 
painful  :  still  they  stopped  short  at  this  first  step.  “  What  sign, 
therefore,  dost  thou  show,  that  we  may  see,  and  may  believe  thee  ? 
What  dost  thou  work  ?  Our  fathers  did  eat  manna  in  the  desert, 
as  it  is  written  :  He  gave  them  from  heaven  to  eat.” 

Partly  foiled  in  their  hopes,  they  already  began  to  waver  in  their 
faith.  They  demanded  miracles  from  him  who  had  just  been  work¬ 
ing  one  so  striking  in  their  favor.  It  is  true,  they  do  not  as  yet  for¬ 
mally  reject  him  ;  but,  by  a  subtlety  worthy  of  their  stubborn  and 
ungrateful  hearts,  they  taunt  him  with  the  miracle  of  the  manna, 
which  they  judged  so  superior  to  his,  that  the  latter,  according  to 
their  notions,  could  no  longer  be  called  a  miracle.  Whence  their 
incredulity  tacitly  drew  this  conclusion,  which  tended  less  to  elevate 
Moses  than  to  lower  Jesus  Christ  :  Let  this  new  legislator  work  mir¬ 
acles  like  to  those  of  the  old,  and  we  shall  have  in  him  the  same 
faith  which  our  fathers  had  in  Moses. 

Here,  again,  we  recognize  the  predominant  taste  of  this  people, 
inasmuch  as,  for  the  purpose  of  exciting  the  emulation  of  the  Sa¬ 
viour,  they  oppose  to  him  a  miracle  of  abundance  and  satiety  ;  for, 
as  Jesus  Christ  had  told  them,  they  estimated  much  higher  the  nour¬ 
ishment  which  gratified  their  appetite  than  the  miraculous  work  of 
God  which  produced  it.  This  was,  perhaps,  the  principal  reason  of 
the  preference  which  they  gave  to  Moses.  The  latter  had  fed  two 


(2)  We  shall  shortly  see  that  this  wondrous  aliment  is  nothing  else  than  the  eucharistie 
bread.  We  merit  it  by  doing  the  work  of  God— that  is  faith,  saith  the  Saviour;  not 
that  faith  is  enough  to  merit  this  gift,  if  the  faith  were  alone,  but  because  it  is  the  first 
of  all  the  requisite  dispositions,  and  that  it  generally  produces  the  others.  It  is,  there¬ 
fore,  by  faith  that  we  must  always  commence  when  we  prepare  to  eat  the  heavenly 
bread.  Humility,  desire,  and  love  shall  flow  naturally  from  this  source,  and  these  senti¬ 
ments  shall  have  more  or  less  strength,  in  proportion  as  the  faith  shall  be  more  lively  or 
more  languishing.  This  is  a  point  to  which,  perhaps,  sufficient  attention  is  not  paid. 
Persons  have  faith  ;  but  they  repose  too  easily  upon  habitual  faith,  which  should  be  then 
redoubled,  to  make  it  produce  double  fervor. 


io  a  <*  a  a  o  a 


198 


THE  HISTORY  OP  THE  LIFE 


[p.ART  I. 


millions  of  people  during  forty  years  ;  wliat  was  it,  in  comparison, 
to  have  once  given  food  to  a  few  thousands  ?  As  if  the  grandeur  of 
miracles  was  to  be  measured  (if  we  may  dare  use  such  language)  by 
the  bushel,  and  that,  in  a  smaller  compass,  God  might  not  display 
equal  power.  But,  finally,  Moses  was  not  the  author  of  the  manna, 
A^hich  their  fathers  had  received  from  God  alone.  Neither  was  this 
bread  from  heaven,  which  is  only  termed  such  in  the  sense  in  which 
we  say,  the  birds  of  heaven  ;  that  is  to  say,  because  it  fell  from  the 
upper  region  of  the  air,  where  it  had  been  formed  by  the  hands  of 
angels  ;  neither  was  this  bread  to  be  at  all  compared  to  that  which 
Jesus  Christ  comes  to  give  them.  I  say  it  was  not  comparable  to 
this  bread,  neither  in  its  origin,  since  the  latter  is  properly  the  bread 
descended  from  heaven  ;  nor  in  the  extent  of  its  use,  since  it  may 
suffice  for  all  men  during  all  ages  ;  nor  in  its  effect,  which  shall  be 
to  give  and  preserve  an  immortal  life.  A  truth  which  must  have 
seemed  incredible  to  these  prejudiced  and  coarse  minds  ;  wherefore 
Jesus  Christ,  in  order  to  give  it  greater  weight,  is  going  to  assure 
them  of  it  with  an  oath. 

“  He  said  to  them  then  :  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you  :  Moses  gave 
you  not  bread  from  heaven,  but  my  Father  giveth  you  the  true 
bread  from  heaven  ;  for  the  bread  of  God  is  that  which  cometh 
down  from  heaven,  and  giveth  life  to  the  world.  They  said,  there¬ 
fore,  unto  him  :  Lord,  give  us  always  this  bread.” 

This  was  just  the  answer  of  the  Samaritan,  whom  they  also  re¬ 
sembled,  inasmuch  as  they  did  not  understand  the  bread  which  gives 
life  to  the  world  in  a  sense  more  spiritual  than  that  woman  had  at 
first  understood  the  water  which  gives  eternal  life.  But  Jesus,  then, 
beginning  to  enter  into  the  depths  of  the  mystery  he  had  to  propose 
to  them,  “  answered  them  [thus]  :  I  am  the  bread  of  life.  He  that 
cometh  to  me  shall  not  hunger,  and  he  that  believeth  in  me  shall 
never  thirst.  But  I  said  unto  you  :  that  you  also  have  seen  me, 
and  you  believe  not.”  Consequently  you  follow  me  in  vain,  because 
it  is  not  with  the  feet  of  the  body,  but  by  faith,  that  men  come 
really  to  me.  Thus  it  is,  that  “  all  that  the  Father  giveth  to  me 
shall  come  to  me  ;  and  him  that  cometh  to  me,  I  will  not  cast  out, 
because  I  came  down  from  heaven,  not  to  do  my  own  will,  but  the 
will  of  him  that  sent  me.  Now,  this  is  the  will  of  the  Father,  who 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


199 


CHAP.  XXV.] 

sent  me  (3),  that  of  all  that  he  hath  given  to  me,  I  should  lose  no¬ 
thing,  but  should  raise  it  up  again  in  the  last  day.  This  is  the  will 
of  my  Father,  that  sent  me,  that  every  one  who  seeth  the  Son,  and 
believeth  in  him,  may  have  life  everlasting  ;  and  I  will  raise  him  up 
again  in  the  last  day  (4).” 

Such  is  the  life  which  Jesus,  the  true  bread  of  heaven,  cometh  to 
give  to  the  world,  and  this  part  of  the  mystery  is  already  explained. 
It  is  not  this  first  state  of  existence,  the  termination  of  which  is  pro¬ 
nounced  by  an  irrevocable  sentence  ;  it  is  that  which  Jesus  Christ 
shall  impart  to  those  who  will  nourish  themselves  with  him — a  life 
eternal  and  eternally  happy,  which  shall  not  only  be  exempt  from 
death,  but  also  from  all  the  wants  and  miseries  of  the  present  life  ; 
a  life  of  which  Jesus  Christ  could  say,  in  the  most  literal  sense,  that 
its  possessor  shall  suffer  neither  hunger  nor  thirst,  because,  together 
with  a  relish  ever  new,  he  shall  enjoy  the  fulness  of  everlasting 
bliss.  What  a  fife  ! — and  what  transports  of  joy  should  not  such  a 
magnificent  promise  cause  to  the  Jews!  But  it  must  be  allowed 
that  the  Saviour  had  to  deal  with  most  stubborn  and  untractable 
minds  ;  instead  of  opening  their  hearts  to  this  great  and  precious 
hope,  they  pause  to  criticise  his  words.  “  They,  therefore,  murmured 
at  him,  because  he  had  said  :  I  am  the  living  bread  which  came 


(3)  The  will  of  the  Father  and  the  divine  will  of  the  Son  is  but  one  and  the  same  will  ; 
therefore,  when  Jesus  Christ  speaks  of  the  will  of  his  Father  and  of  his  own,  as  of  two 
different  wills,  he  speaks  of  his  human  will.  By  this  will  he  receives  all  that  his  Father 
gives  him  ;  and  when  he  says,  with  reference  to  this,  that  he  is  come  to  do  not  his  own 
will,  but  that  of  his  Father,  he  wishes  to  give  us  to  understand,  that  such  is  his  submis¬ 
sion  to  tbe  will  of  the  Father,  that,  supposing  (what  is  not  the  case)  that  he  felt  repug¬ 
nance  in  receiving  all  those  whom  his  F ather  gives  him,  he  would  make  this  repugnance 
yield  to  the  desire  which  he  has  to  execute,  not  his  own  will,  but  that  of  his  Father. 
This  submission,  despite  of  the  repugnance  of  his  human  nature,  appeared  in  him  when 
it  was  expedient  to  drink  the  chalice  of  his  passion. 

(4)  All  men,  without  distinction  of  good  or  bad,  shall  be  resuscitated  by  the  power  of 
Jesus  Christ  ;  but  there  is  only  mention  made  here  of  the  resurrection  of  the  first,  be¬ 
cause  this  shall  be  tbe  fruit  of  his  merits,  and,  as  it  were,  the  development  of  the  germ 
of  life  which  the  eucharistie  bread  shall  have  mingled  with  their  flesh,  and  which  shall 
have  preserved  itself  even  in  their  arid  bones  and  inanimate  ashes.  Wherefore,  this  resur¬ 
rection  alone  shall  be  happy  and  glorious,  while  that  of  the  wicked,  simply  produced  by 
the  almighty  justice  of  an  avenging  God,  shall  be  less  a  return  to  life  than  the  com¬ 
mencement  of  a  life  ever  dying,  and  of  an  immortal  death. 


ïl\ 


Èk 


fl 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


down  from  heaven  and,  after  the  example  of  the  Hazarenes,  some 
of  whom  were,  perhaps,  mingled  in  the  crowd,  “  they  said  :  Is  not 
this  Jesus,  the  son  of  Joseph,  whose  father  and  mother  we  know  ? 
How,  then,  saith  he  :  I  came  down  from  heaven  ?” 

This  murmur  was  but  too  perceptible  ;  and  Jesus,  whose  discourse 
was  interrupted  thereby,  thought  himself  obliged  to  silence  it.  “  He. 
therefore,  answered,  and  said  to  them  [in  an  austere  tone ]  :  Murmur 
not  among  yourselves  though,  after  all,  neither  your  murmurs  nor 
your  indocility  need  excite  surprise  ;  they  are  the  natural  result  of 
the  low  and  grovelling  motives  which  brought  you  here.  It  is  not 
by  following  the  allurements  of  flesh  and  blood  that  I  am  to  be 
found.  “  Ho  man  can  come  to  me,  except  the  Father,  who  hath 
sent  me,  draw  him  (5)  :  and  I  will  raise  him  up  in  the  last  day.” 
If  you  do  not  wish  to  be  one  of  these,  do  not  think  the  number  shall 
be  smaller  on  that  account,  since  of  all  nations,  without  distinction 
of  Jew  or  Gentile,  is  it  written  in  the  prophets  (6)  :  “  They  shall  all 
be  taught  of  God.  Every  one  that  hath  heard  of  the  Father,  and 
hath  learned  of  him ,  cometh  to  me.  Hot  that  any  man  hath  seen 
the  Father,  but  he  who  is  of  God  ;  he  alone  hath  seen  the  Father.” 
nevertheless,  without  having  seen  the  Father  unveiled,  we  have 
heard,  and  learned  from  him,  when  we  observe  with  attention  and 


(5)  By  an  interior  attraction,  by  making  him  wish  what  he  did  not  previously  wish, 
saith  Saint  Augustine.  By  comparing  this  expression  of  the  Saviour  with  that  which  he 
said  to  Saint  Peter  :  Flesh  and  blood  hath  not  revealed  it  to  thee,  but  my  Father  who  is 
in  heaven,  we  have  the  double  operation  of  grace — the  revelation  and  the  attraction,  the 
light  of  the  understanding  and  the  impulse  of  the  will.  The  Fathers  have  always  found 
this  attraction  in  the  text  which  gives  occasion  to  this  note,  and  they  availed  themselves 
of  it  to  advantage  against  Pelagius,  who  denied  its  necessity  and  declared  against  its  ex¬ 
istence.  The  enemies  of  free  will  have  abused  it,  to  support  their  dogma  of  irresistible 
grace.  We  find  the  Catholic  truth  in  the  middle  station  between  these  two  errors.  We, 
therefore,  adopt  the  medium,  by  believing,  on  one  side,  that,  in  the  matter  of  salvation, 
man  can  do  absolutely  nothing  without  the  interior  attraction  of  grace  ;  and,  on  the 
other,  that  he  always  has  the  unhappy  power  of  resisting  this  attraction,  and  of  render¬ 
ing  it  useless  to  him,  by  his  resistance,  according  to  this  decision  of  the  Council  of  Trent, 
sess.  6,  can.  4  :  If  any  one  saith  that  the  free  will  of  man,  moved  and  excited  by  God, 
....  cannot,  if  he  wishes  so  to  do,  refuse  its  consent,  ....  let  him  be  anathema. 

(6)  This  prophecy  is  in  Isaiah,  chapter  54,  nearly  in  the  same  terms  that  we  see  it 
here.  It  is  to  be  found  in  equivalent  terms  in  several  other  prophets.  It  began  to  have 
its  accomplishment  presently  after  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


201 


CIIAP.  XXVI.] 

receive  with  docility  this  testimony  which  he  hath  rendered  to  his 
Son  by  his  own  lips,  and  which  he  hath  since  repeated  and  con¬ 
firmed  by  a  host  of  prodigies  :  (a)  “  This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in 
whom  I  am  well  pleased.” 


CHAPTEK  XXVI. 

CONTINUATION  OF  THE  DISCOURSE  ON  THE  EUCHARIST. - THE  DISCIPLES  ARE  SCANDA¬ 
LIZED. - CONSTANCY  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 

After  this  digression,  in  which  Jesus  Christ  has  incidentally  spo¬ 
ken  of  the  immutability  of  divine  election  and  of  the  necessity  of 
interior  grace — mysteries  which  he  merely  sketches  (if  we  may  use 
the  expression),  and  the  development  of  which  he  seems  to  reserve 
for  the  apostle  of  the  Gentiles — he  returns  to  the  principal  object 
of  his  discourse.  After  having  informed  them  that  he  is  the  true 
bread  of  life,  and  that  he  who  shall  be  nourished  with  this  bread 
shall  live  eternally,  he  proceeds  to  inform  them  that  this  bread  is 
his  own  flesh,  which  should  be  eaten  and  received  within  us  in  the 
same  way  as  ordinary  food.  It  is  thus  that,  seeming  to  enter  into 
their  material  views,  he  shocks  their  senses,  and  completely  puzzles 

their  reason.  He  resumes,  therefore,  and^bntinues  in  these  terms  : 

>  • 

( b )  “  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  he  that  believeth  in  me  hath  life 
everlasting.  I  am  the  bread  of  life.  Your  fathers  did  eat  manna 
in  the  desert,  and  are  dead.  This  is  the  bread  which  cometh  down 
from  heaven,  that,  if  any  man  eat  of  it,  he  may  not  die  (1). 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  iii.  17.  (J)  St.  John,  vi.  47 — *7 2. 


(l)  All  those  who  eat  the  living  bread  die  corporeally,  and  all  those  who  have  eaten 
the  manna  are  not  spiritually  dead  ;  we  must,  therefore,  explain  in  what  sense  Jesus 
Christ  has  said  of  the  first  that  they  do  not  die,  and  of  the  second  that  they  are  dead. 
The  Saviour  speaks  less  of  persons  than  of  the  properties  of  these  two  aliments.  Manna 
did  not  give  immortal  life  to  the  body,  much  less  to  the  soul.  The  bread  which  is  here 
called  the  living  bread  gives,  or,  if  we  prefer  so  to  express  ourselves,  it  supports  :  1st,  the 
life  of  the  soul — a  life  immortal  in  its  nature,  which  can  only  perish  through  the  fault  of 


f'ZSt 


202 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I 


“  I  am  the  living  bread,  which  came  down  from  heaven.  If  any 
man  eat  of  this  bread,  he  shall  live  forever  ;  and  the  bread  that  I 
will  give  is  my  flesh  [  which  I  am  to  give],  for  the  life  of  the  world. 

“  The  J ews,  therefore,  strove  among  themselves,  saying  :  How  can 
this  man  give  us  his  flesh  to  eat  (2)  ?”  It  may  be  that  they  spoke 
this  through  derision,  or  that,  having  seen  the  miracle  of  the  multi¬ 
plication  of  the  loaves,  they  inquired  by  what  new  prodigy  he  could 
substantiate  so  strange  a  promise  ;  for  it  is  questionable  whether 
they  thought  that  Jesus  Christ  spoke  to  them  of  eating  his  flesh  cut 
in  pieces.  Incredulous  as  they  were,  they  must  have  found  it  diffi¬ 
cult  to  imagine  that  such  a  thought  could  have  entered  the  mind 
of  a  man  so  wise  and  so  holy  as  Jesus  must  naturally  have  appeared 
to  them.  Yet  what  else  could  they  imagine,  supposing  he  spoke 
of  the  real  eating  of  the  proper  substance  of  his  flesh,  and  what 
other  meaning  could  be  given  to  his  words  ?  This  it  was  that  caused 
their  embarrassment,  and  the  point  upon  which  it  seems  reasonable 
that  Jesus  Christ  should  have  enlightened  them,  if,  as  has  been  con¬ 
tended  in  later  ages,  he  had  only  spoken  of  eating  merely  by  faith 


him  who  hath  received  it,  so  that  if  he  come  to  perdition,  that  death  should  not  be  im¬ 
puted  to  the  bread,  but  to  him  alone.  In  the  same  way  as  if  God  had  left  to  Adam,  in 
the  fruit  of  the  tree  of  life,  the  power  of  committing  suicide,  in  the  supposition  that  he 
availed  himself  of  this  power  of  self-murder,  his  death  could  not  be  attributed  to  the  tree 
of  life,  but  to  the  violence  which  he  would  have  voluntarily  exercised  upon  himself.  2d. 
It  is  the  common  opinion  of  the  holy  Fathers  that  this  living  bread  imprints  upon  the 
very  bodies  of  those  who  nourish  themselves  with  it  a  vivifying  quality,  which  is  in  them, 
as  it  were,  the  germ  of  the  happy  and  immortal  life  which  shall  be  communicated  to  them 
by  the  resurrection.  We  should  believe  this  with  these  Fathers;  but  supposing,  what 
they  themselves  supposed,  that  the  just  who  preceded  the  coming  of  Jesus  Christ,  the 
chjjdren  who  died  before  the  age  when  the  Church  permits  them  to  communicate,  and, 
generally,  all  those  who  have  died  in  justice,  without  having  been  able  to  participate  in 
the  eucharistie  bread  ;  that  all  these,  I  say,  shall  have  received  the  virtue  of  it,  which 
virtue'  shall  have  supplied  the  reality  to  them.  There  is  nothing  in  this  which  should  ap¬ 
pear  surprising,  since  baptism,  the  most  necessary  of  all  the  sacraments,  is  supplied  by 
charity  and  by  martyrdom. 

(2)  How — a  Jewish  word,  as  Saint  Cyril  calls  it:  let  us  take  care  not  to  advance  it; 
it  is  the  source  of  all  infidelity.  We  should  also  callitaCalvinisticword,for  the  Calvin¬ 
ists  have  likewise  said:  How  can  this  man  give  us  his  flesh  to  eat?  This  word  has  no 
other  signification  than  this  :  I  cannot  comprehend  such  a  thing  ;  therefore  God  cannot 
make  it  be  so,  at  least  God  has  not  declared  that  it  is  so  ;  which  is  reducible  to  this  silly 
proposition:  Nothing  can  be  except  what  I  can  comprehend. 


CHAP.  XXVI.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  203 

alone.  Tlie  latter  point  of  view  lias  nothing  which  shocks  either 
the  senses,  or  reason,  or  humanity  ;  and,  by  speaking  as  he  did,  Je¬ 
sus  Christ  was  a  rock  of  scandal  to  die  incredulous.  But  he  could 
not  give  the  metaphorical  explanation,  because  he  had  spoken,  in 
point  of  fact,  of  real  eating  ;  he  could  not,  I  say,  destroy  the  mean¬ 
ing  which  himself  had  wished  to  establish  ;  wherefore,  in  pursuance 
of  the  right  which  he  had  to  be  believed  upon  his  own  word,  with¬ 
out  explaining  how  he  wished  them  to  confide  in  his  almighty  power, 
instead  of  struggling  to  disabuse  them,  he  reiterates  these  strong 
expressions  which  had  conveyed  to  their  minds  the  idea  of  the  real 
eating  of  his  flesh  ;  and,  to  confirm  them  in  it,  he  swears  for  the 
fourth  time,  and  saith  to  them  :  “  Amen,  amen,  I  say  unto  you,  ex¬ 
cept  you  eat  the  flesh  of  the  Son  of  man,  and  drink  his  blood,  you 
shall  not  have  life  in  you.  He  that  eateth  my  flesh  and  drinketh 
my  blood  hath  everlasting  life,  and  I  will  raise  him  up  in  the  last 
day  ;  for  my  flesh  is  meat  indeed,  and  my  blood  is  drink  indeed. 
He  that  eateth  my  flesh  and  drinketh  my  blood  abideth  in  me,  and 
I  in  him  (3).  As  the  living  Father  hath  sent  me,  and  I  live  by  the 
Father,  so  he  that  eateth  me,  the  same  also  shall  live  by  me  (4). 


(3)  Jesus  Christ  does  not  say:  He  dwells  in  my  flesh,  and  my  flesh  in  him;  but,  he 
abideth  in  me,  and  I  in  him.  For,  in  point  of  fact,  the  flesh  and  the  blood  withdraw 
when  the  accidents  become  altered  ;  but  the  vivifying  spirit  abideth — that  is  to  say,  the 
divine  person,  which  in  Jesus  Christ  is  properly  the  I:  it  abideth,  I  say,  producing  life 
in  the  soul  of  him  who  has  received  the  flesh  and  the  blood,  which  are,  as  it  were,  the 
channel  by  which  the  divinity  communicates  itself.  Thus,  Jesus  Christ  and  the  man 
who  receiveth  him  live  by  the  same  life,  produced  by  the  same  vivifying  principle,  ac¬ 
cording  to  what  Saint  Paul  saith:  He  who  is  joined  to  the  Lord  is  one  spirit  (1  Cor.  vi. 
17).  This  is  what  the  Saviour  understands  by  these  words  :  He  abideth  in  me,  and  I  in 
him.  An  expression  which  is  scarcely  sufficient  to  give  an  idea  of  so  intimate  a  union  ; 
but  human  language  furnishes  no  other. 

(4)  The  explanation  of  the  preceding  text  serves  also  to  throw  light  upon  this  one.  In 
the  same  way -as  the  Father,  by  sending  the- Son — that  is  to  say,  by  uniting  the  divinity 
to  the  humanity  in  the  person  of  the  Son,  has  given  to  humanity  the  life  of  which  the  di¬ 
vinity  is  the  efficient  principle  ;  thus  he  who  unites  himself  to  the  Son  by  the  eating  of 
his  body,  likewise  receives  life  from  him.  We  therefore  see  life  reside  in  the  divinity  as 
its  source,  whence  it  infuses  itself  into  the  humanity  of  Jesus  Christ,  which  is  united  to  it. 
The  humanity  in  its  turn  unites  itself  to  men  by  the  eating,  and  communicates  to  them 
the  life  with  which  it  is  filled  and  animated.  This  life  is  assumed  in  the  most  extensive 
and  most  excellent  sense.  It  is  at  the  same  time  the  fife  of  grace,  the  life  of  glory,  and 
jven  the  natural  life,  which  consists  in  the  eternal  union  of  the  soul  with  the  body.  Je- 


204 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PAKT  I. 

This  is  the  bread  that  came  down  from  heaven.  Not  as  your  fa¬ 
thers  did  eat  manna  and  are  dead  ;  he  that  eateth  this  bread  (5) 
shall  live  forever.  These  things  he  said,  teaching  in  the  synagogue, 
in  Capharnaum.” 

After  reading  these  words  of  the  Saviour,  no  one  will  be  surprised 
that  we  should  understand  with  reference  to  the  Eucharist,  not  only 
these,  but  also  the  preceding  words.  It  is,  in  point  of  fact,  this 
adorable  sacrament  which  alone  is  spoken  of  throughout  the  entire 
of  this  discourse.  Though  shrouded  at  first,  it  discovers  itself  by 
degrees,  and  is  at  last  disclosed  here  with  such  evidence  as  renders 
it  no  longer  possible  to  repudiate  the  fact.  We  first  see  it  announced 
under  the  name  of  nourishment  which  endureth  unto  life  everlast¬ 
ing  ;  then  Jesus  Christ  calls  it  the  living  bread  which  came  down 
from  heaven  ;  afterwards  he  adds,  that  he  is  this  same  living  bread 
who,  by  the  incarnation,  came  down  from  heaven,  and  who  giveth 
life.  Had  he  stopped  here,  we  might  have  thought,  with  some  ap¬ 
pearance  of  reason,  that  there  is  question  here  merely  of  his  myste¬ 
ries  and  maxims,  which  he  has  just  proposed  to  men  as  a  salutary 
bread  with  which  they  should  nourish  themselves  by  faith  and  medi¬ 
tation  ;  but  when  at  last  he  says  expressly,  that  this  bread  is  his 
flesh,  which  was  to  be  given  for  the  life  of  the  world — an  expression 
which  he  is  found  to  repeat  at  the  institution  of  the  Eucharist  ;  when, 
instead  of  disabusing  his  hearers,  whom  this  expression  had  so  much 
shocked,  he  drops  the  word  bread,  and  no  longer  speaks  to  them  but 
of  eating  his  flesh,  which  is  “  meat  indeed,”  and  of  drinking  his  blood, 


sus  Christ,  from  the  instant  of  his  conception,  has  had,  in  point  of  fact,  the  two  first,  and 
by  right,  the  third  ;  for  he  only  died  because  he  hath  wished  it,  and  he  hath  arisen  never 
more  to  die  again.  Like  him,  we  have,  in  point  of  fact,  the  first  life,  and  by  right,  the 
other  two  lives  ;  but  we  shall  only  enjoy  the  second  after  death,  and  the  third  after  the 
resurrection.  They  are  deferred  in  our  regard,  but  they  are  due  to  us,  if  we  preserve  the 
vivifying  spirit  which  Jesus  Christ  communicates  to  us  by  the  communion  of  his  body  and 
of  his  blood.  This  seems  to  be  merely  the  development  of  these  words  of  Saint  Paul 
to  the  Romans,  chapter  viii.  11  :  And  if  the  spirit  of  him  that  raised  up  Jesus  from  the 
dead  dwell  in  you,  he  that  raised  up  Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead  shall  quicken  also  your 
mortal  bodies,  because  of  his  spirit  that  dwelleth  in  you. 

(5)  From  this  text,  and  from  several  others  of  a  similar  nature,  where  mention  is  only 
made  of  the  eating  of  bread  alone,  the  Council  of  Trent,  sess.  21,  ch.  i.,  concludes  that 
communion  under  the  two  kinds  is  not  necessary  to  participate  in  the  sacrament. 


I  <ni 


CHAP.  XXVI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


205 


which  is  u  drink  indeed.”  it  is  clear  that  he  himself  explains  the  sense 
of  his  words  in  a  manner  that  leaves  no  room  for  reasonable  doubt. 
That  those,  however,  who  reject  the  dogma  of  the  real  presence, 
should  endeavor  to  elude  this  clear  and  natural  meaning,  does  not 
surprise  us — the  stamp  of  reality  is  so  visible,  more  especially  in  the 
conclusion  of  the  discourse,  that  they  could  not  prevent  its  applica¬ 
tion  to  the  Eucharist,  if  they  acknowledged  that  the  question  here 
had  any  reference  to  the  Eucharist.  But  that  Catholic  interpreters 
should  have  deviated  from  this  so  evident  sense,  and  substituted  far¬ 
fetched  allegories  and  forced  meanings,  this  is  what  we  can  hardly 
understand,  if  we  did  not  know  that  the  inordinate  desire  of,  seeing 
what  is  not  perceived  by  the  rest  of  men,  often  makes  stars  visible, 
and  obscures  the  sun  at  mid-day.  Let  it  suffice  for  us,  then,  in  or¬ 
der  to  prove  that  Jesus  Christ  spoke  here  of  the  Eucharist,  to  ob¬ 
serve,  that  he  could  not  express  himself  with  more  energy  and  clear¬ 
ness,  supposing  he  had  wished  to  speak  of  it  in  point  of  fact.  Thus 
all  the  Fathers,  without  exception,  and  the  Church  in  all  the  Coun¬ 
cils  wherein  this  discourse  is  cited,  have  understood  it  to  refer  to 
this  divine  sacrament.  With  these  authorities  and  proofs  there  is 
associated  a  conjecture,  which  has  appeared  highly  reasonable  to  the 
best  interpreters — that  is,  that  it  was  natural  for  Saint  John,  the 
only  one  of  the  four  evangelists  who  does  not  speak  of  the  Eucharist 
when  detailing  the  Last  Supper,  to  speak  of  it  on  this  occasion.  It 
is  easy  for  us  to  judge  that,  having  written  subsequently  to  all  the 
others,  he  wished  to  omit  what  they  had  already  related,  and  to  re¬ 
port  what  they  had  omitted. 

After  this  explanation,  it  seems  advisable  to  make  some  reflec¬ 
tions  which  may  serve  to  justify  the  wisdom  and  goodness  of  the 
Saviour  in  the  eyes  of  those  who  may  find  it  hard  to  recognize  here 
either  the  one  or  the  other. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  the  reason  which  induced  him  to  pro¬ 
nounce  this  discourse,  was  the  design  which  he  entertained  of  pre¬ 
paring  the  world  for  faith  in  the  divine  and  incomprehensible 
Eucharist.  Apparently  he  succeeded  in  this,  as  regards  his  apostles  ; 
for  else  why,  when  he  afterwards  said  to  them,  Take  and  eat — this 
is  my  body;  why,  I  say,  did  they  not  exhibit  any  surprise,  if  it 
were  not  that  what  was  then  performing  was  merely  the  accomplish- 


206 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 

ment  of  what  he  had  announced  and  promised  them.  But  it  is  cer¬ 
tain  that  this  produced  quite  a  contrary  effect  upon  the  multitude 
who  heard  it  ;  and  that,  far  from  increasing  their  faith,  it  was  only 
instrumental  in  quenching  the  little  which  some  of  them  began  to 
have  in  the  Saviour.  We  may,  perhaps,  be  asked  if  this  was  not, 
in  some  manner,  laying  a  snare  for  this  feeble  new-born  faith,  by 
submitting  it  to  such  a  trial  ?  Perhaps  here,  again,  the  reader  will 
bear  in  mind  the  conduct  of  the  Church,  which,  in  the  primitive 
ages,  veiled  from  the  eyes  of  the  catechumens  a  mystery  which  gave 
such  a  shock  to  reason  and  the  senses,  and  only  proposed  it  to  them 
when,  by  baptism,  they  had  received  the  habit  of  faith.  Piety  sel¬ 
dom  allows  itself  to  put  such  questions  as  these,  which  often  proceed 
from  a  prying  and  indiscreet  curiosity.  We  are  going  to  answer 
them  with  the  aid  of  Him  whose  works,  justified  in  themselves,  do 
not  require  our  apologies,  but  who  condescends  in  his  goodness  to 
account  for  his  conduct  to  us,  and  to  suffer  us  to  enter  into  judgment 
with  him. 

Jesus  Christ  had  resolved  to  institute  the  Eucharist — a  mystery 
displaying  such  admirable  love  and  such  munificent  liberality,  that 
no  one  can  ever  suspect  its  divine  author  of  being  deficient  in  kind¬ 
ness.  Before  instituting  this  great  sacrament,  he  wished  to  prepare 
men  for  so  wondrous  an  event  ;  and  that  he  had  good  reasons  for  so 
doing,  no  one  can  pretend  to  doubt. 

One  of  these  might  be  that,  having  the  intention  of  proposing  it 
only  to  the  apostles,  he  wished  that  they  might  have  it  in  their 
power  to  say,  when  announcing  it  for  the  first  time  :  “  My  brethren, 
this  is  no  invention  of  ours.  Remember  what  the  Saviour  said  of 
the  real  eating  of  his  flesh.  What  he  then  promised  he  has  since 
given,  and  now  distributes  it  amongst  you  by  our  agency.”  Thus, 
while  trying  their  faith  at  the  present  moment,  he  makes  the  way 
smooth  for  their  future  belief.  But  we  must  also  acknowledge  that 
the  course  adopted  by  our  Saviour  on  this  occasion  was  marked  by 
the  most  considerate  kindness.  True,  he  announces  the  most  incom¬ 
prehensible  of  all  mysteries  ;  but  then  what  pains  does  he  take  to 
prepare  the  mind  for  the  revelation  thereof.  He  began  by  curing 
the  sick  and  infirm  ;  next,  compassionating  the  wants  of  the  people 
— he  satiates  them  with  five  loaves  and  two  fishes,  by  a  prodigy  so 


OF  O  UK  LOKD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


207 


CHAP.  XXVI.] 

surprising,  and,  at  tire  same  time,  striking  the  senses  so  powerfully, 
tli at  the  whole  multitude  cried  out,  in  a  sudden  transport,  that  lie  is 
tlie  prophet  by  excellence,  who  was  to  come  into  the  world.  Their 
enthusiasm  even  impels  them  to  declare  him  king.  He  having  con¬ 
cealed  himself  by  flight,  they  cross  the  lake,  and  go  to  seek  him  all 
the  way  to  Capharnaum,  where,  at  length,  they  find  him.  Could 
they  have  been  better  prepared  to  hear  his  divine  doctrines  ;  and, 
if  you  were  to  select  throughout  all  their  life  the  moment  in  which 
you  would  presume  the  greatest  facility  on  their  part  to  hearken  to 
him  and  believe  him,  would  you  not  have  taken  this  in  preference  ? 
It  is  true,  they  did  not  then  comprehend  his  words  ;  but,  after  hav¬ 
ing  recognized  him  for  a  prophet,  were  they  not  further  bound  to 
admit  the  truth  of  his  words,  until  it  should  please  him  to  give  them 
the  gift  of  understanding  ?  God  has  performed  what  he  wished  ; — • 
who  shall  dare  to  say  to  him,  Why  hast  thou  acted  thus  ?  This 
general  answer  has  ever  been  sufficient  for  humble  and  submissive 
faith  ;  but  it  is  obvious  that  this  is  not  the  sole  reply  which  can  be 
made  here,  since  it  is  apparent  that  Jesus  Christ  admirably  adapted 
himself  to  the  weakness  of  those  to  whom  he  spoke,  and  that  he  did 
not  expose  to  any  trial  the  faith  of  this  refractory  people  until  he 
had  first  employed  the  means  which,  by  rendering  faith  easy,  gave 
them  less  excuse  for  incredulity. 

But  it  was  not  merely  amongst  the  people  that  unbelievers  were 
to  be  found.  “  Many  of  his  disciples  hearing  it,  said  :  This  saying  is 
hard,  and  who  can  hear  it  ?”  They  spoke  this  to  one  another  in  a 
low  tone.  .  “  But  Jesus,  knowing  in  himself  that  his  disciples  mur¬ 
mured,  said  to  them  :  Doth  this  scandalize  you  ?  If,  then,  you  shall 
see  the  Son  of  man  ascend  up  where  he  was  before  (6)  ?  It  is  the 


(6)  These  words  are  susceptible  of  two  different  meanings,  which  correspond  with  the 
two  parts  of  the  discourse  of  the  Saviour,  and  the  two  objections  made  by  his  hearers. 
They  had  murmured  first,  because  Jesus  Christ  had  said  that  he  was  the  living  bread 
descended  from  heaven.  If  we  apply  here  his  answer,  it  signifies  :  you  do  not  wish  to 
believe  at  present  that  I  am  descended  from  heaven  ;  will  you  believe  it  when  you  shall 
see  me  reascend  thither  ?  Applied  to  the  real  eating  of  his  flesh,  it  signifies  :  you  find 
it  very  hard  to  believe  that  I  can  give  you  'my  flesh  as  food,  and  my  blood  as  drink, 
now  that  I  am  in  the  midst  of  you  ;  how  much  more  incredible  shall  the  thing  appear  to 
you  when,  after  having  seen  me  ascend  to  heaven,  you  must  believe  that  this  flesh,  at 
the  same  time  that  it  is  in  heaven,  is  given  as  nourishment  here  on  earth  ?  The  first 


Spirit  that  quickeneth  ;  the  flesh  profiteth  nothing  (7).  The  words 
that  I  have  spoken  to  you  are  spirit  and  life  (8).  But  there  are 
some  of  you  that  believe  not.  For  from  the  beginning” — that  is  to 
say,  from  all  eternity,  as  God  and  as  man,  from  the  moment  of  his 
conception,  “  Jesus  knew  who  they  were  that  did  not  believe,  and 
who  he  was  that  would  betray  him  ;  and  he  said  :  Therefore  did  I 
say  to  you,  that  no  man  can  come  to  me,  unless  it  be  given  him  by 
my  Father,” — a  purely  gratuitous  gift,  which  cannot  be  merited  by 
those  to  whom  it  is  made,  but  which,  being  offered  to  all,  makes 
those  responsible  who  are  deprived  of  it  only  because  they  have  not 
wished  to  receive  it  ;  for  it  is  offered  in  vain  if  it  be  not  received. 
A  great  many  of  those  whom  Jesus  addressed  were  just  in  this  pre¬ 
dicament,  which  was  the  reason  why,  “  after  this,  many  of  his  disci¬ 
ples  went  back  (9),  and  walked  no  more  with  him.” 

Jesus  did  not  appear  surprised  at  this  desertion,  which  he  had, 
of  course,  foreseen  ;  he  even  wished  to  profit  by  the  occasion,  to 


sense  facilitates  faith  in  the  incarnation  ;  the  second  renders  more  difficult  that  of  the 
real  eating.  The  second  is  the  most  probable,  because  it  is  much  more  probable  that 
Jesus  Christ  should  here  reply  to  the  second  of  the  two  objections  ;  and,  by  indicating 
his  presence  in  different  places  by  means  of  the  Eucharist,  we  may  say  he  consummates 
the  revelation  of  this  great  mystery. 

(7)  The  flesh  of  Jesus  Christ  is  not  vivifying  by  itself  ;  it  is  only  so  by  the  spirit  ;  that 
is  to  say,  by  the  divinity  which  is  united  to  it,  and  which  communicates  itself,  through  it, 
to  those  who  eat  it.  This  explanation,  which  harmonizes  well  with  the  text,  has  nothing 
in  it  repugnant  to  the  faith  of  the  real  presence.  It  leaves  the  preceding  words  in  all 
their  energy,  and  therein  the  reality  is  most  clearly  expressed,  even  in  the  mutilated  ver¬ 
sion  of  Protestants. 

(8)  That  is  to  say,  pause  not  at  the  carnal  and  revolting  sense  in  which  they  may  ap¬ 
pear  to  your  minds.  As  they  promise  great  benefits,  they  comprise  great  mysteries  ;  if 
you  cannot  as  yet  comprehend  them,  still  commence  by  believing.  What  could  be 
more  proper  to  dissipate  any  wrong  idea,  and  to  take  away  every  pretext  for  incre¬ 
dulity  ? 

(9)  Many,  and  not  all,  as  some  interpreters  state,  who  have  even  advanced  that  Saint 
Mark  and  Saint  Luke  were  among  the  number  of  the  deserters,  although  it  is  much 
more  probable  that  they  were  not  even  among  the  number  of  the  disciples.  It  is  cer¬ 
tain  that  several  of  these  remained  inseparably  attached  to  Jesus  Christ  from  his  baptism 
until  his  ascension.  We  have  a  proof  of  it  in  these  words  of  Saint  Peter,  Acts  i.  : 
Wherefore  of  these  men  who  have  compariied  with  us  all  the  time  that  the  Lord  Jesus 
came  in  and  went  out  among  us,  beginning  from  the  baptism  of  John  until  the  day 
wherein  he  was  taken  up  from  us,  one  of  these  must  be  made  a  witness  with  us  of  his  res¬ 
urrection. 


Vi\  tir 


U 


W 


$■& 


jk\ 


y 'hli/. 


teach  tlie  world  that  he  had  no  need  of  any  one,  and  that  he  only 
permitted  in  his  retinue  voluntary  disciples.  “  He  said  then  to  the 
twelve  :  Will  you  also  go  away  ?  Lord,  answered  to  him  Simon 
Peter,  to  whom  shall  we  go  ?  Thou  hast  the  words  of  eternal 
life  (10).  We  have  believed,  and  have  known  that  thou  art  the 
Christ,  the  Son  of  God.” 

As  chief  of  the  apostles,  he  made  this  answer  in  the  name  of  all 
the  others,  and  in  it  we  recognize,  at  the  same  time,  his  faith,  his 
hope,  and  the  love  which  made  him  prefer  Jesus  Christ  to  every 
thing  else.  We  may  also  remark  here  the  virtuous  inclination  which 
he  had  to  judge  favorably  of  his  colleagues  ;  for  he  does  not  seem  to 
doubt  that  they  were  all  of  the  same  sentiments  as  himself.  Yet  in 
that  he  was,  of  course,  mistaken  ;  and,  as  it  was  relevant  to  the  glory 
of  Jesus  that  they  should  not  think  he  was  ignorant  at  any  time  of 
what  any  one  amongst  them  either  was,  or  should  shortly  become, 
“  he  answered  them  :  Have  not  I  chosen  you  twelve  ?  and  one  of 
you  is  a  devil;  now, .he  meant  Judas  Iscariot,  the  son  of  Simon,  for 
this  same,  who  was  one  of  the  twelve,  was  about  to  betray  him.” 
But  Jesus  did  not  point  him  out,  so  that  the  apprehension  of  being 
one  day  the  unhappy  criminal  of  whom  he  spoke,  might  make  them 
all  both  watchful  and  humble. 


(10)  These  words  of  Saint  Peter  are  as  the  repetition  of  those  words  of  the  Saviour: 
My  words  are  spirit  and  life.  Apparently  Saint  Peter  did  not  understand  any  more 
than  the  others  the  mystery  which  Jesus  Christ  had  just  proposed  ;  but  he  believed  that 
his  Master  said  nothing  but  the  truth,  and  promised  nothing  but  what  was  good.  That 
was  enough  for  the  time. 

14 


rir^-paf — r~T,|rj  Hjfi 


210 


THE  HISTOKY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

COMPLAINTS  OF  THE  PHARISEES. - THEIR  TRADITIONS  REJECTED. — CURE  OF  THE  CA 

NAANEAN  WOMAN’S  DAUGHTER. 

(«)“  After  these  things  Jesus  walked  in  Galilee;  for  he  would 
not  walk  in  Judea  (1),  because  the  Jews  sought  to  kill  him.  The 
Pharisees  and  some  of  the  Scribes  coming  from  Jerusalem,  assembled 
together  unto  him  ;  and  when  they  had  seen  some  of  his  disciples 
eat  bread  with  common,  that  is,  with  unwashed  hands,  they  found 
fault.  For  the  Pharisees  and  all  the  Jews,  holding  the  tradition  of 
the  ancients,  eat  not  without  often  washing  their  hands  ;  and  when 
they  come  from  the  market,  unless  they  be  washed,  they  eat  not  (2). 
And  many  other  things  there  are  that  have  been  delivered  to  them 
to  observe,  the  washing  of  cups  and  of  pots,  ajid  of  brazen  vessels, 
and  of  beds  [upon  which  they  take  their  meals ]  (3).  Thereupon  the 

(a)  St.  John,  vii.  1  ;  St.  Matthew,  xv.  1,  2  ;  St.  Mark,  vii.  1-6. 


(1)  We  have  already  seen  that  it  was  then  the  paschal  season.  Jesus  Christ  did  not 
go  to  celebrate  this  passover  at  Jerusalem,  as  the  law  ordained.  Besides  that,  he  was 
not  subject  to  the  law  ;  but,  inasmuch  as  he  wished  so  to  be,  a  further  reason  is  given 
for  the  dispensation,  viz.,  the  design  which  the  Jews  had  of  putting  him  to  death.  He 
might  render  it  useless  by  his  omnipotence  ;  but  he  might  also  avail  himself  of  the  natu¬ 
ral  right  which  he  had  not  to  expose  his  life.  We  are  not,  therefore,  rigorously  obliged 
to  perform  external  acts  of  religion,  of  which  we  could  only  acquit  ourselves  by  exposing 
ourselves  to  some  great  peril.  We  must,  nevertheless,  except  the  case  wherein  the  omis¬ 
sion  of  the  prescribed  duty  would  be  like  a  declaration  of  infidelity  or  apostacy.  Then, 
should  it  cost  life  itself,  we  are  not  the  less  bound  to  the  exterior  profession  than  to  in¬ 
terior  belief. 

(2)  We  may  profit  by  this  lesson,  and  learn 'from  the  Pharisees  to  purify  not  the  body, 
but  the  conscience,  when  we  return  from  human  intercourse  ;  for  it  is  rare  to  return 
thence  without  some  blemish. 

(3)  In  limiting  their  religion  to  these  practices,  they  acted  very  wrong,  and  they  are 
justly  reproved.  From  thence  occasion  has  been  taken  to  declaim  against  superstitious 
practices.  If  the  practices  be  such,  the  declaimers  have  reason  ;  if  they  be  not,  the  peo¬ 
ple  should  still  be  taught  to  connect  the  mind  with  them — that  is  to  say,  interior  piety, 
without  which  religion  is  only  a  vain  shadow,  and  a  body  without  a  soul.  But  let  us 
stop  here,  and  with  these  correctives  let  us  always  speak  in  favor  of  exterior  practices, 
and  never  to  condemn  them.  We  might  do  without  them,  if  we  were  pure  spirits;  but, 


P  -  - 


% 

^  i-M-Z 


f;/L 


% 


P”  ^ 


Mû 


d* 


CHAP.  XXVH.] 

Pharisees  and  the  Scribes  asked  him  :  Why  do  thy  disciples  trans¬ 
gress  the  tradition  of  the  ancients  ?  for  they  wash  not  their  hands 
when  they  eat  bread;  but  they  eat  bread  with  common  hands.” 

Here  we  recognize  the  Pharisees,  who  at  once  set  down  as  a  crim¬ 
inal  transgression  what  was  not  such;  but  supposing  that  it  had 
been,  still  this  reproach  was  visibly  exaggerated.  For  they  only 
had  seen  some  of  the  disciples  omitting  the  washing  of  their  hands 
before  meals,  and  they  say  to  Jesus  Christ,  thy  disciples ,  as  if  all 
were  in  fault.  Then  they  call  the  Saviour  himself  to  an  account, 
although  he  might  have  had  no  part  in  the  transaction.  They 
should,  therefore,  had  they  wished  to  act  equitably,  have  contented 
themselves  with  saying:  We  have  remarked  that  some  of  your  dis¬ 
ciples  do  not  wash  their  hands  before  eating.  Is  it  you  that  have 
taught  them  to  do  so,  or  who  authorized  them  so  to  act  ?  After  that 
they  might  have  examined  what  fault  these  was  in  the  like  omission. 
But  Jesus  took  a  shorter  way  to  confound  them — that  was,  to  re¬ 
proach  them  directly  with  this  senseless  respect  for  their  traditions, 
which  induced  them  to  sacrifice  to  these  trifles  the  most  sacred  laws 
of  religion  and  humanity. 

(a)  “  He  answering,  said  to  them  :  Why  do  you  also  transgress  the 
commandment  of  God  for  your  tradition  (4)  ?  For  God  said  :  Hon- 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xv.  3-6  ;  St.  Mark,  vii.  11,  12. 


since  we  have  senses,  we  require  sensible  objects.  There  may  be  excess  in  this  matter  ; 
hut  too  little  is  another  extreme,  the  consequences  of  which  are,  perhaps,  more  to  be 
dreaded.  It  is  a  lesser  evil  to  have  religion  surcharged  with  these  practices,  than  to 
have  no  religion,  which  may  happen  when  religion,  divested  of  pious  practices,  has  no 
longer  any  hold  upon  the  senses.  Here  the  accident  clings  so  closely  to  the  substance, 
and  the  accessory  to  the  principal,  that,  in  removing  the  one,  you  often  make  the  other 
disappear.  Let  us  remark  further,  that  those  who  have  declaimed  most  strongly  against 
practices,  and  who  have  labored  most  to  abolish  them,  are  constantly  heretics  ;  whereas 
those  who  have  multiplied  them,  if  one  may  say  so,  to  excess,  are,  after  all,  Catholics  ; 
and  amongst  those  people  who  have  either  rejected  them,  or  who  have  appeared  most 
attached  to  them,  we  know  which  of  the  two  have  lost  most  of  religion,  or  better  pre¬ 
served  it.  Let  us  endeavor  always  to  preserve  a  just  medium. 

(4)  We  should  remark  that  the  Saviour  only  speaks  here  of  those  human  traditions 
which  are  opposed  to  the  law  of  God.  To  conclude  from  thence  with  Protestants,  that 
all  traditions  should  be  rejected,  is  concluding  from  the  species  to  the  genus,  and  from 
the  particular  to  the  general.  But,  say  they,  the  Catholic  traditions  are  contrary  to  the 
word  of  God.  This  also  is  bad  reasoning,  since  they  give  as  a  proof  the  very  matter  in 


<Ti 


:  m 


212  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I. 

or  thy  father  and  mother  :  and  he  that  shall  curse  father  or  mother, 
let  him  die  the  death.  But  you  say  :  If  a  man  shall  say  to  his  father 
and  mother,  Corban,  which  is,  whatsoever  gift  proceedeth  from  me, 
shall  profit  thee  \he  satisfieth  the  precept]  ;  and  further,  you  suffer 
him  not  to  do  any  thing  for  his  father  and  mother.  And  he  shall 
not  honor  them,”  that  is  to  say,  that  he  does  not  assist  them  in  their 
wants,  in  which  act'consists  the  substantial  honor  and  real  homage 
due  to  them,  that  without,  which  all  the  others  are  but  vain  ceremo¬ 
nies  and  a  species  of  mockery  :  ( a )  “  well  you  do  make  void  the 
commandment  of  God,  making  void  the  word  of  God  by  your  own 
tradition.  Hypocrites,  well  hath  Isaias  prophesied  of  you,  saying: 
This  people  honoreth  me  with  their  lips,  but  their  heart  is  far  from 
me.  In  vain  do  they  worship  me,  teaching  doctrines  and  command¬ 
ments  of  men.  For,  leaving  the  commandment  of  God,  you  hold 
the  tradition  of  men,  the.  washings  of  pots  and  of  cups,  and  many 
other  things  you  do  like  to  these.” 

The  people  were  not  within  hearing  of  these  answers,  which  were 
only  addressed  to  the  Pharisees.  Yet  there  resulted  from  these  an¬ 
swers  a  maxim  wherewith  it  was  proper  that  the  world  should  be 
instructed.  “  Jesus  therefore  calling  again  the  multitudes  unto  him, 
he  said  to  them  :  Hear  me,  ye  all,  and  understand  :  There  is  nothing 
from  without  a  man  that,  entering  into  him,  can  defile  him  ;  but  the 
things  that  come  from  a  man,  these  are  they  that  defile  a  man  (5). 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xv.  6  ;  St.  Mark,  vii.  13  ;  St.  Matthew,  xv.  7-9  ;  St.  Mark,  vii.  8, 

14-16  ;  .St.  Matthew,  xv.  11. 


question.  There  are  indifferent  traditions  which  may  be  preserved  :  there  are  bad  ones 
which  ought  to  be  rejected,  and  good  ones  which  should  he  retained.  Our  adversaries 
receive  with  us  the  sanctification  of  the  Sunday,  the  baptism  of  little  children,  the  validity 
of  baptism  by  infusion.  These  points  are  not  to  be  found  in  Scripture.  If  it  be  true 
that  we  must  reject  all  tradition,  and  only  receive  what  is  in  Scripture,  we  must  also  re¬ 
ject  these  points  with  all  the  rest.  Why  do  they  not  do  so  ?  It  is  easy  to  see  that, 
when  they  wish  to  reason  against  us,  they  talk  nonsense  ;  and  when  they  act  like  us, 
they  contradict  themselves. 

(5)  We  know  the  abuse  which  the  heretics  have  made  of  this  expression,  in  order  to 
reject  as  superstitious  the  abstinence  from  flesh-meat  prescribed  by  the  Church.  There 
are  but  too  many  Catholics  who  imitate  in  this  point  their  conduct  and  their  language. 
It  is  easy  to  answer  both  one  and  the  other.  What  enters  into  man  doth  not  defile  him 
of  itself  and  by  its  own  nature,  since  every  creature  of  God  is  good  ;  but  it  may  defile 
him  by  the  violation  of  the  law  which  interdicts  its  use.  Thus  Adam  was  defiled  by  the 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CUEIST. 


213 


CHAP.  XXVH.] 

Not  tliat  which  goeth  into  the  mouth  defileth  a  man  ;  but  what 
cometh  out  of  the  mouth,  this  defileth  a  man.  If  any  man  hath  ears 
to  hear,  let  him  hear.” 

The  meaning  of  this  maxim  is,  that  meat  contains  nothing  in  itself 
which  is  capable  of  staining  the  conscience  of  man,  and  that  all  blem¬ 
ish  of  this  kind  springs  solely  from  the  distemper  of  the  heart.  This 
was  expressed  in  a  way  to  enable  the  truth  to  be  understood  by 
meditating  on  the  maxim  ;  and  Jesus  Christ  exhorts  the  people  to 
do  this.  But  it  might  occur  to  them  minds  that  he  wished  to  re¬ 
move  the  distinction  so  known  and  so  respected  between  clean  and 
unclean  animals.  He  was  soon  to  do  so  ;  but  the  time  was  not  yet 
come.  This  question  did  not  even  arise  here  :  the  question  at  issue 
here  was,  to  know  whether,  supposing  an  individual  used  only  the 
meats  which  were  allowed,  his  conscience  was  purer  or  more  sullied, 
in  proportion  as  he  should  eat  them  with  more  or  less  cleanliness, 
rather  than  with  purity.  This  is  the  case  which  was  decided  by  the 
sentence  which  Jesus  has  just  pronounced.  Thereupon  the  Phari¬ 
sees  were  highly  scandalized.  To  make  light  of  their  traditions  was 
fully  sufficient  to  give  offence  to  these  proud  men.  But  we  may  pre¬ 
sume,  from  this  Pharisaical  spirit,  which  always  contrives  to  give 
things  the  very  worst  construction,  that  they  accused  the  Saviour  of 
openly  attacking  the  law  which  prescribed  the  choice  of  meats.  The 
disciples  were  alarmed  ;  perhaps  they  also  were  scandalized  ;  for  we 
shall  see  that  they  themselves  did  not  at  first  comprehend  their  Mas¬ 
ter’s  meaning.  Thinking  it,  therefore,  proper  to  remonstrate  with 
him  on  this  subject,  (a)  “  they  came  then  and  said  to  him  :  Dost  thou 
know  that  the  Pharisees,  when  they  heard  this  word,  were  scandal¬ 
ized  ?  But  he  answering,  said:  Every  plant  which  my  heavenly  Fa¬ 
ther  hath  not  planted  shall  be  rooted  up  (6)  :  let  them  alone  ;  they 

(es)  St.  Matthew,  xv.  12-14. 


forbidden  fruit,  and  the  Jews  were  so  defiled  by  the  use  of  the  meats  which  were  de¬ 
clared  unclean.  It  is  not,  therefore,  the  food  which  produces  the  defiling  ;  it  is  the  dis 
obedience  which  comes  from  man,  that  is  to  say,  which  the  heart  engenders  when  the 
forbidden  meat  enters  into  man. 

(G)  Every  doctrine  which  comes  not  from  heaven,  and  which  is  merely  the  invention 
of  the  human  mind  :  all  teachers  who  have  not  received  their  mission  from  God,  like  the 
apostles  and  their  successors. 


/ 


%  M 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


f/lWy' 


are  blind,  and  leaders  of  the  blind.  And  if  the  blind  man  lead  the 
blind,  both  fall  into  the  pit  (7 ).” 

Whenever  it  happens  that,  in  doing  good,  we  scandalize,  if  the 
scandal  only  proceeds  from  the  malice  of  those  who  take  scandal, 
we  should  despise  it  ;  but  if  scandal  be  taken  through  ignorance  or 
through  weakness,  charity  then  obliges  ns  to  remove  the  apprehen¬ 
sions  of  the  weak,  and  to  enlighten  the  ignorant.  The  manner  in 
which  Jesus  has  just  spoken  of  the  Pharisees,  shows  us  that  he  pur¬ 
sued  the  first  line  of  conduct  with  respect  to  them.  We  have  an  ex¬ 
ample  of  the  second  in  the  condescension  he  eviriced,  by  giving  to 
his  disciples  the  explanation  which  they  demanded,  («)  “  When  he 
was  come  into  the  house  from  the  multitude,  they  asked  him  [the 
meaning  of]  the  parable,  and  Peter  [who  usually  spolce  for  all]  said 
to  him  :  Expound  to  us  this  parable.  Jesus  saith  to  them  :  Are  you 
also  without  understanding?  So  are  you  also  without  knowledge. 
Understand  you  not  that  every  thing  from  without  entering  into  a 
man  cannot  defile  him,  because  it  entereth  not  into  his  heart,  but 
goeth  into  the  belly,  and  is  cast  out  into  the  privy,  purging  all  the 
meats  ?  But  he  said  that  the  things  which  come  out  from  a  man, 
they  defile  him  (8)  ;  for  the  things  which  proceed  out  of  the  mouth 
come  forth  from  the  heart,  and  those  things  defile  a  man.  For  from 
within  out  of  the  heart  of  men  come  forth  evil  thoughts,  adulteries, 
fornications,  murders,  thefts,  covetousness,  wickedness,  deceit,  lascivi¬ 
ousness,  an  evil  eye  [of  envy],  blasphemy,  pride,  foolishness.  All 
these  evil  things  come  from  within  ;  these  are  the  things  that  defile 
a  man.  But  to  eat  with  unwashed  hands  doth  not  defile  a  man.” 

(a)  St.  Mark,  vii.  17-23  ;  St.  Matthew,  xv.  15,  18,  20. 


(7)  The  blind  man  who  takes  another  blind  man  for  his  guide,  commits  homicide  upon 
himself.  The  blind  man  who  offers  himself  to  conduct  another  blind  man,  commits  a 
double  homicide. 

(8)  It  is  not  necessary,  in  order  that  a  man  my  defile  himself,  that  the  sin  should  come 
forth  out  of  the  heart  :  he  may  consummate  the  sin  by  interior  consent,  as  Jesus  Christ 
informs  us,  with  respect  to  adultery,  and,  consequently,  all  other  sins.  If,  therefore,  he 
makes  it  here  come  forth  from  the  heart,  the  reason  is,  that  he  speaks  of  what  usually 
occurs  ;  for,  when  the  heart  hath  conceived  iniquity,  it  makes  an  effort  to  bring  it  forth, 
that  is  to  say,  to  carry  into  execution  what  it  hath  desired  and  projected.  And  if  it  doth 
not  always  commit  the  act,  it  is  only  because  it  is  obstructed  by  a  greater  force,  to  which 
it  yields,  yet  foaming  with  rage  and  vexation. 


\ 


« 


•  >. 


An  expression  which  alone  would  suffice  to  prove  what  we  have  ah 
ready  said,  viz.,  that  Jesus  Christ  does  not  here  enter  on  the  ques¬ 
tion  of  meats  forbidden  or  allowed,  but  that  he  merely  speaks  of  the 
extravagant  purifications  of  the  Pharisees  ;  and  even  what  he  does 
say  of  these  is  less  for  the  purpose  of  condemning  them,  than  to  dis¬ 
abuse  those  wrho,  relying  on  the  decisions  of  their  false  doctors,  im 
posed  upon  themselves  as  a  conscientious  duty  these  insignificant  ob¬ 
servances. 

(a)  “Jesus  went  from  thence,  and  retired  into  the  coasts  of  Tyre 
and  Sidon.”  He  did  not  wish  to  make  himself  known  in  this  idola¬ 
trous  country.  The  reason  was  (it  is  thought)  for  fear  lest  these  „ 
people,  being  attracted  by  the  rumor  of  his  miracles,  should  bring 
to  him  their  sick.  He  could  not  cure  them  without  exceeding  the 
bounds  of  his  mission,  and  his  natural  goodness  would  find  it  painful 
to  refuse  them.  In  order  to  prevent  this  embarrassment,  (b)  “  enter¬ 
ing  into  a  house,  he  would  that  no  one  should  know  it  ;  and  he  could 
not  be  [entirely]  hid  (9).  For  behold  a  woman  of  Canaan  who  came 
out  of  those  coasts,  whose  daughter  had  an  unclean  spirit,  crying  out, 
as  soon  as  she  heard  of  him,  said  to  him  :  Have  mercy  on  me,  O  Lord, 
thou  Son  of  David  ;  my  daughter  is  grievously  troubled  by  a  devil  ; 
who  answered  her  not  a  word.  And  his  disciples  came  and  besought 
him,  saying  :  Send  her  away,  for  she  crieth  after  us.”  Now,  by  cry¬ 
ing  out,  she  made  him  known,  the  very  thing  that  J esus  did  not  wish 
to  happen,  and  this  reason  advanced  by  the  disciples  was  highly 
proper  to  engage  him  to  grant  her  speedily  her  request.  Neverthe¬ 
less,  “he  answering,  said  :  I  was  not  sent  but  to  the  sheep  that  are 
lost  of  the  house  of  Israel.” 

It  would  seem  that  the  incident  we  have  just  related  took  place 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xv.  21. 


( b )  St.  Mark,  vii.  24-27  ;  St.  Matthew,  xv.  22-25. 


(9)  Let  us  take  care,  lest  we  think  that  he  had  not  the  power  to  conceal  himself.  He 
merely  took  the  precautions  which  human  prudence  usually  employs  to  hinder  one  from 
being  known.  These  precautions  were  not  sufficient  to  keep  his  arrival  in  the  country 
entirely  unknown,  as  he  had  not  absolutely  desired  such  utter  privacy  ;  and  it  is  true  to 
say  that  he  was  known  and  unknown  precisely  as  much  as  he  wished  so  to  be.  Perhaps 
he  wished  to  teach  us  that  he  does  not  always  show  himself  to  us,  and  that  we  must  seek 
him  with  earnestness  in  order  to  find  him.  Seek  ye  the  Lord,  and  be  strengthened  :  seek 
his  face  evermore, — Ps.  civ. 


~  '  ■**&*&. 


21G  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I. 

whilst  Jesus  was  yet  on  his  journey  towards  the  house  whither  he 
meant  to  retire,  as  we  have  said.  This  woman,  who  still  followed 
him,  “  came  in  [after  him],  fell  down  at  his  feet,  and  adored  him, 
saying  :  Lord,  help  me”  [that  is  to  say],  she  besought  him  that  he 
would  cast  forth  the  devil  out  of  her  daughter.  Jesus  was  fully  dis¬ 
posed  to  do  so  ;  but,  in  order  to  make  it  apparent  that  she  was  in¬ 
debted  for  this  favor  to  the  greatness  of  her  faith,  “  he  said  to  her 
[in  a  severe  tone]  :  Suffer  first  the  children  to  be  filled.  For  it  is  not 
good  to  take  the  bread  of  the  children  and  to  cast  it  to  dogs.  The 
woman  was  a  Gentile,  a  Syrophenician  born.”  It  is  this  idolatrous 
^  people  who  are  here  reckoned  as  dogs,  in  comparison  with  the  Jews, 
who  are  styled  the  children.  If  the  terms  made  use  of  by  the  Sa¬ 
viour  with  reference  to  the  first  are  humiliating,  they  are  not  alto¬ 
gether  discouraging.  In  them  we  may  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  fact, 
that  the  bread  should  be  given  to  the  idolaters  when  the  children 
should  have  been  sated  or  disgusted,  and  that  time  was  not  far 
distant.  But  a  pagan  woman  could  not  divine  this  mystery,  then 
unknown  to  the  apostles  ;  and  a  refusal  accompanied  with  so  much 
apparent  contempt  should  have  absolutely  taken  away  from  her 
every  hope.  It  must  be  owned  that  we  never  have  sharper  wit  than 
when  we  ask  for  what  we  desire  with  ardor.  This  poor  mother  had 
ingenuity  enough  on  this  occasion  to  make  the  reason  of  the  refusal 
a  motive  of  grace.  Far,  therefore,  from  desponding  when  Jesus  ap¬ 
peared  to  confound  her  with  the  foul  beasts  :  (a)  “  Yea,  Lord,”  she 
answered  “  [humbly  acknowledging  what  she  was]  ;  for  [she  imme¬ 
diately  adds]  the  whelps  also  eat  of  the  crumbs  of  the  children's 
bread ,  that  fall  from  the  table  of  their  masters.”  One  single  miracle 
wrought  for  a  Gentile,  in  regard  to  the  vast  number  of  those  which 
Jesus  Christ  had  wrought  for  the  Jews,  was,  in  point  of  fact,  like  a 
crumb  of  bread  dropped  under  the  table,  to  which  the  domestic  an¬ 
imals  were  fully  entitled.  “  O  woman,  then  J esus  said  to  her,  thy 
faith  is  great;  for  this  saying (10),  go  thy  way;  the  devil  is  gone 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xv.  27,  28;  St.  Mark,  vii.  29,  30. 


(10)  Not  because  this  expression  was  spiritual,  but  because  it  admirably  expressed  the 
faith  and  the  humility  of  the  virtuous  Canaanean  woman.  We  have  seen,  chapter  xvi., 
note  25,  and  page  134,  that  God  does  not  exact  long  prayers;  neither  does  he  require 


CHAP,  xxvm.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  2 1 V 

out  of  thy  daughter.  From  that  hour  her  daughter  was  cured,  and 
when  she  was  gone  into  her  house,  she  found  the  girl  lying  upon  the 
bed,  and  that  the  devil  was  gone  out.”  This  is  a  remarkable  narra¬ 
tive,  which  teaches  us  that  a  prayer  animated  by  faith,  accompanied 
by  humility,  and  sustained  by  perseverance,  is  a  stronger  reason  for 
God  to  hearken  to  it  than  all  those  which  he  may  have  to  refuse  it. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

DEAF  AND  DUMB  CURED. - MULTIPLICATION  OF  THE  SEVEN  LOAVES. - DEMAND  OF 

A  SIGN  FROM  HEAVEN. - LEAVEN  OF  THE  PHARISEES  AND  SADDUCEES. 

Thé  sacred  writers  mention  no  other  act  performed  by  the  Sa 
viour  in  that  strange  country.  We  know  that  all  is  not  written, 
and  it  is  very  probable  that  he  only  wrought  there  the  miracle  we 
have  just  recounted.  Besides  the  excellent  instruction  which  the 
entire  Church  derives  from  this  miracle  on  the  efficacy  of  prayer, 
perhaps  he  also  wished  to  teach  his  ministers  that  the  salvation  of  a 
single  soul  was  a  fruit  well  worthy  of  a  laborious  mission  ;  and  we 
will  not  consider  as  useless  the  pains  he  gave  himself  to  furnish  us 
with  this  double  lesson.  Whatever  might  have  been  the  cause,  it  is 
certain  that  he  did  not  tarry  in  this  country  :  ( a )  “  and  going  out  of 
the  coasts  of  Tyre,  he  came  by  Sidon  to  the  sea  of  Galilee,  through 
the  midst  of  the  coasts  of  Decapolis.” 

“  \IIe  was  scarcely  arrived  there ,  whm\  they  bring  to  him  one 
deaf  and  dumb,  and  they  besought  him,  that  hfe  would  lay  his  hand 
upon  him.  Jesus,  taking  him  from  the  multitude  apart,  put  his 
finger  into  his  ears,  and,  spitting,  he  touched  his  tongue  ;  then,  look¬ 
ing  up  to  heaven,  he  groaned.”  Because  of  the  ardor  of  his  prayer, 

(a)  St.  Mark,  vii.  31-37. 


that  they  should  be  eloquent.  Studied  discourses  are  of  no  avail  before  him  whose  ear 
listens  only  to  the  supplication  of  the  heart. 


213 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[part  I 

or  rather  through  compassion  for  our  miseries  ;  “  and  said  to  him  : 
Ephpheta,  which  is,  be  thou  opened  (1).  And  immediately  his  ears 
were  opened,  the  string  of  his  tongue  was  loosed,  and  he  spoke 
right  (2).  Jesus  charged  them  that  they  should  tell  no  man  (3)  ; 
but  the  more  he  charged  them,  so  much  the  more  a  great  deal  did 
they  publish  it,  and  so  much  the  more  did  they  wonder,  saying 
\Jjy  way  of  opposition  to  the  calumnies  of  the  Pha/)'isees\  :  He  hath 
done  all  things  well  ;  he  hath  made  both  the  deaf  to  hear,  and  the 
dumb  to  speak.” 

(a)  “  Then  Jesus,  going  up  into  a  mountain,  sat  there  ;  and  great 
multitudes  came  to  him  there,  having  with  them  the  dumb,  the 
blind,  the  lame,  the  maimed,  and  many  others  ;  they  cast  them 
down  at  his  feet,  and  he  healed  them.  So  that  the  multitudes  mar¬ 
velled,  seeing  the  dumb  speak,  the  lame  walk,  the  blind  see  ;  and 
they  glorified  the  God  of  Israel.” 

A  circumstance  similar  to  that  in  which  they  were  placed  some 
months  previously,  occasioned  a  miracle  similar  to  this  which  was 
now  operated.  ( b )  “  When  again  there  was  a  great  multitude,  and 
had  nothing  to  eat,  Jesus,  calling  his  disciples  together,  saith  to 
them  :  I  have  compassion  on  this  multitude,  because  they  continue 
with  me  now  three  days,  and  have  nothing  to  eat.  If  I  shall  send 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xv.  29-31.  (6)  St.  Mark,  viii.  1-10;  St.  Matthew, 

xv.  34,  36,  38,  39. 


(1)  He  speaks  as  God,  after  having  prayed  as  man  ;  elsewhere  he  speaks,  and  he 
prayeth  not.  Sometimes  he  heals  solely  by  the  imposition  of  his  blessed  hands  ;  at 
other  times,  by  the  touch  of  his  garments.  It  were  useless  to  seek  reasons  for  these 
different  proceedings.  It  is  enough  to  know  that  uncreated  wisdom  could  not  act  with¬ 
out  reason.  * 

(2)  The  miracles  are  al^tj  mysteries  ;  and  what  the  power  of  Jesus  Christ  wrought 
visibly  upon  the  bodies,  his  grace  wrought  invisibly  in  their  souls.  It  is  for  this  reason 
that  the  Chui'ch  has  made  this 'action  of  the  Saviour  one  of  the  ceremonies  of  baptism. 
The  word  Ephpheta,  he  thou  opened,  which  the  priest  pronounces,  when  making  nearly 
the  same  applications  that  Jesus  Christ  made  upon  the  deaf  and  dumb  man — this  word, 
I  say,  signifies  in  this  circumstance  :  Let  thine  ears  be  opened,  in  order  to  hear  and  in 
order  to  believe  ;  and  let  thy  tongue  be  untied,  in  order  to  confess  the  truth  which  you 
believe. 

(3)  With  reference  to  secrecy  commanded,  and  not  kept,  and  to  secrecy  commanded 
regarding  certain  miracles,  and  not  regarding  others,  see  note  5,  chapter  xii.,  and 
page  92. 


-Jr 


CHAP.  XXVIII. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


them  away  fasting  to  their  homes,  they  will  faint  in  the  way,  for 
some  of  them  come  from  afar  off.  I  will  not  [therefore]  send  them 
away  fasting.  His  disciples  answered  :  From  whence  can  any  one 
fill  them  here  with  bread  in  the  wilderness  ?” 

We  are  surprised  to  find  that  they  could  have  forgotten  the  yet 
recent  miracle  of  the  multiplication  of  the  five  loaves,  and  that,  in¬ 
stead  of  soliciting  a  similar  one,  natural  means  are  the  sole  expe¬ 
dients  which  occur  to  their  minds.  Jesus  did  not  pause  to  reproach 
them  with  this  forgetfulness  or  this  want  of  faith  ;  the  act  he  was 
going  to  perform  was  to  be  a  substitute  for  that  lesson.  “  He  asked 
them  :  How  many  loaves  have  ye  ?  Seven,  they  said,  and  a  few  lit¬ 
tle  fishes.  He  then  commanded  the  multitude  to  sit  down  upon  the 
ground.”  It  is  presumed,  and  with  reason,  that  they  were  ranged 
in  companies,  as  at  the  other  multiplication,  so  that  the  distribution 
might  be  orderly,  and  that  the  number  of  guests  might  be  easily 
known.  “Then  Jesus,  taking  the  seven  loaves,  giving . thanks,  he 
broke  and  gave  them  to  his  disciples  for  to  set  before  them,  and 
they  set  them  before  the  people.  And  he  blessed  the  few  little 
fishes  they  had,  and  commanded  them  to  be  set  before  them.  They 
did  all  eat  and  had  their  fill  (4),  and  they  took  up  seven  baskets 
full  (5)  of  what  remained  of  the  fragments.  Now,  they  that  had 
eaten  were  about  four  thousand  men,  besides  children  and  women. 
Jesus  dismissed  them,”  in  order  to  steal  himself  away  from  their  ap¬ 
plause,  and  also  that  they  might  not,  like  the  other  multitude,  think 


(4)  The  bread,  according  to  Saint  Augustine,  multiplied  in  the  hands  of  Jesus  Christ 
just  as  grain  multiplies  itself  in  the  earth.  If  we  wonder  more  at  one  multiplication  than 
at  the  other,  the  reason  is,  that  one  is  a  daily  occurrence,  and  the  other  a  very  extraordi¬ 
nary  one.  At  bottom,  it  is  the  same  miracle,  and  there  is  no  greater  subject  for  admi¬ 
ration  in  the  one  than  in  the  other.  Free-thinkers  do  not  believe  in  the  multiplication  of 
the  bread,  because  they  have  not  seen  it  ;  if  anybody  who  had  not  seen  the  multiplica¬ 
tion  of  grain,  refused  to  believe  it,  upon  the  report  of  witnesses  worthy  of  credit,  he 
would  be  regarded,  with  reason,  as  very  silly.  Yet  this  foolish  man  would  only  be  pre¬ 
cisely  what  free-thinkers  are. 

(5)  Jesus  Christ  caused  them  to  be  gathered,  in  order  that  the  whole  extent  of  the 
miracle  should  be  known,  and  also  to  teach  them  not  to  throw  away  the  gift  of  God  :  a 
popular  phrase,  which  comprises  a  highly  moral  and  very  religious  meaning. 

The  circumstance  of  the  seven  baskets  marks  the  difference  of  this  multiplication  from 
the  preceding  one,  and  prevents  the  two  from  being  taken  for  one  and  the  same  miracle. 
This  is  a  remark  of  Saint  Chrysosto  \ 


S\\\4b/A,'| 


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220 


THE  niSTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


4jpart  1. 


of  declaring  him  king.  “  Immediately  going  up  into  a  ship  with 
his  disciples,  he  came  into  the  parts  of  Dalmanutha  into  the  coasts 
of  Magedan.” 

This  country  is  situated  on  the  eastern  border  of  the  sea  of  Galilee. 
Jesus  wished  to  show  himself  there  as  elsewhere  ;  for  it  is  easy  to 
see  that  his  design  was  to  make  himself  known  to  all  the  house  oi 
Israel,  and  that  he  did  not  wish  that  there  should  be  one  district  of 
Judea  unenlightened  by  his  doctrine  and  his  miracles.  We  can 
have  no  doubt  of  his  having  both  preached  and  wrought  miracles 
here,  as  in  the  other  districts,  although  the  evangelists  do  not  say 
so  ;  but  what  they  do  state,  and  we,  after  their  narrative,  is,  that 
here,  as  elsewhere,  he  encountered  opposition. 

( a )  “  The  Pharisees  and  Sadducees”  were,  as  is  well  known,  two 
irreconcilable  sects.  But  when  the  object  is  to  persecute  the  good, 
the  wicked,  no  matter  how  much  they  disagree  amongst  themselves, 
are  yet  ready  to  combine  together.  These  “  came  [in  concert ]  to 
Jesus.  They  began  to  question  with  him.  Then  they  asked  him  to 
show  them  a  sign  from  heaven  [it  is  added\  tempting  him.”  And, 
in  point  of  fact,  to  ask  for  fresh  proofs  of  what  is  already  sufficiently 
proved,  is  not  desiring  additional  light — it  is  merely  seeking  grounds 
whereon  to  raise  objections.  “Jesus  answered,  and  said  to  them: 
When  it  is  evening,  you  say,  it  will  be  fair  weather,  for  the  sky  is 
red  ;  and  in  the  morning,  to-day  there  will  be  a  storm,  for  the  sky  is 
red  and  lowering.  You  know,  then,  how  to  discern  the  face  of  the 
sky,  and  can  you  not  know  the  signs  of  the  times  (6)  ?  And  he 
said  also  to  the  multitudes  :  When  you  see  a  cloud  rising  from  the 
west,  presently  you  say,  a  shower  is  coming  ;  and  so  it  happeneth. 
And  when  you  see  the  south  wind  blow,  you  say,  there  will  be  heat; 
and  it  cometh  to  pass.  You  hypocrites  !”  added  he — whether  he 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xvi.  1-4  ;  St.  Mark,  viii.  11  ;  St.  Luke,  xii.  54-57. 


(6)  The  preceding  passage  is  taken  from  Saint  Matthew  ;  what  immediately  follows 
is  from  Saint  Luke.  The  latter,  in  the  twelfth  chapter,  reports  consecutively  several  ex¬ 
pressions  of  the  Saviour,  detached  one  from  the  other,  without  stating  the  circumstances 
in  which  they  were  uttered,  and  the  greater  part  of  which  were  spoken  on  different  oc¬ 
casions;  We  deemed,  on  account  of  the  identity  of  the  subject,  that  it  was  more  nat¬ 
ural  to  place  this  expression  here,  although  several  interpreters  place  it  elsewhere. 


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OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


221 


CHAP.  XXVHI.J 

addressed  this  word  exclusively  to  the  Pharisees  and  to  the  Sad- 
ducees,  or  whether  the  curiosity  which  led  the  people  to  desire  a 
heavenly  sign  was  mingled  with  Pharisaical  malignity — “You  hypo¬ 
crites  !  you  know  how  to  discern  the  face  of  the  heaven  and  of  the 
earth  ;  but  how  is  it  that  you  do  not  discern  this  time,  and  why, 
even  of  yourselves,  do  you  not  judge  that  which  is  just  ?” 

It  is  easy  to  see  the  tendency  of  this  discourse.  All  the  signs 
marked  out  by  the  prophets  for  the  coming  of  the  Messiah  had  ap¬ 
peared,  or  were  actually  appearing  :  the  sceptre  of  Juda  had  passed 
away  to  strangers  ;  they  were  just  at  the  close  of  the  seventy  weeks 
foretold  by  Daniel.  The  Messiah  comet\  said  a  simple  woman  of 
Samaria.  So  notorious  was  the  fact.  Therefore,  the  time  was  come  ; 
and  nothing  remained  but  to  know  who  it  was  that  they  should  ac¬ 
knowledge.  The  miracles  of  Jesus  Christ  clearly  designated  him, 
not  only  by  the  general  evidence  which  ever  results  from  miracu¬ 
lous  deeds,  but  also  because  the  particular  species  of  miracles  had 
been  foretold,  as  constituting  one  of  the  characters  of  the  Messiah, 
as  he  himself  observed  to  the  disciples  of  John.  Now  to  say,  after 
this,  We  will  not  recognize  you,  unless  you  show  us  some  sign  from 
heaven,  if  in  jest,  is  an  insult  ;  if  seriously  spoken,  it  can  only  sig¬ 
nify  a  decided  and  fixed  design  to  believe  nothing.  So  criminal  a 
disposition  caused  the  Saviour  both  grief  and  indignation  :  (a)  “  and 
sighing  deeply  in  spirit,  he  saith  :  Why  doth  this  generation  ask  a 
sign  ?”  Afterwards,  as  if  he  had  answered  to  himself  internally  that 
the  motive  which  induced  them  to  ask  it  rendered  them  unworthy 
of  seeing  it,  he  presently  adds  :  “  A  wicked  and  adulterous  genera¬ 
tion  seeketh  after  a  sign  ;  but,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  a  sign  shall  not 
be  given  it  but  the  sign  of  Jonas  (7)  -the  prophet.  Jesus,  leaving 
them,  went  away  again  up  into  the  ship,  and  passed  to  the  other 
side  of  the  water.  When  his  disciples  were  come  over  the  water, 
they  had  forgotten  to  take  bread  ;  and  they  had  but  one  loaf  with 
them  in  the  ship.  Jesus  said  to  them,  and  charged  them  :  Take 

(a)  St.  Mark,  viii.  12-15;  St.  Matthew,  xvi.  4-6. 


(7)  That  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ,  figured  by  the  egress  of  Jonas  from  the 
belly  of  the  whale,  wherein  he  had  been  inclosed  during  three  days.  Jesus  Christ  had 
already  proposed  this  sign  on  an  occasion  similar  to  this. 


222 


THE  HISTORY  OR  THE  LIFE 


[part  I 

heed,  and  beware  of  the  leaven  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees,  and 
of  the  leaven  of  Herod  (8).”  This  word  leaven ,  which  they  took  in 
its  literal  meaning,  reminded  them  that  they  had  not  thought  of 
laying  in  a  store  of  bread.  Whereupon  they  were  filled  with  anx¬ 
iety  ;  for  they  were  frequently  on  the  borders  of  desert  places, 
where  it  was  impossible  to  procure  it.  (a)  “  And  they  reasoned 
among  themselves,  saying:  We  have  taken  no  bread.”  Perhaps 
they  had  already  proceeded  to  the  length  of  mutual  censure,  which 
is  reciprocally  dealt  out  by  parties  who  have  committed  a  common 
fault,  when  “  Jesus,  knowing”  their  embarrassment,  which  they  did 
not  dare  to  discover  to  him,'  he  went  on  to  show  them  the  consider¬ 
ably  greater  fault  which  they  had  then  committed.  “  O  ye  of  lit¬ 
tle  faith,  he  saith  to  them,  why  do  you  think  within  yourselves  that 
you  have  no  bread  ?  Do  you  not  yet  know  nor  understand  ?  Have 
you  still  your  hearts  blinded  ?  Having  eyes,  see  you  not  ;  and  hav¬ 
ing  ears,  hear  you  not  ?  Neither  do  you  remember,  when  I  broke 
the  five  loaves  among  five  thousand,  how  many  baskets  full  of  frag- 

( a )  St.  Mark,  viii.  16-20  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvi.  8. 


(8)  Saint  Mark,  who  omits  the  Sadducees  named  by  Saint  Matthew,  adds  to  the 
leaven  of  the  Pharisees,  that  of  Herod,  or  of  the  Herodians,  of  whom  mention  is  made, 
page  113,  and  note  4  of  chapter  xv.  Nothing  is  there  said  of  their  opinions,  regarding 
which  there  is  no  settled  information.  Nevertheless,  it  has  been  conjectured  that  they 
may  not  have  been  different  from  the  Sadducees.  Here  are  the  grounds  of  this  con¬ 
jecture  :  In  all  likelihood,  the  Herodians  were  only  so  denominated,  on  account  of  their 
attachment  for  the  family  of  the  Herods,  who  were  the  princes  of  the  country.  The 
Herodians  were,  therefore,  men  connected  with  the  court,  or  courtiers.  Now  Josephus, 
Book  II.  of  the  Jewish  War,  chapter  vii.,  states,  that  the  sect  of  Sadducees  was  but  lit¬ 
tle  diffused,  but  that  it  was  the  sect  of  the  aristocracy.  On  the  other  hand,  we  learn 
from  the  Gospel  that  the  Sadducees  were  pure  materialists,  who  not  only  denied  the  res¬ 
urrection,  but  who  did  not  acknowledge  that  any  spiritual  substance  existed  in  the  uni¬ 
verse.  Here,  then,  we  have  in  this  aristoci'acy  the  condition,  as  well  as  in  this  material¬ 
ism  the  religion,  of  many  courtiers  ;  therefore,  if  we  like  to  draw  the  conclusion,  the  Sad¬ 
ducees  were  Herodians.  If  it  be  further  inquired,  whether  these  amongst  the  aristoc¬ 
racy  were  men  who  joined  themselves  to  the  Pharisees,  in  order  to  put  captious  ques¬ 
tions  to  the  Saviour,  it  is  not  only  possible  that  some  amongst  them  may  have  done  so, 
but  we  may  answer,  moreover,  that  the  aristocracy  were  not  the  only  members  who 
composed  the  sect  of  the  Sadducees.  They  were,  indeed,  the  heads  of  it  ;  but  we  may 
also  presume  that  Sadduceeism  was  the  religion  of  their  clients,  their  parasites,  and  their 
servants,  not  to  speak  of  those  who,  not  having  it  in  their  power  to  equal  them  in  riches, 
may  have  wished  to  resemble  them  by  dissoluteness  of  mind  and  morals. 


CHAP.  XXVIII.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  223 

ments  you  took  up  ?  They  say  to  him  :  Twelve.  When,  also,  tlie 
seven  loaves  among  four  thousand,  how  many  baskets  of  fragments 
took  you  up  ?  They  say  to  him  :  Seven.” 

This  was  sufficient  to  make  them  ashamed  of  their  embarrassment. 
But  if  they  were  not  to  be  anxious  about  bread  after  the  two  mir¬ 
acles  of  which  they  had  just  been  witnesses  and  co-operators,  Jesus 
Christ,  the  author  of  these  miracles,  whose  arm  was  not  shortened, 
was  still  less  disposed  to  think  of  such  things.  They  should,  there¬ 
fore,  when  he  spoke  of  leaven,  have  understood  it  in  a  sense  differ¬ 
ent  from  what  the  word  usually  presents  to. the  mind.  This  is  what 
he  made  them  remark  :  “  He  said  to  them  [when  terminating  this 
conversation ]  :  Why  do  you  not  yet  understand  that  it  was  not  con¬ 
cerning  bread  I  said  to  you  :  Beware  of  the  leaven  of  the  Pharisees 
and  Sadducees  ?  Then  [at  last ]  they  understood  that  he  said  not 
that  they  should  beware  of  the  leaven  of  bread,  but  of  the  doctrine 
of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  (9).” 


(9)  Jesus  Christ  said  elsewhere  :  The  Scribes  and  the  Pharisees  have  sitten  on  the 
chair  of  Moses  ;  all  things,  therefore,  whatsoever  they  shall  say  to  you,  observe  and  do  ; 
thus  openly  authorizing  their  doctrine,  which  is,  nevertheless,  condemned  here.  This 
shows  that  discrimination  should  be  used  between  tire  doctrine  of  Moses,  when  the  Phar¬ 
isees  expounded  it,  and  their  own  particular  doctrines,  when  they  proposed  them.  It 
was  incumbent  on  the  hearer  to  receive  the  first,  and  to  reject  the  others.  All  this  is 
signified  by  the  words  of  the  Saviour — Beware,  which  doth  not  mean  to  convey  :  Reject 
all  that  they  say,  or  close  your  ears,  lest  you  should  hear  them  ;  but  listen  to  them  with 
precaution  and  discernment.  Those  who  shall  say  that  this  discernment  was  a  difficult 
and  anxious  thing,  shall  recognize  a  truth  which  must  make  known  to  them,  at  the  same 
time,  the  obligation  which  they  owe  to  God  for  having  spared  them  the  trouble  and  the 
dangers.  For  when  the  Church  instructs  us  by  means  of  those  whom  God  hath  estab¬ 
lished  her  chief  pastors,  all  is  pure  and  sound,  and  should  be  received  without  distrust. 
Hence  there  is  no  reason  for  reading  the  works  of  heretics,  saying  that  the  reader  profits 
by  what  is  good,  and  passes  over  what  is  bad  ;  for  people  are  to  be  found,  who  deem 
themselves  authorized  to  do  so,  by  the  permission  which  Jesus  Christ  grants  to  hear  the 
Pharisees  when  using  this  discrimination.  This  was  profitable  to  the  Jews,  who  had  no 
other  teachers  ;  but  we  who  have  others,  teaching  truth  pure  and  unalloyed,  why  should 
we  perplex  ourselves,  by  fishing  out  truth  from  amid  a  thousand  errors,  at  the  risk  of 
still  falling  into  mistake  ?  There  is  no  imprudence  in  availing  ourselves  of  a  bad  guide, 
when  we  have  no  other,  and  that  we  must  have  one  ;  but  when  we  have  found  one  who 
is  a  sure  guide,  to  leave  him,  for  the  purpose  of  taking  another  guide  who  may  mislead 
us,  because  he  also  may  not  go  astray,  is  not  merely  tqjnerity,  but  extravagance. 


224  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  L 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

THE  BLIND  MAN  OF  BETHS  AIDA . - CONFESSION  OF  SAINT  PETER. - PROMISE  OF  THE 

KEYS. - PASSION  FORETOLD. - PETER  REBUKED. - SELF  IS  TO  BE  RENOUNCED. - 

THE  CROSS  MUST  BE  CARRIED. 

(a)  “  [From  the  place  where  they  disembarked ?]  they  came  to  Betli- 
saida,  where  they  bring,  to  Jesns  a  blind  man,  and  they  besought 
him  that  he  would  touch  him.'”  As  this  was  one  of  those  miracles 
which  he  did  not  wish  to  make  public,  “  taking  the  blind  man  by 
the  hand,  he  led  him  out  of  the  town  ;  and  spitting  upon  his  eyes, 
laying  his  hands  on  him,  he  asked  him  if  he  saw  any  thing.  The 
blind  man  looking  up,  said  :  I  see  men  as  it  were  trees  walking.” 
This  answer  shows  us  that  he  was  not  born  blind,  since  he  had  a  dis¬ 
tinct  idea  of  men  and  trees.  “  After  that  again,  Jesus  laid  his  hands 
upon  his  eyes,  and  he  began  to  see  [better],  and  was  restored,  so  that 
he  saw  all  things  clearly.  After  that,  Jesus  sent  him  into  his  house. 
Go  into  thy  house,  he  said,  and  if  thou  enter  into  the  town  (1),  tell 
nobody  (2).”  ' 

This  is  a  remarkable  cure,  being  the  only  one  which  Jesus  wrought 
by  degrees.  It  is  commonly  attributed  to  the  disposition  of  the 
blind  man,  whose  faith,  at  first  feeble,  only  attained  for  him  an  im¬ 
perfect  cure,  subsequently  perfected  with  his  faith,  so  that  he  did  not 

(a)  St.  Mark,  viii.  22-27. 


(1)  The  borough  of  Bethsaida  is  also  called  city  by  Saint  John.  It  was  one  of  that 
middle  class  of  places  which  may  receive  either  one  or  the  other  appellation. 

(2)  Was  it  simply  in  order  that  the  miracle  should  remain  a  secret  in  the  country, 
that  Jesus  Christ  forbid  the  blind  man  to  speak  of  it  in  Bethsaida,  or  did  he  wish  to 
conceal  the  knowledge  thereof  from  the  inhabitants,  in  order  to  punish  them  for  the  little 
fruit  which  they  had  derived  from  the  great  number  of  miracles  which  he  had  wrought 
amongst  them  ?  this  is  a  matter  of  uncertainty.  The  second  conjecture  is  usually  ground¬ 
ed  upon  these  words  of  the  Saviour,  St.  Luke,  x.  13  :  Woe  to  thee,  Corozain!  woe  to  thee, 
Bethsaida  !  for  if  in  Tyre  and  Sidon  had  been  wrought  the  mighty  works  that  have  been 
wrought  in  you,  they  would  hav%  done  penance  long  ago,  sitting  in  sackcloth  and  ashes. 
See  note  14,  chap,  xxii.,  p.  178;  the  contempt  of  miracles  punished  by  the  cessation  of 
miracles. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


225 


CHAP.  XXIX.] 

see  clearly  but  when  he  believed  firmly.  Thus,  Peter  walked  upon 
the  waters  when  he  believed  without  hesitating  ;  and  when  he  com¬ 
menced  to  doubt,  so  also  he  commenced  to  sink.  Certain  it  is,  and 
we  think  we  have  already  said  so,  that  miracles  usually  follow  faith, 
and  proportion  themselves  to  it.  Nevertheless,  the  Saviour  may 
have  had  other  reasons  for  pursuing  the  course  he  adopted  on  this 
occasion.  One  is,  for  example,  that  he  wished  to  draw  a  picture  of 
the  sometimes  slow  and  gradual  advances  of  his  grace,  which,  when 
it  makes  the  soul  pass  from  darkness  to  light,  has,  if  we  may  venture 
to  speak,  its  twilight  and  its  aurora.  Happy  he  who  is  not  disheart¬ 
ened  at  its  lingering  approach,  who  knows  how  to  take  advantage 
of  its  first  rays,  and  to  quicken,  by  an  increase  of  faith,  the  bursting 
of  its  full  dawn. 

(a)  “From  Bethsaida  Jesus  went  out  with  his  disciples  into  the 
towns  in  the  quarters  of  Cesarea  Philippi  (3).  In  the  way,  as  he 
was  alone  praying,”  that  is  to  say,  apart  from  the  crowd,  or  without 
being  followed  by  it,  for  “  his  disciples  also  were  with  him,”  he  asked 
them,  saying  :  “  Whom  do  men  say  that  the  Son  of  man  is  ?”  It 
seems  that  the  prejudices  of  the  people  as  to  who  Jesus  might  be 
were  not  different  from  those  of  Herod  and  his  court,  since  “  they 
said  :  Some,  John  the  Baptist  ;  some  say,  Elias,  and  others,  Jeremias  ; 
others  say  that  one  of  the  former  prophets  is  risen  again  (4).  Jesus 
saith  to  them  :  But  whom  do  you  say  that  I  am  ?  Simon  Peter  an¬ 
swered,  and  said:  Thou  art  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God  (5). 
Jesus  answering,  said  to  him  :  Blessed  art  thou,  Simon  Bar-Jona  ; 
because  flesh  and  blood  hath  not  revealed  it  to  thee,  but  my  Father 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xvi.  13-19  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  18-21  ;  St.  Mark,  viii.  27-29. 


(3)  Previously  Paneas,  but  called  Cesarea  by  Philip  the  tetrarch,  who  wished  to  court 
favor  with  the  Emperor  Tiberias.  The  surname  of  Philip  has  been  given  to  it,  in  order 
to  distinguish  it  from  another  Cesarea,  rebuilt  and  magnificently  embellished  by  Herod 
the  Great,  in  honor  of  the  Emperor  Augustus.  This  latter  city,  which  was  situated  on 
the  borders  of  the  Mediterranean,  was  previously  called  the  Tower  of  Straton. 

(4)  Or  perhaps  because  the  soul  of  some  of  these  great  men  had  passed  into  his  body  ; 
for  a  belief  in  the  transmigration  of  souls  was  current  among  the  Jews,  as  appeai-s  by  the 
books  of  their  Talmudists  and  their  Cabalists. 

(5)  More  than  were  John  the  Baptist,  Elias,  Jeremy,  and  the  prophets  ;  therefore  more 
than  by  adoption  ;  therefore  by  nature. 


15 


/ 


AH 


OHSjjg.-, 

'ÈllWÏ 


[pari  I. 

who  is  in  heaven.”  Then  rendering  testimony  to  him  in  return  for 
testimony,  but  with  this  difference,  that  Peter  only  declared  what 
Jesus  was,  instead  of  which  Jesus  made  Peter  what  he  declared  he 
was  :  “  And  \]ie  added~\  I  say  to  thee  that  thou  art  Peter  (6),  and 
upon  this  rock  I  will  build  my  Church,  and  the  gates  of  hell  shall 
not  prevail  against  it  (7).  I  will  give  to  thee  the  keys  of  the  king¬ 
dom  of  heaven.  Whatsoever  thou  shalt  bind  upon  earth,  it  shall  be 
bound  also  in  heaven,  and  whatsoever  thou  shalt  loose  on  earth,  it 
shall  be  loosed  also  in  heaven.”  After  this  double  testimony,  which 
comprehends,  in  an  abridgment,  all  religion — one  being  the  ground¬ 
work  of  Christian  faith,  and  the  other  that  of  Catholic  unity — (a)  “Je¬ 
sus  strictly  commanded  his  disciples  that  they  should  tell  none  that 
he  was  Jesus  the  Christ.”  We  have  already  said  that  Jesus  only 
wished  to  lead  men  gradually  to  the  knowledge  of  his  divinity. 

It  does  not  appear  that  the  disciples  divulged  the  secret  which 
they  were  so  solemnly  charged  to  keep.  But,  assured  at  last  of  the 
divinity  of  their  Master,  and  still  prepossessed  with  the  flattering 
idea  of  his  temporal  reign,  their  imagination  revelled  in  the  glory 
and  the  pleasures  which  his  divinity  and  earthly  reign  seemed  to 
announce  to  them.  Jesus  took  this  opportunity  to  disabuse  them, 
by  informing  them  that  his  quality  of  Christ  should  not  hinder 
him  from  dying  in  extreme  torture,  and  that  he  would  only  recog¬ 
nize  as  his  true  disciples  those  who  would  participate  in  his  oppro¬ 
brium  and  suffering.  Two  truths,  the  first  of  which  was  to  shake 

(a)  St.  Mark,  viii.  30  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvi.  20. 


(6)  This  name  had  already  been  given  to  him,  see  page  116  ;  but  the  prerogatives  ap¬ 
pertaining  to  it  had  not  as  yet  been  declared  to  belong  to  him.  Jesus  Christ  wished,  for 
the  glory  of  Saint  Peter,  to  be  indebted  to  him  for  the  merit  of  the  confession. 

(7)  The  powers  of  hell,  according  to  the  common  interpretation.  Nevertheless,  since 
the  gates  of  hell  are  merely  defensive  forces,  and  the  reference  here  is  to  offensive  forces, 
inasmuch  as  what  is  here  said  shall  not  prevail,  is  the  unsuccessful  attack,  according  to 
this  expression  of  Jeremy,  i.  19  :  They  shall  fight  against  thee,  and  shall  not  prevail,  this 
difficulty  has  made  the  interpreters  seek  for  another  sense.  It  has  been  thought  that 
this  name  might  be  given  to  those  who  carry  off  a  great  number  of  souls  to  hell,  and 
more  particularly  to  the  authors  of  schisms  and  heresies,  who  wage  a  more  open  war 
with  the  Church.  These  perverse  men  may  justly  be  termed  the  gates  of  hell,  as  Jesus 
Christ  is  called  the  gate  of  heaven.  This  explanation  is  plausible,  even  if  it  be  not  a 
true  one. 


m 


jo  a  a  a  a  o  o  a  o  *1 


ÏHAP.  XXIX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JFSUS  CHRIST. 


227 


the  very  foundation-stone  of  the  new  edifice  which  Jesus  was  to  ce¬ 
ment  with  his  blood  ;  which  circumstance  did  not  hinder  him  from 
proposing  both  one  and  the  other  without  any  temporizing:  for 
(a)  “  that  time  he  began  to  show  to  his  disciples  that  he  must  go  to 
Jerusalem,  suffer  many  things,  be  rejected  by  the  ancients,  by  the 
chief  priests  and  the  Scribes,  be  put  to  death,  and  after  three  days 
rise  again,  and  he  spoke  the  word  openly.  And  Peter,  taking  him, 
began  to  rebuke  him,  saying  :  Lord,  be  it  far  from  thee  ;  this  shall 
not  be  unto  thee.”  Out  of  love  did  he  thus  speak,  and  this  motive 
might  render  him  excusable  ;  but  his  vivacity,  too  highly  savoring 
of  nature,  must  be  suppressed,  being  calculated  to  lead  to  the  ulti¬ 
mate  result  of  obstructing  the  great  work  for  which  the  only  Son  of 
the  living  God  had  made  himself  man.  “  Jesus,  therefore,  turning 
about,  and  seeing  his  disciples,”  whom  he  wished  to  render  wit¬ 
nesses  of  the  reprimand  which  he  was  going  to  make  to  their  leader, 
in  order  that  they  might  profit  thereby,  “  he  threatened  Peter,  say 
ing  :  Go  behind  me,  Satan  (8)  !  thou  art  a  scandal  unto  men,  be¬ 
cause  thou  savorest  not  the  things  that  are  of  God,  but  that  are  of 
men  (9).” 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xvi.  21-23  ;  St.  Mark,  viii.  31-33. 


(8)  This  word,  in  holy  language,  properly  signifies  adversary  ;  we  often  find  it  used  in 
this  sense  in  Scripture.  It  is  appropriated  to  Lucifer,  because  he  is  the  capital  enemy 
of  God  and  of  men.  Those  who  wish  to  spare  Saint  Peter  this  odious  denomination, 
have  asserted  that  it  was  Satan  himself  whom  the  Saviour  then  apostrophized.  Their 
intention  is  praiseworthy  ;  buf,  what  follows  being  addressed  evidently  to  Saint  Peter, 
the  figure  would  be  too  violent,  if  the  preceding  expression  were  addressed  to  another. 
There  is  nothing  to  hinder  the  Saviour  from  having  said  to  Saint  Peter  :  Thou  art  exe¬ 
cuting  against  me  the  office  of  Satan  ;  thou  art  a  tempter  to  me.  The  motive  which  in¬ 
duced  this  apostle  to  speak  was  good  ;  but  what  he  uttered  was  not  so.  The  error  is 
justly  reproved,  and  the  person  is  not  the  less  loved,  as  we  shall  soon. see. 

Those  who,  for  the  purpose  of  avoiding  what  is  opposed  to  the  accomplishment  of  the 
designs  of  God  upon  them,  do  earnestly  repel  the  assaults  which  a  tenderness  savoring  too 
highly  of  natural  impulse  may  direct  against  them,  are  more  than  justified  by  this  answer 
of  the  Saviour. 

(9)  Men  only  relish  glory  and  pleasure,  and  God  wishes  them  to  prefer  humiliations 
and  sufferings.  But  these  sufferings  are  repaid  them  by  infinite  pleasures,  and  these  hu¬ 
miliations  are  followed  by  immortal  glory.  God,  therefore,  wishes  substantially  the  same 
things  which  we  desire  ;  but  he  wishes  the  pain  to  precede  the  recompense  :  what  can 
be  more  just?  and  as  to  the  sacrifice  of  the  fleeting  for  the  eternal,  what  can  be  more 
reasonable  ?  Men,  on  the  contrary,  wish  to  share  the  recompense  without  sharing  the 


228 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

Peter  did  not  venture  to  reply,  and  the  disciples,  instructed  at  his 
expense,  remained  in  respectful  silencer  then  Jesus  passing  on  to  an¬ 
other  "truth,  which  was  the  sequel  of  the  preceding  one,  informed 
them  that  it  was  only  by  humiliations  and  sufferings  that  they  could 
be  true  disciples  of  an  outraged  and  crucified  Messiah. 

But  as  this  startling  precept  did  not  merely  regard  the  apostles, 
but  generally  all  those  who  wished  to  embrace  the  new  Gospel, 
(a)  “  Jesus  calling  the  multitude  together  with  his  disciples,  he  said 
to  all  :  If  any  man  will  come  after  me,  let  him  deny  himself  (10), 
take  up  his  cross  (11)  daily  (12),  and  follow  me.”  This  renunciation 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xvi.  24. 


pain:  could  any  thing  be  more  unjust?  And,  reduced  to  the  dilemma  of  choosing  be¬ 
tween  both,  they  quit  the  solid  for  the  frivolous,  and  what  is  to  last  forever  for  what  has 
merely  a  temporal  duration.  Could  any  thing  he  more  unreasonable  ?  Oh,  how  wise  is 
the  folly  of  the  Gospel,  and  how  silly  is  the  wisdom  of  the  world  ! 

(10)  What  follows  in  the  text  explains  what  sort  of  renunciation  is  rigorously  binding  ; 
but  there  are  several  degrees  of  perfection.  To  renounce  one’s  self,  in  order  to  follow 
the  counsels  of  Jesus  Christ,  is,  undoubtedly,  a  much  higher  degree  than  to  renounce 
self,  in  order  to  obey  his  commandments  ;  in  this  consists  religious  renouncement,  which 
is  merely  the  commencement  of  perfection.  To  renounce  one’s  self  in  every  thing  which 
is  forbidden,  when  this  renunciation  is  not  absolutely  necessary — to  deny  one’s  self  all  in¬ 
nocent  satisfactions,  to  refuse  ourselves  those  pleasures  which  are  allowed,  to  check  all 
our  inclinations,  to  master  all  our  propensities,  to  repress  even  the  slightest  sallies  of  na¬ 
ture — in  a  word,  to  be  constantly  disposed  to  sacrifice  every  thing  without  reserve — I 
mean  not  only  to  the  commandments  of  God,  nor  even  to  his  counsels,  but  also  to  every 
thing  that  we  may  presume  to  be  most  agreeable  to  him — this  is  the  perfection  to  which 
the  saints  unceasingly  tend,  because  they  always  long  to, arrive  at  it.-  It  is  the  death  of 
self-love,  if  we  should  not  rather  call  it  the  life  and  resurrection  of  self-love,  being  the 
perfect  transformation  thereof  into  the  will  of  God. 

(11)  It  is  not  his  cross  that  Jesus  Christ  obliges  us  to  cany;  it  is  our  own,  which  is 
much  lighter  than  his.  But,  moreover,  it  is  not  he  who  imposes  this  charge  upon  us  : 
the  condition  of  this  life  renders  it  inevitable,  and  what  he  requires  from  us  is  to  the  very 
letter  that  we  should  make  a  virtue  of  necessity.  When  we  thus  carry  our  cross  in  the 
trahi  of  our  Saviour,  that  is  to  say,  by  imitating  his  patience,  he  also  softens  the  burden 
by  the  unction  of  his  grace,  and  he  himself  comes  to  our  assistance  and  enables  us  to 
bear  its  weight.  How  many  souls  bear  testimony  that  they  find  it  as  delicious  as  it  is 
meritorious  to  them  !  whilst  those  who  bear  it  with  impatience  groan  under  the  load,  and 
make  for  themselves  a  double  hell,  viz.,  that  of  this  life,  and  that  of  the  other.  Since  we 
must  suffer  in  one  way  or  another,  is  it  not  more  rational  to  save  ourselves  by  suffering 
less,  than  to  damn  ourselves  by  suffering  more  ? 

(12)  If  each  day  has  its  pain,  each  day  should  also  have  its  patience.  This  is  said  for 
those  persons  who  have  their  good  and  bad  days,  like  intermitting  fevers. 


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OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


229 


CHAP.  XXIX.] 

extends  to  every  thing  which  may  be  any  obstacle  to  the  observance 
ol’  the  law  of  Jesus  Christ.  Even  life  itself  is  not  excepted  ;  for  we 
must  be  disposed  to  lose  it,  rather  than  preserve  it  by  a  single  pre¬ 
varication.  What  more  revolting  to  nature  ?  we  may  even  say,  what 
less  reasonable  to  the  eyes  of  carnal  prudence  ?  Yet  there  is  nothing 
more  rational  or  more  salutary.  ( a )  “  For  [adds  the  Saviour ]  who¬ 
soever  will  save  his  life  [at  the  expense  of  what  he  owes  to  me],  will 
lose  it  ;  and  whosoever  shall  lose  his  life  for  my  sake  and  the  Gospel, 
shall  save  it  (13):  for  what  shall  it  profit  a  man  if  he  gain  the  whole 
world,  and  suffer  the  loss  of  his  soul  ?  Or  what  shall  a  man  give  in 
exchange  for  his  soul  ?” 

To  feel  the  full  force  of  this  reasoning,  we  should  remark  that  the 
Saviour  seems  to  suppose  a  man  who  would  give  his  life  for  some 
one,  or  even  for  all  the  goods  of  this  life.  It  is  evident  that  this 
man  would  be  a  fool,  since  by  losing  his  life  he  would  be  no  longer 
in  a  position  to  enjoy  what  he  might  acquire  at  this  price  ;  and  this 
incapacity  of  enjoyment  would  be  the  result  of  his  own  act — bereav¬ 
ing  him  of  all  right  of  possession,  and  even  of  his  own  existence. 
Now  such,  and  a  thousand  times  worse,  is  he  who  saves  his  life  at 
the  expense  of  his  soul,  that  is  to  say,  who  preserves  the  present 
life  by  the  sacrifice  of  that  which  is  to  come.  It  may  be  said  that 
he  saves  nothing,  since  he  must  necessarily  lose  whatsoever  he  saves, 
and  that  the  moment  shall  come  when  he  shall  be  in  this  regard  just 
in  the  same  position  as  if  he  had  not  saved  it  ;  but,  at  the  same  time, 
he  shall  find  that  he  has  lost  every  thing,  since  the  life  which  he  shall 
have  lost  must  last  eternally;  and  that,  in  this  eternal  duration, 
there  will  not  be  one  instant  in  which  it  may  not  be  said  in  truth  to 
him  :  He  has  lost  all.  Whereas,  the  man  tvho  shall  have  sacrificed 
his  life  to  his  duty,  shall  find  that  he  has  lost  nothing,  since  what  he 
has  lost  must  necessarily  have  perished,  and  he  shall  have  gained 
every  thing  by  gaining  an  eternal  life,  and  one,  too,  of  eternal  hap- 

(a)  St.  Mark,  viii.  35-37. 

(13)  Here  all  the  potentates  of  the  earth  fall  short.  Not  one  of  them  was  ever  able 
to  say  :  Those  are  gainers  who  lose  their  lives  in  my  service.  Nevertheless,  those  may 
be  gainers  who  lose  their  lives  in  the  service  of  a  prince  ;  but  this  is  when,  in  the  service 
of  the  prince,  they  only  have  in  view  the  service  of  God  ;  and  it  is  not  then  the  prince,  it 
is  God  alone  who  promises  and  gives  the  recompense. 


230 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

piness.  Jesus  Christ  speaks  directly  of  the  sacrifice  of  life,  because 
this  alone  comprises  all  the  others  ;  and,  moreover,  because  the  pro 
fession  of  Christianity  was  going  to  be,  by  reason  of  the  persecutions 
which  should  arise,  a  proximate  occasion  for  the  sacrifice  of  life.  It 
was  necessary  to  prepare  the  new  disciples  for  this  ;  but,  in  order 
to  do  so  in  the  most  effective  manner,  and  to  counteract  fear  by  a 
greater  fear,  he  parades  before  their  eyes  the  formidable  display  of 
that  great  judgment  in  which  he  is  to  overwhelm,  with  the  weight 
of  his  eternal  indignation,  those  cowardly  disciples  whom  the  sight 
of  torments  and  of  death  frighten  into  a  shameful  apostacy.  It  is 
for  this  purpose  that,  immediately  after  the  last  words  which  we 
have  recorded,  he  uttered  these  :  (a)  “  For  he  that  shall  be  ashamed 
of  me  and  of  my  words  in  this  adulterous  and  sinful  generation,  the 
Son  of  man  also  will  be  ashamed  of  him,  when  he  shall  come  in  his 
majesty,  and  that  of  his  Father,  and  that  of  his  holy  angels.  For 
the  Son  of  man  shall  come  in  the  glory  of  his  Father  with  his  an¬ 
gels  ;  and  then  will  he  render  to  every  man  according  to  his  works. 
Then  [ addressing  his  words  to  his  disciples  alone\  he  said  to  them  : 
Amen,  I  say  to  you,  there  are  some  of  them  that  stand  here  that 
shall  not  taste  death  till  they  see  the  kingdom  of  God  in  power,  the 
Son  of  man  coming  in  [  the  splendors  of~\  his  kingdom.” 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

THE  TRANSFIGURATION. - RETURN  OF  ELIAS  ANNOUNCED. - CONTRAST  OF  JESUS 

Christ’s  humiliation  with  his  glory. 

This  magnificent  promise  was  not  slow  in  being  fulfilled;  for  we 
believe,  with  the  majority  of  ancient  interpreters,  that  it  was  accom¬ 
plished  in  the  transfiguration.  Those  who  choose  to  find  its  accom¬ 
plishment  in  the  establishment  of  the  Church  on  the  ruins  of  the  old 
Jerusalem,  have  not  borne  in  mind  that  the  Son  of  man  did  not  there 
exhibit  his  person  ;  and  still  it  is  here  said  that  he  shall  be  seen. 

(a)  St  Mark,  viii.  38,  39  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  26  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvi.  27,  28. 


_  Clt. 


v] 


CHAP.  XXX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


231 


Others  have  thought  that  the  state  in  vyhich  he  appeared  after  his 
resurrection,  and  still  more  the  glory  which  accompanied  his  ascen¬ 
sion,  suffice  to  verify  the  prediction.  It  may  be  so  ;  but  then  he 
was  seen  by  all  his  disciples,  and  here  it  is  said  that  he  shall  only 
be  seen  by  some.  Lastly,  the  accomplishment  has  been  referred  to 
the  last  judgment;  and  all  here  would  be  consistent,  if  some  of  his 
disciples  were  never  to  have  died;  but  we  know  that  this  privilege 
was  not  granted  to  any  one  of  them,  for  it  has  been  long  ago  recog¬ 
nized  that  the  pretended  immortality  of  Saint  John  is  merely  a  pop¬ 
ular  notion,  without  any  solid  foundation.  There  remains,  then,  but 
the  transfiguration,  on  which  occasion  some  of  those  who  were  pres¬ 
ent  had  the  advantage  of  seeing  Jesus,  not  in  the  actual  exercise, 
but  in  the  lustre  of  his  power,  that  is  to  say,  such  as  he  shall  appear 
on  that  great  day  when  his  dazzling  splendor  shall  efface  the  light 
of  the  sun,  and  all  the  glory  of  earth  and  heaven.  We  have  said 
that  the  Saviour  was  not  slow  in  accomplishing  his  promise  ;  in  fact, 
(a)  “  about  eight  days  after  these  words  (the  preceding  discourse)  (1), 
Jesus  taketh  with  him  \Jiis  three  favorite  disciples]  Peter,  and  James, 
and  John  his  brother,  he  bringeth  them'  up  into  a  high  mountain 
apart  by  themselves  [whither  lie  went  up ],  to  pray.  Whilst  he  pray¬ 
ed,  the  shape  of  his  countenance  was  altered  (2),  and  he  was  trans¬ 
figured  before  them.  His  face  did  shine  as  the  sun.  His  garments 
became  shining  and  glittering,  and  exceeding  white  as  the  snow,  so 
as  no  fuller  upon  earth  can  make  white.  Behold,  there  appeared 
two  men,  who  were  talking  with  him.  They  were  Moses  and  Elias  (3). 
Appearing  in  majesty,  they  spoke  [of  his  passion  and]  of  his  decease, 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ix.  28-33  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvii.  1,  2  ;  St.  Mark,  ix.  1,  2. 


(1)  It  is  Saint  Luke  who  has  said  about  eight  days  after.  Saint  Matthew  and  Saint 
Mark  say  six  days  after:  they  all  agree.  Saint  Luke  includes  the  day  when  Jesus 
held  the  discourse,  and  that  on  which  the  event  took  place,  while  the  two  other  evan¬ 
gelists  do  not  reckon  them. 

(2)  The  shape  of  his  countenance  was  altered,  viz.,  not  on  account  of  the  features, 
which  were  still  the  same,  but  on  account  of  the  lustre  and  the  majesty. 

(3)  It  is  certain  that  Elias  was  present  in  body  and  soul.  We  are  ignorant  whether 
the  same  was  the  case  with  regard  to  Moses.  God  might  equally  have  resuscitated  him, 
or  formed  for  him  a  body  from  air,  like  that  which  angels  assume  when  they  appear  in  a 
visible  form. 


\ 


,î///iÆ( 


that  lie  should  accomplish  in  Jerusalem.  But  Peter  and  they  that 
were  with  him  were  heavy  with  sleep  [ which  strengthens  the  conjec¬ 
ture  of  those  who  think  that  this  occurred  in  the  evening].  Waking, 
they  saw  his  glory,  and  the  two  men  that  stood  with  him.  As  Mo¬ 
ses  and  Elias  were  departing  from  him,”  charmed  with  the  glory  of 
his  Master,  and  tasting  a  part  of  the  joy  with  which  he  fills  the  saints 
who  see  him  in  all  his  lustre,  “  Peter  saith  to  Jesus  :  Master,  it  is 
good  for  us  to  be  here.  If  thou  wilt,  let  us  make  here  three  taber¬ 
nacles  :  one  for  thee,  one  for  Moses,  and  one  for  Elias  (4).” 

How  could  glorified  men,  such  as  were  Moses  and  Elias,  require 
a  dwelling  to  be  prepared  for  them  upon  earth  ?  And  had  the  Son 
of  man  descended  merely  to  fix  his  residence  upon  a  mountain,  away 
from  the  view  and  commerce  of  men  ?  Peter’s  proposal,  therefore, 
was  unreasonable  :  indeed,  it  is  added  that  ( a )  “  he  knew  not  what 
he  said,  for,”  besides  the  surprise  and  joy  which  had  seized  upon 
them,  he  and  his  companions  “  were  struck  with  fear.”  Neverthe¬ 
less,  his  desires  were  in  some  way  accomplished.  “As  he  spoke 
these  things,  there  came  a  bright  cloud,  which  [ overshadowing  them 
like  a  celestial  tabernacle ]  covered  them  over  [with  its  shining  rays. 
Moses  and  Elias  sank  into  the  cloud  and  disappeared .]  When  they 
entered  into  the  cloud,  the  apostles  were  [ still  more ]  afraid.  And 
lo,  a  voice  came  out  of  the  cloud,  saying  :  This  is  my  beloved  Son, 
in  whom  I  am  well  pleased  ;  hear  ye  him.  Whilst  the  voice  was 
uttered,  Jesus  was  found  alone  [in  order  that  there  might  be  no  doubt 
that  the  voice  spoke  of  him  only].  The  disciples  hearing,  were  very 
much  afraid,  and  fell  upon  their  face.  But  Jesus  came  and  touched 
them,  and  said  to  them  :  Arise,  and  fear  not.  Then  lifting  up  their 
eyes,  and  immediately  looking  about,  they  saw  no  one  but  Jesus 
alone,”  returned  to  his  usual  appearance — that  is  to  say,  that  he 
again  checked  those  torrents  of  light  which  strove  continually  to 

{a)  St.  Mark,  ix.  5-7  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvii.  3-8  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  34-36. 


(4)  Peter  knew  them  by  revelation,  or  it  may  be  that  they  had  some  particular 
mark,  which  served  to  make  them  known  to  those  who  were  acquainted  with  their  his¬ 
tory,  nearly  in  the  same  way  as  we  recognize  them  in  pictures  ;  or  perhaps  that  Jesus, 
in  the  conversation  which  he  had  with  them,  and  part  of  which  the  apostles  may  have 
heard,  had  named  them  when  he  addressed  them. 


pj!0 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CUEIST. 


233 


CHAP.  XXX.] 

overflow  from  liis  divinity  upon  Ms  humanity.  For  the  glorious 
state  in  which  he  had  just  exhibited  himself  was,  if  we  may  so  speak, 
his  natural  state  ;  and  the  miracle  was,  not  that  he  should  have  ap¬ 
peared  for  some  moments  in  this  glory,  which  was  proper  to  the  only 
Son  of  the  Father,  but  which,  by  an  effect  of  his  Omnipotence,  he 
kept  closed  up  within  himself,  and  suffered  it  not  to  strike  or  dazzle 
mortal  eyes. 

(a)  “  As  they  came  down  from  the  mountain,  Jesus  charged  his 
disciples  not  to  tell  any  man  what  things  they  had  seen  till  the  Son 
of  man  shall  be  risen  ao;ain  from  the  dead.”  Of  the  several  reasons 
which  are  assigned  for  this  mysterious  silence,  the  most  simple,  and 
perhaps,  for  that  reason,  the  truest,  is,  that  it  was  in  the  order  of  the 
divine  decrees  that  the  glory  of  the  Man-God  should  not  be  fully 
manifested  until  after  his  passion  ;  and,  being  the  master  of  his  own 
favors  and  graces,  he  did  not  wish  to  extend  further  the  particu¬ 
lar  revelation  wMch  he  had  just  made  to  his  three  most  cherish¬ 
ed  disciples.  They,  without  seeking  for  other  reasons,  had  a  suffi¬ 
cient  motive  for  silence  in  the  injunction  which  Jesus  had  imposed 
upon  them.  (5)  “  They  held  their  peace,  and  told  no  man  in  those 
days  any  of  these  things  which  they  had  seen.”  Nevertheless,  as 
they  were  not  forbidden  to  speak  of  it  among  themselves,  “  they 
kept  the  word  to  themselves,  questioning  to  one  another  what  that 
should  mean,  When  he  shall  be  risen  from  the  dead.”  Nothing  was 
more  clear  ;  but  because  it  had  frequently  happened  that  they  had 
deceived  themselves,  by  explaining  the  words  of  Jesus  in  the  literal 
sense,  they  feared  lest  this  sense  should  also  deceive  them  on  the 
present  occasion. 

The  thought  of  his  resurrection  recalled  to  them  the  remem¬ 
brance  of  his  death.  It  appears  even  that,  they  had  caught  a  glimpse 
of  the  fact  that  his  death  was  not  far  distant,  and  this  state  of  things 
exceeded  their  comprehension.  For  as  yet  they  had  no  idea  of  his 
second  coming  ;  and,  believing  his  death  to  be  the  termination  of 
all  he  was  to  do  in  this  world,  they  were  surprised  not  to  see  the  ac¬ 
complishment  of  an  ancient  prophecy,  which,  according  to  the  notion 
of  all  their  doctors,  was  infallibly  to  be  a  preliminary  to  the  ex- 


fa)  St.  Mark,  ix.  8. 


( b )  St.  Luke,  ix.  36  ;  St.  Mark,  ix.  9. 


•234 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I 


ploits  of  the  Messiah,  and  to  the  establishment  of  his  reign  on  earth. 
This  prophecy  concerned  the  coming  of  Elias,  whose  arrival  they 
did  not  see  ;  for  what  had  just  occurred  before  their  eyes  was 
merely  to  be  regarded  as  a  brief  apparition.  To  clear  up  the  mat¬ 
ter,  (a)  “  they  'asked  him,  saying  :  Why,  then,  do  the  Pharisees  and 
Scribes  say  that  Elias  must  come  first  ?  He  answering,  said  to  them 
[ speaking  of  his  second  coming ]  :  Elias  indeed  shall  come,  and  re¬ 
store  all  things  (5)  ;  and  [he  also]  must  suffer  many  things  and  be 
despised  (6),  as  it  is  written  of  the  Son  of  man.  [But  lastly ,  if  it 
must  be  necessary  for  each  occurrence  to  have  its  own  Elias ,  and  in 
order  to  take  away  this  pretext  from  the  incredulity  of  the  Jews],  I 
say  to  you  [added  the  Saviour],  that  Elias  is  already  come,  that  they 
knew  him  not,  but  have  done  unto  him  whatsoever  they  had  a  mind, 
as  it  is  written  of  him.  So  also  the  Son  of  man  shall  suffer  from 
them.  Then  the  disciples  understood  that  he  had  spoken  to  them 
of  John  the  Baptist.” 

Recalling  to  mind  a  part  of  what  we  have  just  read,  we  may  re¬ 
mark  that  the  grandeur  of  Jesus  develops  itself  here  with  a  mag¬ 
nificence  which  had  never  before  appeared.  His  divine  filiation  is 
recognized  and  clearly  confessed  by  the  chief  of  the  apostles.  Then 
he  himself  displays  before  their  eyes  the  superb  pomp  and  formi¬ 
dable  array  of  the  great  judgment  in  which,  from  the  height  of  the 
throne  of  justice,  where  he  shall  appear,  escorted  by  myriads  of  an¬ 
gels,  he  shall  decree,  according  to  the  quality  of  the  works,  infinite 

(a)  St.  Mark,  ix.  10-12  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvii.  11-13. 


(5)  That  is  to  say,  that  he  shall  bring  the  Jews  to  the  knowledge  of  the  true  Mes¬ 
siah.  It  is  the  common  idea,  and  it  appears  certain.  The  Jews  also  believe  that  Elias 
shall  come,  and  that  he  shall  re-establish  all  things  ;  which  coming,  however,  they  un¬ 
derstand  in  a  manner  very  different  from  our  way  of  conceiving  the  event.  They  expect 
from  him  the  solution  of  all  their  doubts.  This  is  their  final  reply  to  great  difficulties. 
Elias  shall  come,  say  they,  no  longer  knowing  what  to  say. 

(6)  Elias  shall  be  persecuted  like  Jesus  Christ.  We  read  in  the  11th  chapter  of  the 
Apocalypse,  that  the  beast  shall  overcome  the  two  witnesses,  and  kill  them.  The  com¬ 
mon  opinion  is,  that  Elias  and  Enoch  are  these  two  witnesses.  Jesus  Christ,  by  foretell¬ 
ing  that  the  first  shall  endure  treatment  similar  to  his  own,  renders  his  death  more  than 
probable.  The  death  of  Enoch  is  not  the  less  probable,  if  it  were  only  by  virtue  of  the 
common  law,  from  which  there  is  no  likelihood  of  any  man’s  being  exempted,  after  the 
Author  of  life  having  condescended  to  subject  himself  to  it. 


.  * 


f./ 


1  a  a  a  o  o  a  o  • 


joys  or  eternal  punisliments.  And,  lest  they  should  think  that  this 
future  state  of  things  has  been  advanced  gratuitously,  he  gives  to 
some  of  them  an  assured  pledge  of  the  truth  of  his  words,  by  show¬ 
ing  himself  to  them  in  the  lustre  of  his  glory,  even  as  he  shineth  in 
the  highest  heaven,  whence  his  light  diffuseth  itself  through  the 
vast  extent  of  the  empyrean  of  which  he  is  the  eternal  sun.  But 
we  may  also  remark,  that  his  passion  was  very  clearly  foretold, 
and  often  alluded  to,  throughout  the  discourse.  We  see  it  at  every 
moment  flash  out,  as  it  were,  from  the  midst  of  his  splendor  ;  thus 
forming  a  combination  of  light  and  lurid  gloom,  the  contrast  of 
which  must  have  been,  in  the  eyes  of  his  disciples,  a  truly  surpris¬ 
ing  spectacle.  All  this  was  for  their  instruction.  The  entire  Christ 
should  be  presented  to  them  ;  that  is  to  say,  with  all  his  ignominy 
and  all  his  glory.  He  had  been  announced  as  such  by  the  prophets, 
reuniting  in  his  person  all  the  attributes  of  divinity  and  all  the  low¬ 
liness  of  humanity  ;  and  as  such  he  had  been  denominated  at  one 
time  the  strong  God  ;  and  at  another,  the  last  of  men.  Nothing  so 
exalted  as  the  throne  of  the  divinity,  and  they  point  him  to  us 
seated  thereon.  Nothing  so  low  as  extreme  punishment,  and  they  de¬ 
clare  to  us  that  he  shall  be  condemned  to  it.  Such  opposite  extremes 
are  to  be  found  included  in  the  name  of  Saviour.  Jesus  Christ  was 
only  to  be  such,  according  to  the  word  of  the  angel,  by  saving  his 
people  from  their  sins.  Now,  he  could  only  save  therefrom  by  ex¬ 
piating  them,  and  he  could  only  expiate  them  by  satisfying  the  di¬ 
vine  justice,  which  required  that  the  debt  contracted  should  be  rig¬ 
orously  paid.  Hence  it  was  requisite  that  there  should  be  a  sub¬ 
ject  capable  of  humiliation  and  of  suffering,  and  he  who  was  simply 
God  could  not  be  such.  This  subject  should  also  be  of  dignity  so 
eminent  as  to  impart  to  his  humiliation  and  sufferings  merit  propor¬ 
tioned  to  the  infinite  justice  which  he  was  bound  to  satisfy,  and  this 
merit  was  infinitely  higher  than  any  merely  created  being  could  de¬ 
serve.  Therefore,  a  Christ  was  necessary  ;  that  is  to  say,  a  Man- 
God,  and  a  Christ  humbled  and  suffering  ;  for  this  explains  the  en¬ 
tire  mystery.  Now-a-days,  even  children  know  this  truth  ;  yet  the 
apostles  could  not  comprehend  it.  But  the  time  w*as  not  yet  come 
to  confer  upon  them  the  gift  of  intelligence.  Jesus  Christ  only  en¬ 
deavored,  as  may  be  said,  to  deposit  the  ideas  thereof  in  the  treas- 


P 

Vv 


236  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  1 


ury  of  their  memory,  where  they  were  to  remain  huried  until  th© 
Holy  Ghost  came  to  arrange  the  confusion,  and  dissipate  the  obscu¬ 
rity  of  this  secret  depository.  Thus  this  spirit  of  light  was  to  co¬ 
operate  in  the  manifestation  of  the  evangelical  mysteries  ;  and  the 
Saviour  likewise  teaches  us,  by  this  conduct,  that  exterior  teaching 
only  profiteth  inasmuch  as  it  is  accompanied  by  interior  light — a 
truth  which  renders  it  obligatory  on  us  to  pray  for  the  latter  with¬ 
out  ceasing.  It  was  not,  therefore,  without  reason  nor  without  fruit 
that  Jesus  Christ  announced  to  his  disciples  certain  truths,  of  whose 
connection  and  expediency  he  left  them  in  ignorance.  His  function 
was  to  engrave  in  their  souls  the  mysterious  characters  of  which  the 
Holy  Ghost  was  to  furnish  the  key.  They  learned  every  thing  from 
Jesus  Christ,  and  they  comprehended  every  thing  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  who  is  only  said  to  have  taught  them  all  things,  because  he 
made  them  understand  those  which  they  had  already  learned,  and 
of  which  they  knew  not  the  meaning. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

THE  LTJNATIO  CURED. - THERE  IS  A  DEMON  WHO  CAN  ONLY  BE  CAST  OUT  BY  PRAYER 

AND  EASTING. - ANOTHER  PREDICTION  OF  THE  DEATH  OF  JESUS  CHRIST  AND  OF 

ms  RESURRECTION. - TRIBUTE  PAID. 

Jesus,  and  the  apostles  who  accompanied  him,  passed  the  night 
upon  the  mountain,  (a)  u  The  day  following,  when  they  came  down 
from  the  mountain,  there  met  him  a  great  multitude.  Jesus  coming 
to  his  [other]  disciples,  saw  a  great  multitude  about  them.  Pres¬ 
ently  all  the  people  seeing  Jesus,  were  astonished  and  struck  with 
fear.  Running  to  him,  they  saluted  him,  and  he  asked  them  :  What 
do  you  question  about  among  yourselves?  [. Instantly ,  and  before 
they  had  time  to  rep1/y\. ,  behold  a  man  of  the  multitude  cried  out, 
tailing  down  on  his  knees  before  him,  answering  :  Master,  I  have 

(«)  St.  Lube,  ix.  37-40  ;  St.  Mark,  ix.  13-17  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvii.  14,  15. 


Prayers  to  the  Infant  Jesus  of  Prague 

O  Child  Jesus,  I  have  recourse  to  Thee. 
Through  Thy  holy  Mother,  I  implore  Thee 
to  assist  me  in  this,  my  necessity,  for  I  firmly 
believe  Thou  canst  aid  me.  I  confidently 
hope  to  obtain  Thy  holy  grace.  I  love  Thee 
with  my  whole  heart  and  my  whole  soul. 
I  am  heartily  sorry  for  my  sins  and  entreat 
Thee,  O  good  Jesus,  to  give  me  strength  to 
overcome  them. 

I  am  firmly  resolved  never  to  offend  Thee 
again  and  to  suffer  everything  rather  than 
displease  Thee.  Henceforth,  I  wish  to  serve 
Thee  faithfully.  For  love  of  Thee,  O  divine 
Child,  I  will  love  my  neighbor  as  myself.  O 
Jesus,  omnipotent  Child,  I  entreat  Thee 
again  to  come  to  my  assistance  in  this  neces¬ 
sity.  (Mention  your  request.) 

Grant  that  I  may  possess  Thee  eternally, 
with  Mary  and  Joseph,  and  adore  Thee  with 
Thy  holy  angels  and  saints  in  heaven.  Amen. 

*  *  * 

O  Infant  Jesus  of  Prague,  omnipotent 
God,  I- implore  Thee,  through  the  powerful 
intercession  of  Thy  holy  Mother  Mary,  in 
Thy  boundless  mercy  and  omnipotence,  to 
look  favorably  upon  the  petition  for  which 
I  so  earnestly  pray. 


O  Divine  Infant  Jesus,  hear  my  prayer 
and  grant  my  petition.  (3  times.) 

Our  Father,  Hail  Mary,  Glory  be  to  the 
Father,  etc. 

*  *  + 

SHORT  NOVENA 

O  Jesus,  Who  has  said,  "Ask  and  you 
shall  receive,  seek  and  you  shall  find,  knock 
and  it  shall  be  opened  unto  you;”  through 
the  intercession  of  Mary,  Thy  most  holy 
Mother,  I  knock,  I  seek,  I  ask  that  my  prayer  - 
be  granted.  (Mention  your  request.) 

O  Jesus,  Who  has  said,  "All  that  you  ask 
the  Father  in  My  Name,  He  will  grant  you;” 
through  the  intercession  of  our  Lady,  Thy 
most  holy  Mother,  I  humbly  and  urgently 
ask  Thy  Father  in  Thy  Name  that  my  prayer 
be  granted.  (Mention  your  request.) 

O  Jesus,  Who  has  said,  "Heaven  and 
earth  shall  pass  away  but  my  word  shall  not 
pass  away  ;”  through  the  intercession  of 
Mary,  Thy  most  holy  Mother,  I  am  confident 
that  my  prayer  will  be  granted.  (Mention 
your  request.) 


Prayer  of  Thanksgiving  for  Graces  received 
from  the  Infant  Jesus  of  Prague 

O  most  gracious  Infant  Jesus,  prostrate 
before  Thee,  I  offer  Thee  most  fervent  thanks 
for  the  blessings  Thou  hast  bestowed  upon 
me.  I  shall  incessantly  praise  Thine  ineffable 
mercy  and  confess  that  Thou  alone  art  my 
God,  my  helper,  and  my  protector.  Hence¬ 
forth  my  entire  confidence  shall  be  placed  in 
Thee,  everywhere  will  I  proclaim  Thy  mercy 
and  generosity,  so  that  Thy  great  love  and 
the  great  deeds  which  Thou  performest  may 
be  acknowledged  by  all.  May  devotion  to 
Thy  holy  infancy  extend  more  and  more  in 
the  hearts  of  all  Christians,  and  may  all  who 
experience  Thine  assistance  persevere  in  re¬ 
turning  unceasing  gratitude  to  Thy  most 
holy  infancy  to  which  be  praise  and  glory 
for  all  eternity.  Amen. 


NIHIL  OBSTAT: 

Thomas  W.  Smiddy,  S.T.L. 
Censor  Librorum 


IMPRIMATUR: 

-f-  Thomas  Edmundus  Molloy,  S.T.D. 
Episcopus  Brooklyniensis. 
Brooklynii,  die  XIX  Mail  1951. 


INTERNATIONAL  CATHOLIC  TRUTH  SOCIETY 
407  Bergen  Street,  Brooklyn  1 7,  N.  Y. 


cs  ^  > 


fi 


X 


ciiap.  xxxi.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


brought  my  son  to  tliee,  having  a  dumb  spirit  (1).  I  beseech  thee, 
look  upon  my  son,  because  he  is  my  only  one.  Lord  [said  likewise 
this  afflicted  father\  have  pity  on  my  son,  for  he  is  a  lunatic  (2), 
and  suffereth  much,  for  he  falleth  often  into  the  fire,  and  often  into 
the  water. .  Lo,  a  spirit  seizeth  him,  he  suddenly  crieth  out  :  the 
spirit  throweth  him  down,  and  dasheth  him,  so  that  he  foameth  and 
gnasheth  with  the  teeth,  and  bruising  him,  the  spirit  hardly  depart- 
etli  from  him,  and  my  son  pineth  away.  I  brought  him  to  thy  dis¬ 
ciples,  and  I  desired  them  to  cast  him  out,  and  they  could  not.” 

There  can  be  no  doubt  but  it  was  this  that  caused  the  subject  of 
the  dispute.  The  Scribes,  being  witnesses  of  the  impotence  of  the 
disciples,  thereupon  prevailed  against  them,  and  apparently  against 
their  Master,  from  whom  they  said  they  held  the  power  which  had 
thus  fallen  short.  The  disciples,  in  their  turn,  had  not  had  sufficient 
faith  to  expel  the  devil  ;  and  this  failure,  on  so  public  an  occasion, 
might  well  have  discouraged  them,  and  cast  them  into  a  state  of 
despondency.  The  father,  on  his  side,  had  as  yet  a  very  uncertain 
faith,  as  we  shall  presently  see  by  his  words.  Thus  we  have  good 
reason  for  thinking  that  to  every  one  assembled  there  was  addressed 
this  expression  of  indignation,  spoken  by  the  mildest  of  men,  after 
he  had  heard  the  recital  of  what  had  occurred  :  (a)  “  O  faithless 
and  perverse  generation,”  said  he  to  them,  “how  long  shall  I  be 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ix.  41-43  ;  St.  Mark,  ix.  18-26  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvii.  16,  17. 


(1)  Jesus  Christ  calls  him  further  on,  Deaf  and  dumb  spirit.  He  is  designated  by 
the  effect  which  he  produced,  which  consisted  in  taking  away  from  this  child  the  facul¬ 
ties  of  hearing  and  speaking. 

(2)  Because  the  demon  tormented  him  at  intervals.  Perhaps  his  fits  were  regulated 
by  the  stated  courses  of  the  moon.  If  it  be  true,  as  several  ancients  assert,  that  he 
wished  to  conceal  the  possession  by  the  symptoms  of  sickness,  he  dissembled  his  knavery 
very  awkwardly  ;  for  we  here  see  that  no  one  had  any  doubt  as  to  the  possession  of  the 
child.  To  add  to  this,  that  what  he  had  in  view  was  to  induce  men  to  blaspheme 
against  the  Creator  of  the  moon,  whom  they  would  have  regarded  as  the  cause  of  all  the 
evil,  is  supposing  in  him  an  intention  highly  worthy  of  his  wickedness  ;  but  such  a  trick 
was  not  deep  enough  for  his  subtle  craft,  since,  after  all,  every  one  laid  the  matter  to  his 
charge,  and  no  one  blamed  the  moon.  God  had  permitted  the  demon  to  take  possession 
of  this  young  man,  and  to  torment  him  at  intervals.  The  demon  tormented  him  when¬ 
ever  he  could,  and  to  the  utmost  of  his  power,  and  always  less  than  he  wished.  We 
must  not  seek  for  further  mystery  here. 


1; 


<J  3  3  3  0<30<J« 


238 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 

with  yon  ?  how  long  shall  I  suffer  you  ?  Bring  hither  thy  son,”  he 
added  to  the  father.  11  They  brought  him.  As  he  was  coming,  and 
when  he  had  seen  Jesus,  immediately  the  spirit  troubled  him  ;  the 
devil  threw  him  down,  and  he  rolled  about  foaming.”  Jesus  per¬ 
mitted  this,  in  order  that  the  greatness  of  his  power  might  be  better 
known  when  the  bystanders  were  made  acquainted  with  the  great¬ 
ness  of  the  evil,  and  because  the  knowledge  of  its  continuance  was 
also  subservient  to  this  end  :  “  He  asked  his  father  :  How  long  time 
is  it  since  this  hath  happened  unto  him  ?  From  his  infancy,  said  the 
father  ;  and  oftentimes  hath  the  devil  cast  him  into  the  fire  and  into 
the  water  to  destroy  him.  But,  if  thou  canst  do  any  thing,  help  us, 
having  compassion  on  us.”  He  doubted  whether  the  power  was 
vested  in  Jesus,  and  Jesus  informs  him  that  by  faith  he  himself 
might  become  all-powerful  :  “  If  thou  canst  believe,  he  saith  to  him, 
all  things  are  possible  to  him  that  believeth.  Immediately  the  fa¬ 
ther  of  the  boy  crying  out,  with  tears,  said  :  I  do  believe  ;  Lord, 
help  my  unbelief  (3).  When*  Jesus  saw  the  multitude  running  to¬ 
gether,  he  threatened  the  unclean  spirit,  saying  to  him  :  Deaf  and 
dumb  spirit,  I  command  thee  go  out  of  him,  and  enter  not  any  more 
into  him.  \The  demon  obeyed ’,  yet,  still  demon-like\ ,  crying  out,  and 
greatly  tearing  him  (4),  he  went  out  of  him  ;  and  the  child  became 
as  dead,  so  that  many  said:  He  is  dead.  But  Jesus,  taking  him  by 
the  hand,  lifted  him  up,  and  he  arose  ;  and  the  child  was  cured  from 
that  hour.  Jesus  restored  him  to  his  father.  All  were  astonished 
at  the  mighty  power  of  God.” 

Yet  the  disciples  felt  a  secret  heaviness  of  heart  at  this  discomfi¬ 
ture  before  so  numerous  an  assemblage.  They  could  no  longer,  af¬ 
ter  this  prodigy,  suspect  their  Master  of  being  powerless.  Wishing, 


(3)  We  may  expect  to  be  heard,  when,  having  commenced  by  performing  what  de¬ 
pends  upon  ourselves,  we  request  of  God  to  do  the  remainder.  God  doth  not  command 
impossibilities  ;  but  when  he  commands,  he  gives  us  notice  to  perform  what  is  in  our  pow¬ 
er,  to  ask  for  what  exceeds  our  power  or  ability,  and  gives  strength  to  enable  us  to  per¬ 
form  it. 

(4)  Image  of  the  violent  agitation  which  the  devil  excites  m  a  soul  which  he  is  forced 
to  quit.  It  is  a  species  of  agony  through  which  we  pass  from  death  to'  life.  Jesus  is 
present,  who  tenders  his  hand,  and  aids  us  to  raise  ourselves.  One  is  surprised  to  find 
himself,  or  rather  another  self,  as  different  from  what  he  was  as  peace  is  from  trouble, 
and  health  from  fever. 


A 


IP"’ 


A lHl/j 


therefore,  to  know  the  cause  of  their  own  inability  to  perform  the 
cure,  (a)  “  When  Jesus  was  come  into  the  house,  they  came  secretly 
to  him,  and  asked  him  :  Why  could  not  we  cast  him  out  ?  Jesus 
said  to  them  :  Because  of  your  unbelief.”  Then,  enlightened  as  to 
their  own  deficiency ,  “  the  apostles  said  to  the  Lord  :  Increase  our 
faith.”  We  must  presume  that  the  Saviour  heard  from  that  hour, 
to  a  certain  extent,  a  prayer  which  could  have  been  inspired  by  him 
alone.  But  to  the  end  that  they  might  better  prize  so  great  a  gift, 
and  that  they  might  learn  to  desire  it  with  more  ardor,  and  ask  it 
with  more  earnestness,  “  the  Lord  said  to  them  :  If  you  had  faith 
like  to  a  grain  of  mustard-seed  (5),  you  might  say  to  this  mulberry- 

(«)  St.  Mark,  ix.  27  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvii.  18-20;  St.  Luke,  xvii.  5,  6. 


(5)  The  majority  of  the  ancients  have  thought  that  the  Saviour  meant  to  say  a  faith 
lively  and  ardent  as  the  grain  of  mustard-seed.  It  is  more  likely  that  the  comparison 
here  is  with  reference  to  the  smallness  of  the  seed.  Jesus  Christ  would  have  said  no¬ 
thing  very  wonderful  by  saying  :  If  you  have  faith  full  of  vivacity  and  ardor,  you  could 
remove  mountains.  The  wonder  is  much  greater,  and  the  eulogium  of  faith  much  more 
magnificent,  if  it  be  asserted  that  its  virtue  is  such  that  he  who  should  be  endowed  with 
faith,  even  as  small  in  quantity  as  is  the  grain  of  mustard-seed,  would  find  nothing  what¬ 
ever  impossible  ;  and  it  seems  that  all  the  bystanders  understood  the  comparison  in  tins 
sense.  But  does  it  not  follow  from  thence,  that  he  who  should  not  have  that  faith  which 
may  remove  mountains,  could  have  no  faith  at  all,  since,  in  point  of  faith,  he  would  be 
inferior  to  a  grain  of  mustard-seed,  which  is  here  given  in  comparison  to  represent  the 
very  smallest  thing  in  the  world  ?  In  reply  to  this  difficulty,  it  may  be  said,  that  the 
question  here  is  of  faith-  perfect  in  its  own  species,  viz.  :  the  faith  which  excludes  all  hesi¬ 
tation  and  all  doubt.  As  the  virtues  of  creatures  can  never  reach  infinite  perfection,  so 
this  faith,  although  perfect  in  its  species,  may  still  have  or  not  have  certain  degrees  of 
perfection.  Nevertheless,  if  it  happens  to  be  of  that  species  which  utterly  excludes  dis¬ 
trust  and  hesitation,  the  possessor  thereof,  even  in  the  lowest  degree  (which  degree  is 
compared  in  smallness  to  the  grain  of  mustard-seed),  would  be  sufficiently  qualified  to 
work  the  greatest  prodigies.  We  thought  we  had  hit  upon  the  groundwork  of  this  ex¬ 
planation  in  those  words  which  Jesus  Christ  uttered  on  another  occasion  :  For ,  amen  1 
say  to  you,  if  you  have  faith  as  a  grain  of  mustard-seed,  you  shall  say  to  this  mountain  : 
Remove  from  hence  hither  ;  and  it  shall  remove  ;  and  nothing  shall  be  impossible  to  you. 

■ — St.  Matthew,  xvii.  19. 

An  individual  may  have  faith  in  mysteries  without  possessing  the  faith  which  worketh 
miracles.  Still,  it  was  a  species  of  infidelity  in  the  apostles  not  to  have  this  faith  ;  he 
cause,  after  Jesus  Christ  had  conferred  upon  them  the  power  of  working  miracles,  and 
specifically  that  of  expelling  demons,  it  was  no  longer  permissible  for  them  to  doubt  as 
to  this  power  being  efficacious,  eveiy  time  the  occasion  arose  for  them  to  execute  it. 
They  committed  nearly  the  s  :me  fuit  as  Moses  when  he  struck  the  rock  twice;  for, 


-1ÏÏ 


AmHf. 


<3^j 


[raet  I, 


tree  [there  was  one  before  their  eyes ]  :  Be  thou  rooted  up,  and  be 
thou  transplanted  into  the  sea  ;  and  it  would  obey  you.  For  [said 
he  further  to  them ,  to  make  them  more  sensible  of  the  efficacy  of  faith], 
Amen,  I  say  to  you,  if  you  have  faith  as  a  grain  of  mustard-seed, 
you  shall  say  to  this  mountain  [this  apparently  was  the  mountain 
xoher eon  he  was  transfigured ,  and  which  was  visible  from  the  spot 
where  Jesus  spoke]  :  Remove  from  hence  hither,  and  it  shall  re¬ 
move  ;  and  nothing  shall  be  impossible  to  you.”  To  this  observa¬ 
tion  Jesus  added  another,  which  bore  a  more  particular  reference  to 
the  subject  in  hand  :  “  But  this  kind  of  demon  is  not  cast  out  but  by 
prayer  and  fasting  (6).” 

Immediately  after  the  scene  on  Thabor,  Jesus  turned  his  thoughts 
towards  Calvary.  He  must  go  on  to  find  it  in  Judea  and  at 
Jerusalem  ;  but  he  wished  to  visit  Capharnaum  again  before  he  left 
it,  never  to  return.  This  was  yet  another  grace  which  he  accorded 
to  that  faithless  city;  and  he  who  saw,  with  poignant  sorrow,  the 
loss  of  souls,  whose  salvation  was  about  to  cost  him  so  much  blood, 
required  no  other  motive  to  undertake  the  journey,  (a)  “  Depart¬ 
ing  from  thence  [from  the  vicinity  of  the  mountain ,  where  they  do 
not  appear  to  have  tarried  more  than  one  day] ,  Jesus  and  his  disci¬ 
ples  passed  through  Galilee  ;  [but,  in  order  that  he  might  not  be  re¬ 
tarded  on  his  journey],  Jesus  would  not  that  any  man  should  know 
it.  When  they  abode  together  in  Galilee,  while  all  wondered  at  all 
the  things  he  did,  he  taught  his  disciples,  and  said  to  them  :  Lay 

(a)  St.  Mark,  ix.  29,  30  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvii.  21  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  44. 


said  Saint  Chrysostom,  faith,  even  in  the  just  themselves,  is  not  always  equally  lively 
and  immovable  ;  it  has  its  moments  of  weakness,  wherein  it  doth  not  fall,  but  vacillate. 

(6)  It  often  occurs  that  the  demons  who  possess  souls  cannot  be  expelled  by  any  other 
means.  We  toill  give  ourselves  continually  to  prayer  and  to  the  ministry  of  the  word. — 
Acts,  vi.  4.  They  knew,  therefore,  the  necessity  of  these  means.  Apostolical  men,  who 
have  learned  it  from  them  and  from  their  Master,  always  combine  prayer  with  preach¬ 
ing  ;  with  the  frequent  addition  of  great  austerities.  Hell,  attacked  by  such  arms,  does 
not  long  resist  ;  but  makes  a  mockery  of  those  who  employ  mere  words  against  it.  They 
do  not  bear  away  from  hell  one  of  its  victims  ;  and,  perhaps,  the  fiend  does  not  despair 
of  beholding  the  men  of  words  become  his  prey.  Prayer,  unaccompanied  by  exhorta¬ 
tion,  will  always  be  a  more  efficient  means  of  conversion  than  exhortation  without  pray¬ 
er  :  all  the  eloquence  of  orators  could  never  have  effected  what  was  done  by  the  tears  of 
Monica. 


CHAP.  XXXI.] 


OF  OUTl  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


241 


you  up  in  yonr  hearts  these  words  :  The  Son  of  man  shall  be  deliv¬ 
ered  into*  the  hands  of  men.  They  shall  kill  him,  and  after  that  he 
is  killed  he  shall  rise  again  the  third  day.” 

We  see  how  ardently  he  desired  that  the  idea  of  his  greatness 
and  wonderful  deeds  might  not  efface  from  their  minds  that  of  his 
opprobrium  and  suffering.  Another  reason  is  likewise  given  for 
these  predictions,  so  often  reiterated,  of  his  Passion  being  near  at 
hand.  They  taught  his  disciples  that  his  Passion  was  to  be  purely 
voluntary  (for  it  would  have  been  no  difficult  matter  for  him  who 
could  foresee  it  to  avoid  it  altogether),  and  they  also  served  to  pre¬ 
vent  them  from  being  scandalized,  (a)  “  But  the  disciples  under¬ 
stood  not  [«5  yet]  this  word  ;  it  was  hid  from  them,  so  that  they 
perceived  it  not  (7  )  ;”  [and,  fearing  lest  they  should  become  more 
enlightened  than  they  wished  to  be],  “  they  were  afraid  to  ask  him 
concerning  this  word.”  Yet  the  forebodings  of  woe  which  glim¬ 
mered  through  these  words  to  their  minds  was  the  cause  that  “  they 
were  troubled  exceedingly.” 

Of  all  the  acts  which  Jesus  Christ  performed  at  Capharnaum  dur¬ 
ing  this  his  last  sojourn,  the  evangelists  only  report  one  fact,  which 
comprises,  besides  a  signal  miracle,  a  deep  fund  of  instruction. 
“They  that  received  the  didrachmas  (8),”  which  every  Jew  paid 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ix.  45  ;  St.  Matthew,  xvii.  22,  26. 


(7)  In  vain  are  truths  made  clear  to  our  understanding,  when  we  do  not  relish  them  ; 
we  -always,  in  such  cases,  find  them  out  to  be  obscure.  Such,  with  reference  to  the 
apostles,  were  the  words  of  Jesus  Christ,  when  he  announced  to  them  his  sufferings 
and  his  death.  They  wounded  the  love  which  the  apostles  entertained  for  him  ;  and 
they  also  disconcerted  the  views  of  their  ambition,  no  longer  knowing  what  they  ought 
to  expect  from  a  crucified  Messiah.  They  would,  therefore,  naturally  desire  that  his 
words  might  not  be  verified.  Moreover,  we  have  already  remarked,  that  they  could  not 
reconcile  in  their  minds  the  vast  power  of  their  Master  with  such  prodigious  humiliation. 
The  approaching  establishment  of  his  kingdom,  placed  in  juxtaposition  with  the  predic¬ 
tion  of  his  approaching  death,  caused  them  also  unutterable  embarrassment.  Thus  they 
comprehended  the  terms  of  the  prediction,  which  were  clear  ;  but  they  did  not  compre¬ 
hend  the  thing  itself,  because  they  found  it  clashing  with  other  things  which  they  knew 
as  clearly  as  that  which  appeared  to  annihilate  those  bright  anticipations. 

(8)  The  didrachma  was  the  eighth  part  of  an  ounce,  and  was  worth  about  fifteen  sous  • 
of  our  (French)  money.  [A  didrachma  was  half  a  sickle,  or  half  a  stater — that  is,  about 
fifteen  pence  English.  See  note  to  the  second  Douay  edition,  Dublin,  by  the  Rev. 
George  Leo  Haydock.]  Very  possibly  the  Romans  had  already  seized  upon  this  tribute, 

16 


Vt 


1111""  r 


yearly  for  the  support  of  the  temple,  “  came  to  Peter,  and  said  to 
him  :  Doth  not  your  Master  pay  the  didrachma  ?”  It  has  been  con¬ 
tended  that  this  was  one  of  those  captious  questions  which  were 
sometimes  put  to  the  Saviour,  for  the  purpose  of  calumniating  him  ; 
and  that  the  parties  addressed  Peter,  thinking  that  he  would  more 
easily  fall  into  the  snare  than  his  Master.  But  as  these  malicious 
stratagems  are  more  characteristic  of  the  Pharisees  than  of  the  Pub¬ 
licans,  whom  we  always  see  demeaning  themselves  well  towards 
Jesus  Christ,  it  is  more  natural  to  think  that  they  put  this  question 
to  the  disciple  out  of  respect  for  the  Master  :  “  Peter  [  who  was  well 
acquainted  with  what  Jesus  was  in  the  habit  of  doing  on  the  like  oc¬ 
casion ]  said  :  Yes  ;  [my  Master  does  jpay  the  didrachma\.  When 
he  was  come  into  the  house,  Jesus,  to  whom  nothing  is  unknown, 
prevented  him,  saying  :  What  is  thy  opinion,  Simon  ?  The  kings 
of  the  earth,  of  whom  do  they  receive  tribute  or  custom  ?  Of  their 
own  children  or  of  strangers  ?  Of  strangers,  he  said.  Jesus  said  to 
him  :  Then,  the  children  are  free  ?”  And  with  much  greater  reason 
the  only  Son  of  the  Father  should  be  exempt  from  a  tribute  which, 
being  imposed  for  the  temple,  is  properly  payable  to  Grod,  who  is 
there  adored.  This  consequence  flows  from  the  species  of  parable 


which  they  subsequently  appropriated  to  themselves.  But,  supposing  this  to  he  the 
case,  was  it  impossible  that  the  Jews  should  pay  it  twice  over — once  to  the  Romans, 
and  a  second  time  for  the  temple  ?  The  zeal  which  they  entertained  for  the  temple  and 
for  the  Divine  worship,  renders  this  conjecture  probable  enough.  True,  the  second  con¬ 
tribution  might  then  be  regarded  as  voluntary  ;  but  do  not  even  the  collectors  seem  to 
insinuate  as  much,  when,  in  lieu  of  exacting  it  absolutely,  they  content  themselves  with 
saying  :  Both  not  your  Master  pay  the  didrachma?  Yet  what  appears  most  decidedly 
in  favor  of  the  opinion  which  we  have  followed  is,  that  we  can  no  longer  ascertain  in 
what  sense  Jesus  Christ  saith  that  he  is  exempt  from  the  tribute,  on  account  of  his  qual¬ 
ity  of  being  the  son  of  him  to  whom  it  is  paid,  if  this  tribute  be  not  paid  to  God.  Je¬ 
sus  Christ  could  never  be  called,  in  any  sense,  the  son  of  the  Roman  emperors.  But,  it 
has  been  said,  was  he  not  the  son  of  David?  Yes;  but  remark,  that  it  is  not  the  sons 
of  kings,  generally  speaking,  who  are  here  declared  to  be  exempted  from  the  tribute, 
but  merely  the  children,  properly  so  speaking,  of  the  kings  who  exact  it,  viz.,  those  who 
are  not  strangers  in  their  regard.  Shall  it  be  asserted  that  the  posterity  of  David  were 
not  strangers  to  the  Roman  emperors  ?  Shall  it  be  asserted  that  all  this  posterity — for 
the  assertion  here  is  not  confined  to  the  elder  branch— was  legitimately  dispensed  from 
paying  the  tribute  to  Cæsar?  Is  that  reasonable?  Yet  that  is  the  inference,  if  it  be 
true  that  the  quality  of  son  of  David  dispensed  Jesus  Christ  from  paying  the  tribute  to 
the  Romans. 


\l 


7W 


S.N- 


4  i 

'4  «i 


CHAP.  XXXII.] 


OF  OUE  LOKD  OESUS  CHEIST, 


243 


which  Jesus  liad  just  proposed  to  Peter.  No  doubt  he  understood 
the  meaning  of  it  ;  he  who,  on  one  side,  was  not  ignorant  of  the 
object  of  this  contribution,  and  who,  on  the  other,  had  so  plainly 
confessed  the  divine  filiation  of  his  Master.  “  But  [added  the  Sa¬ 
viour^  that  we  may  not  scandalize  them  (9),  go  to  the  sea,  cast  in  a 
hook,  and  that  fish  which  shall  first  come  up,  take  ;  and  when  thou 
hast  opened  its  mouth,  thou  shalt  find  a  stater.  Take  that,  and 
give  it  to  them  for  me  and  thee.” 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

DISPUTE  OF  THE  DISCIPLES  ON  PEECEDENCY. - EVANGELICAL  CHILDHOOD.-™  HE  WHO 

IS  NOT  AGAINST  US  IS  FOE  US. - SCANDAL. - NECESSITY  OF  BETEENCHING  ALL 

THINGS  WHICH  AEE  TO  US  AN  OCCASION  OF  FALLING. - NOT  TO  DESPISE  THE 

LITTLE  ONES. - THE  HUNDBED  SHEEP. 

The  disciples  quickly  forgot  the  subject  of  their  affliction,  to  think 
only  of  what  flattered  them.  Their  ideas  of  ambition  were  not  slow 
in  reviving  ;  and  deeming  themselves  already  great,  because  they 
reckoned  on  soon  being  so,  the  only  doubt  which  remained  on  their 
minds  was,  who  amongst  them  should  have  precedence  over  the 
others,  (a)  “  There  entered  a  thought  into  them  [to  examine  there¬ 
fore']  which  of  them  should  be  the  greater.”  The  question  seemed 
already  resolved  in  favor  of  Peter,  whom  the  Saviour  had  declared 
the  foundation  of  his  Church,  of  which  he  was  going  to  establish 
him  the  chief  and  first  pastor.  But  Andrew  had  priority  of  voca- 

(a)  St.  Luke,  ix.  46,  47  ;  St.  Mark,  ix.  32-34. 


(9)  We  have  already  spoken,  chapter  xxvii.,  page  213,  of  the  scandal  which  is  taken 
through  malice,  and  which  must  be  despised  ;  and  of  that  which  is  taken  out  of  weak¬ 
ness,  which  we  ought  to  humor.  The  scandal  here  was  of  the  second  species,  and  Jesus 
Christ,  by  humoring  it  as  he  doth,  further  induces  us  to  believe  the  demand  thereof  was 
not  made  out  of  malice.  The  reason  for  not  humoring  the  first  is,  that  malice  or  wick¬ 
edness  would  take  scandal  at  such  humoring,  even  although  designed  for  the  purpose 
of  avoiding  scandal.  Every  thing  is  scandal  to  him  who  wishes  to  take  scandal. 


/ 

Ws 


<0  a  o  o  a  o  < 


/A 


244  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  {iPART  L 

tion,  John  tlie  favor  of  his  Master,  and  James  his  brother  was  ad¬ 
mitted  with  him  into  the  most  intimate  confidence.  The  other 
James,  and  those  who,  like  him,  were  styled  the  brothers  of  the 
Lord,  did  not  fail,  apparently,  to  avail  themselves  of  their  relation¬ 
ship,  which,  according  to  the  usual  course  in  the  kingdoms  of  earth, 
conferred  a  right  to  the  highest  rank.  The  majority,  therefore,  had 
some  title  for  pretending  to  this  rank  ;  and  who  can  doubt  but  that 
each  one  thought  his  own  the  best  ?  The  only  title  which  could  de¬ 
cide  the  matter,  according  to  the  principles  of  the  new  Gospel,  was 
wanting  in  all,  and  Jesus  availed  himself  of  this  occasion  to  let 
them  know  this  truth  :  “  Seeing  the  thoughts  of  their  heart,  he  asked 
them  when  they  were  in  the  house  :  What  did  you  treat  of  in  the 
way  ?  (Pride  betrays  its  shame ,  by  fearing  to  discover  itself.]  They 
held  their  peace,  for  in  the  way  they  had  disputed  among  them¬ 
selves,  which  of  them  should  be  the  greatest.  Jesus,  sitting  down, 
called  the  twelve,  (a)  The  disciples  came  to  him,”  and,  thinking 
they  had  found  a  good  opportunity  to  draw  from  him  an  explana¬ 
tion  that  might  clear  up  their  doubts,  without  acknowledging  their 
ambitious  pretensions,  instead  of  asking  who  was  greatest  among 
them,  “  they  say  to  him,  [ leaving  themselves ,  as  it  were ,  out  of  sight]  : 
Who,  thinkest  thou,  is  the  greatest  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  ?”  Je¬ 
sus  saw  more  in  these  words  than  they  seemed  to  express  ;  and  in 
order  to  reply,  at  the  same  time,  to  what  they  said  and  what  they 
withheld,  he  pronounced  this  sentence,  before  which  all  pride  must 
either  bend  or  be  crushed  :  “  If  any  man  desire  to  be  first,  he  shall 
be  the  last  of  all,  and  the  minister  of  all.” 

It  follows,  by  an  inverted  series  of  reasoning,  that  he  who  wishes 
to  be  first  and  master  of  all,  shall  be  the  last  of  all.  Thus,  to  at¬ 
tain  the  object  of  their  pretensions,  they  had  only  to  dispute  between 
themselves  who  should  most  deeply  humble  himself,  a  species  of  dis¬ 
pute  widely  opposed  to  that  in  which  they  had  been  engaged,  and 
a  dispute  which  never  yet  engendered  quarrelling.  But  in  order  to 
give  them  a  sensible  idea  of  that  humility  which  he  proposed  to 
them  as  the  only  foundation  for  the  highest  elevation,  (Id)  “  calling 
unto  him  a  little  child,  whom,  when  he  had  embraced,  he  set  him  in 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xviii.  1  ;  (b)  St.  Matthew,  xviii.  2—4  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  47  ; 

St.  Mark,  ix.  34.  St.  Mark,  ix.  35. 


L.J.Hallex.  #  R.Dudensing. 


THE  RESURRECTION. 


CHAP,  xxxn.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


245 


the  midst  of  them,  \then\  he  saith  to  them  :  Amen,  I  say  to  you, 
unless  you  he  converted,  and  become  as  little  children,  you  shall  not 
enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven  (1).  Whosoever,  therefore,  shall 
humble  himself  as  this  little  child  (2),  he  is  the  greater  in  the  king¬ 
dom  of  heaven.” 

Infancy  is  the  age  of  simplicity,  of  candor,  and  of  innocence — 
those  amiable  qualities  which  a  disciple  of  the  Gospel  should  strive 
to  have  at  every  age  ;  the  possession  will  ever  render  him  more  be¬ 
loved  both  by  God  and  man.  Nevertheless,  it  is  not  these  charm¬ 
ing  virtues  that  Jesus  Christ  has  directly  in  view  in  the  words  that 
have  just  been  read  ;  the  question  here  is  of  a  more  sublime  perfec¬ 
tion  ;  yet,  at  the  same  time,  of  less  difficult  practice.  Children  en¬ 
joy  no  high  consideration  in  the  world,  and  they  do  not  desire  it  ; 
they  have  the  lowest  rank  in  society,  and  they  desire  no  other  ; 
every  one  commands  them — even  their  very  slaves,  if  they  be  in  a 
condition  of  life  to  have  such  menial  attendants — and  they  obey  all  : 
so  it  may  be  said  with  reference  to  them,  that  dependence  is  their 
natural  state.  This  is  the  point  of  view  in  which  Jesus  Christ  here 
admonishes  the  apostles  to  resemble  them.  A  terrible  effort  this 
for  human  nature,  which  loves  to  command,  and  cannot  bear  to  be 
commanded  !  But  what  renders  it  still  more  painful  is,  the  advan¬ 
tage  which  men  are  too  apt  to  take  of  this  humble  and  submissive 
state  of  existence.  If  they  find  you  always  disposed  to  obey  them, 
they  will  tyrannize  over  you  ;  if  you  do  not  require  any  attention 
to  be  shown  you,  they  will  despise  you  ;  if  you  put  yourself  under 


(1)  Catholic  interpreters  do  not  mean  us  to  conclude  from  this  expression,  that  the 
apostles  would  have  been  excluded  from  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  had  they  died  in  the 
state  in  which  they  then  were  ;  that  is  to  say,  they  do  not  wish  us  to  believe  that  they 
were  in  a  state  of  damnation.  Their  pride  had  not  yet  reached  that  degree  which  ren¬ 
ders  it  mortal  ;  but  it  would  have  reached  it,  had  they  not  suppressed  it,  and  it  would 
inevitably  have  caused  their  perdition.  The  Man-God  infallibly  foresaw  this  ;  but  were 
he  even  an  ordinary  man,  he  might  very  reasonably  have  conjectured  it.  Every  passion 
tends  towards  crime,  and,  when  long  fostered,  is  sure  to  end  therein.  Stifle  in  the  first 
instance  these  rising  monsters,  if  you  do  not  wish  one  day  to  become  their  prey.  The 
lion's  cub  becometh  a  lion,  and  he  learns  to  ca  ch  the  prey,  and  to  devour  men. — Ezechiel, 
xix.  3. 

(2)  Religious  obedience,  when  perfect,  is  the  perfection  of  this  blessed  infancy.  Those 
who  laugh  at  it,  laugh  at  the  uncreated  wisdom  ;  and  those  who  condemn  it,  condemn 
the  Gospel. 


Ici 

%  M 
1 


W 


fr 


their  feet,  they  will  trample  on  you,  and  you  may  expect  this  treat¬ 
ment  :  and  all  the  pride  of  the  disciples  must  have  been  stirred  up 
at  the  mere  thought  of  the  insupportable  arrogance  they  would 
have  to  encounter,  and  the  contempt  they  should  be  obliged  to 
swallow.  Jesus  Christ  is  going  to  soften  down  this  idea  for  them, 
by  informing  them  that  they  shall  be  indemnified  for  this  unjust 
contempt,  by  the  esteem  of  his  Father,  by  his  own  esteem,  and  by 
that  of  all  the  true  children  of  God,  in  regard  to  whom  he  entitles 
them  to  the  quality  of  his  own  and  his  Father’s  representatives, 
considering  as  done  to  his  Father  and  to  himself  all  the  good  treat¬ 
ment  which  his  disciples  shall  receive  from  them.  For  it  is  difficult 
to  find  another  explanation  which  can  connect  the  preceding  words 
of  the  Saviour  with  those  which  he  uttered  immediately  after  : 
(a)  “  He  that  shall  receive  one  such  child  as  this  in  my  name,  [ 'that 
is  to  say ,  a  perfect  imitator  of  liis  infancy ]  receiveth  me.  Whoso¬ 
ever  shall  receive  me,  receiveth  not  me,  but  him  that  sent  me  ;  for 
he  who  is  the  lesser  among  you  all,  he  is  the  greater,”  and  thence¬ 
forward  the  most  worthy  representative  of  me  and  of  my  Father. 

Here  we  have  one  of  those  familiar  conferences  wherein,  with  the 
zeal  of  a  master  anxious  for  the  advancement  of  his  disciples,  the 
Saviour  evinced  also  the  easy  manner  of  a  good  father  in  the  midst 
of  his  children.  He  does  not  find  fault  with  them  for  interrupting 
him,  and  seems  to  think  it  no  trouble  to  interrupt  the  discourse  he 
had  commenced,  in  order  to  give  them  the  explanations  for  which 
they  asked.  Thus  we  will  not  be  surprised  that  the  well-beloved 
disciple  should  avail  himself  of  the  right  which  he  granted  to  them 
all,  or  that,  without  waiting  to  see  whether  Jesus  had  any  thing 
further  to  state  on  the  subject  which  he  was  then  treating,  (b)  “John 
answering,  said  :  Master,  we  saw  a  certain  man  casting  out  devils  in 
thy  name,  and  we  forbade  him  (3),  because  he  followeth  not  with 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xviii.  5  ;  St.  Mark, 
ix.  36  ;  St.  Luke,  ix.  48. 


( b )  St.  Luke,  ix.  49,  50  ;  St. 
Mark,  ix.  38,  39. 


(3)  John  had,  perhaps,  in  view  merely  to  correct  what  he  deemed  disorderly  :  per¬ 
haps  a  little  jealousy  was  also  mixed  up  with  this  motive.  The  apostles  were  cured  of 
this  after  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Such  is  not  the  case  with  all  those  who  have 
succeeded  them,  in  their  ministry.  There  are  hut  too  many  who  are  not  utterly  exempt 


a  a  a 


:(C  €lt> 


CHAP.  xxxn.J 

us.”  John  wished  to  know  whether  he  had  acted  right  or  wrong. 
Jesus  satisfied  him  without  delay.  “Do  not  forbid  him,  he  said  to 
him,  for  there  is  no  man  that  doth  a  miracle  in  my  name  and  that 
can  soon  speak  ill  of  me  (4).  For  he  that  is  not  against  you  is  for 
you  (5).” 


from  that  unhappy  emulation,  which  turns  us  away  from  any  good  which  is  not  done  by 
ourselves  or  by  our  own  friends.  How  much  good  has  it  not  prevented  ?  And  can  we 
here  refrain  from  exclaiming  with  the  wise  man  :  Do  not  withhold  him  from  doing  good 
who  is  able  ;  if  thou  art  able,  do  good  thyself. — Proverbs,  iii.  27. 

(4)  It  is  even  impossible  that  he  should  think  any  thing  of  the  sort,  having  before  him 
present  and  incontestable  proof  of  the  Saviour’s  divine  power.  But  were  he  capable  of 
speaking  evil  of  him,  he  could  not  do  so  at  the  outset.  Could  he  blaspheme  a  name  by 
virtue  of  which  he  is  actually  operating  prodigies  ?  Even  those  who  would  chiefly  be 
opposed  to  this  name,  if  they  retained  the  slightest  integrity,  would  manifest  their  indig¬ 
nation  at  such  inconsistency,  and  reproach  him  with  it  to  his  very  face. 

Hypocrites  sometimes  defend  the  cause  of  religion,  because  they  find  it  their  interest 
to  do  so,  which  interest  is  at  bottom  their  sole  religion.  They  will  not  dare  to  attack 
openly  what  may  have  publicly  been  defended — at  least  they  will  not  dare  to  do  so  im¬ 
mediately,  and  when  they  do,  it  will  be  partially  and  with  precaution,  and  this  in  order 
that  they  may  not  be  recognized  for  what  they  are,  viz.,  as  hypocrites,  and  so  much 
mischief  will  be  thereby  avoided.  But  if  you  urge  them  too  strongly  with  reference  to 
their  motives — if  you  leave  no  resource  to  their  honor — in  fine,  if  you  tear  away  their 
mask,  you  deprive  them  of  the  only  curb  whereby  they  were  restrained  :  they  have  no¬ 
thing  further  to  lose  ;  they  will  attack  openly,  and  they  will  persecute  in  an  outrageous 
manner. 

(o)  We  must  here  reconcile  this  expression  with  that  other  one  of  the  Saviour  :  He 
who  is  not  with  me  is  against  me. — Matthew,  xii.  It  would  seem  that  by  neutrality  we 
should  be  at  the  same  time  for  and  against  Jesus  Christ.  This  is  what  we  are  going  to 
try  and  explain.  Let  us  distinguish  real  and  interior  neutrality  from  that  which  is  exte¬ 
rior  and  apparent.  By  the  first,  men  were  against  Jesus  Christ.  Those  who,  witness¬ 
ing  his  miracles,  doubted  the  truth  of  his  words,  or  remained  indifferent  in  his  regard, 
were  against  him  in  this  sense — that  they  refused  him  the  faith  and  the  devotion  which 
they  owed  him,  and  which  they  could  not  fail  tendering  to  him  without  a  crime.  It  is 
with  reference  to  these  he  said  :  He  who  is  not  with  me  is  against  me.  As  to  what  re¬ 
gards  exterior  and  apparent  neutrality,  we  must  remark  the  circumstances  in  which  they 
then  found  themselves.  The  new  Gospel  was  then  persecuted,  because  there  was  a 
greater  and  more  accredited  one  in  the  nation.  A  person  could  with  impunity  declare 
himself  opposed  to  it,  and  there  was  no  security  in  openly  undertaking  its  defence.  How 
many  timid  souls  recognize  the  truth,  and  do  not  dare  to  confess  it,  for  fear  of  encounter¬ 
ing  the  brunt  of  persecution  !  It  is  of  the  latter  that  Jesus  Christ  saith  :  He  who  is  not 
against  you  is  for  you.  Such  was  Nicodemus,  who  always  has  had,  during  stormy  pe¬ 
riods,  and  who  always  shall  have,  many  imitators  of  his  timid  concealment,  if  we  may  be 
permitted  to  use  this  term.  They  are  weak,  but  they  are  not  unfaithful.  Do  not  let  us 
make  them  more  wicked  than  they  are.  They  are  for  us  :  let  us  not  proceed  to  tur  n 


248  THE  HISTORY  OP  THE  LIEE  .[PART  I. 

It  follows,  that  if  the  smallest  act  done  for  the  least  of  those  who 
belong  to  Jesus  Christ  shall  have  its  recompense,  how  much  more 
should  he  be  rewarded  who,  by  the  miracles  which  he  does  in  his 
name,  is  instrumental  in  making  known  his  power,  and  extending 
his  glory  !  Thus,  instead  of  blaming  and  opposing  him,  the  apos¬ 
tles  should  praise  and  encourage  him  ;  they  should  treat  him  in  the 
same  way  that  Jesus  Christ  wishes  they  themselves  should  be  treated 
for  his  sake.  It  is  this  that  he  insinuates  by  the  following  words, 
which,  without  evading  the  question,  reduces  it  once  more  to  the 
subject  from  which  he  had  been  withdrawn  :  (a)  “Whosoever  shall 
give  you  a  cup  of  water  to  drink  in  my  name,  because  you  belong 
to  Christ,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  he  shall  not  lose  his  reward.” 

The  following  inference  is  deducible  from  these  premises,  viz.  : 
that  the  slightest  evil  done  to  the  most  insignificant  of  those  who 
follow  Christ  shall  have  its  penalty  and  chastisement.  What,  there¬ 
fore,  shall  their  punishment  be  who,  by  scandal,  shall  have  mortally 
wounded  the  soul  of  such  an  individual  ?  A  very  trifling  evil  in  the 
judgment  of  those  who  reckon  souls  as  valueless  ;  and  it  is  perhaps 
for  this  reason  that  Jesus  Christ  seems  to  compare  it  to  a  glass  of 
water  ;  yet  the  greatest  of  evils  in  the  eyes  of  the  Saviour  of  souls, 
who,  for  this  reason,  launches  against  its  author  the  terrible  sen¬ 
tence  which  we  find  comprised  in  the  following  words  :  “  And  who¬ 
soever  shall  scandalize  one  of  these  little  ones  that  believe  in  me,  it 
were  better  that  a  mill-stone  were  hanged  about  his  neck,  and  he 
were  cast  into  the  sea.” 

Then,  casting  his  eyes  upon  the  world,  contemplating  the  fearful 
ravages  caused  there  by  scandals,  seeing  iniquity  communicate  itself 
like  the  plague,  overrunning  all  ages  and  all  conditions,  whilst  men 
perish  in  thousands,  and  almost  all  by  the  hands  of  one  another, 
grief,  mingled  with  indignation,  was  stirred  up  within  him  at  so  de¬ 
plorable  a  spectacle  :  and  he  cannot  refrain  from  pronouncing  that 
malediction,  which  has  been  to  such  a  vast  number  of  sages  a  signal, 

(a)  St.  Mark,  ix.  40,  41  ;  St.  Matthew,  x.  42. 


them  against  us,  by  insulting  a  weakness  which  we  see  that  Jesus  Christ  himself  con¬ 
descended  to  treat  with  delicate  consideration. 


I  ci 

H 

Wï 


/t 


sl 


CHAP.  XXXII.] 

as  it  were,  to  fly  this  tainted  atmosphere,  and  to  go  seek  in  soli¬ 
tude,  and  even  in  the  hollow  of  rocks,  an  asylum  away  from  its  cor¬ 
ruption  :  (a)  “  Woe  to  the  world  because  of  scandal.”  For,  although 
it  is  inevitable  in  human  society,  which  is  scarcely  any  thing  else 
but  a  compound  of  corruption  and  weakness,  still  the  general  neces¬ 
sity  coerces  no  one  individual.  Each  taken  separately  can  well 
avoid  giving  scandal  ;  and  “  woe  to  that  man  by  whom  the  scandal 
cometh.” 

Nevertheless,  the  crime  of  that  man  who  giveth  scandal  in  no  way 
excuses  him  who  takes  it.  The  murderer  shall  be  punished  as  a 
murderer  ;  but  his  punishment  shall  not  give  back  life  to  him  from 
whom  he  hath  taken  it.  Must  we,  then,  of  necessity  perish  ?  and 
is  there  no  way  for  escaping  the  dangers  that  encompass  us  on 
every  side  ?  Yes,  there  are,  though  they  are  irksome,  violent,  and 
painful.  Jesus  Christ  does  not  dissemble  the  fact.  But,  inasmuch 
as  this  is  a  question  of  life,  and  of  the  life  of  the  soul,  infinitely 
more  precious  than  the  life  of  the  body,  he  imposes  it  upon  us  as  a 
duty  to  make  use  of  this  bodily  life,  in  the  words  which  he  had  al¬ 
ready  spoken  on  the  mountain,  and  which  cannot  be  too  deeply 
meditated  upon  :  ( b )  “  If  thy  hand  scandalize  thee,  cut  it  off  (6). 
It  is  better  for  thee  to  enter  into  life  maimed,  than  having  two 
hands  to  go  into  hell,  into  the  hell  of  unquenchable  fire  (7)  ;  where 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xviii.  7. 


( b )  St.  Mark,  ix.  42-49. 


(6)  See  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  page  125,  of  this  Part. 

(7)  Nature  would  earnestly  wish  that  this  expression  was  merely  metaphorical,  and 
that  the  fire  of  hell  was  not  a  real  and  material  fire  ;  but,  with  all  the  subtlety  in  our 
power,  we  never  can  put  this  construction  upon  it.  For,  let  me  be  allowed  to  ask  here, 
why  should  we  find  that  in  Scripture  the  punishment  of  hell  is  scarcely  ever  spoken  of 
but  as  fire  ?  Why  (not  to  speak  here  of  the  Old  Testament,  wherein  this  term  is  so 
often  employed),  why,  I  say,  do  we  see  it  repeated  in  the  New  Testament  as  often  as 
thirty  times  ?  Why  is  it  to  be  found  in  the  enunciation  of  the  sentence  wherein  usage;, 
founded  upon  reason  and  good  sense,  admits  nothing  but  simple  and  precise  expressions  ? 
Could  God  wish  that  hell  should  never  present  itself  to  the  mind  but  under  the  image 
of  a  fire  which  did  not  exist  ?  Hath  he  not  foreseen  that  from  thence  should  originate,  in 
all  men,  the  idea,  or  rather  the  persuasion,  of  a  real  and  material  fire  ;  that  this  persua¬ 
sion,  which  thenceforth  would  be  only  an  erroneous  opinion,  should  be  as  widely  diffused 
as  religion  itself  ;  for  where  is  it  not  to  be  found  ?  and  as  durable  ;  for  in  what  period  has 
:t  not  been  believed  ?  Could  he  have  wished  to  lay  this  inevitable  snare  for  the  credulity  of 


s'v 


wips 


crl 


250  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  I. 

their  worm  dieth  not,  and  the  fire  is  not  extinguished.  If  thy  foot 
scandalize  thee,  cut  it  off.  It  is  better  for  thee  to  enter  lame  into 
life  everlasting,  than  having  two  feet  to  be  cast  into  the  hell  of  un¬ 
quenchable  fire,  where  their  worm  dieth  not  (8),  and  the  fire  is  not 
extinguished.  If  thy  eye  scandalize  thee,  pluck  it  out.  It  is  better 
for  thee  with  one  eye  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God,  than  hav¬ 
ing  two  eyes  to  be  cast  into  the  hell  of  fire,  where  their  worm  dieth 
not,  and  the  fire  is  not  extinguished.  For  every  one  shall  be  salted 
with  fire,”  which  shall  preserve  while  it  burns  them.  Victims  of 
divine  vengeance,  they  shall  be  used  like  all  those  of  whom  it  is 
said  :  Every  victim  shall  be  seasoned  with  salt  (9).  Taking  occa¬ 
sion  from  this  to  speak  of  true  wisdom,  of  which  salt  is  the  symbol, 
he  adds  these  words,  as  it  were  in  passing  :  “  Salt  is  a  good  thing  ; 
but  if  the  salt  become  unsavory,  wherewith  will  you  season  it  ? 
Have  salt  in  you,  and  have  peace  among  you.”  This  last  expres¬ 
sion  seems  to  refer  to  the  contest  which  the  apostles  had  had  about 
pre-eminence.  It  teaches  them  that  evangelical  wisdom  is  the  only 
means  of  maintaining  peace  amongst  them,  by  curing  them  of  the 
infatuation  of  pride  and  its  jealous  pretensions. 

But  the  tenderness  of  his  heart  brings  him  back  again  to  the  little 
children,  objects  worthy  the  favor  of  an  humbled  and  annihilated 
God,  whether  they  be  such  by  age,  or  have  become  so  by  their  hum¬ 
ble  simplicity.  He  does  not  think  that  he  has  done  enough  for  them 


all  Christians — I  say  of  all,  without  exception,  because  we  see  that  the  most  enlight¬ 
ened  have  given  in  to  this  belief,  as  well  as  the  most  simple  ;  and  what  nature  would 
struggle  to  make  pass  as  a  popular  prejudice  has  been  constantly  believed,  taught — 
I  say  even  dreaded,  and  with  the  liveliest  apprehension,  by  the  first  men  of  Christianity. 

(8)  By  the  worm,  remorse  of  conscience  is  usually  understood.  Several,  nevertheless, 
also  understand  it  to  mean  material  worms  preying  upon  the  reprobate,  whose  flesh  they 
devour,  whilst  that  flesh  is  ever  renewed.  Saint  Augustine,  who  admits  the  first  ex¬ 
planation,  is  very  far  from  rejecting  the  second.  What  gives  greater  probability  to  the 
latter  is  these  words  of  Judith,  chapter  xvi.  :  I  shall  send  fire  and  worms  into  their 
flesh,  in  order  that  they  may  burn,  and  that  they  may  eternally  suffer.  It  is  evident 
that  allusion  is  here  made  to  hell,  since  the  sacred  text  speaks  of  eternal  suffering.  Now, 
it  seems  that  it  would  be  more  natural  to  express  remorse  by  worm,  in  the  singular  num¬ 
ber,  than  by  worms,  in  the  plural.  But,  supposing  the  expression  were  correct,  these 
worms,  if  they  signify  remorse,  should  be  lodged  in  the  heart,  and  not  in  the  flesh. 

(9)  In  the  2d  chapter  of  Leviticus,  verse  13,  we  read  these  words  :  Whatsoever  sacri¬ 
fice  thou  offerest,  thou  shalt  season  it  with  salt. 


CRAP.  XXXII.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


251 


in  frightening  their  tempters  by  the  terrible  image  of  the  immortal 
worm  and  the  eternal  fire  ;  he  wishes  that  they  should  be  fostered 
with  as  much  respect  as  fear,  and  likewise  with  the  love  which  is 
due  to  those  whom  he  himself  has  loved  so  tenderly.  They  are  con¬ 
fided  to  the  care  of  angels  :  who  is  there  that  respects  not  such  pow¬ 
erful  protectors  ?  He  has  descended  from  heaven  to  save  them,  by 
incredible  toils  and  sufferings  :  who  is  there  that  will  not  shrink  with 
horror  from  procuring  the  loss  of  those  who  have  cost  him  so  much  ? 
(a)  “  See  [he  said  to  them ]  that  you  despise  not  one  of  these  little 
ones  ;  for  I  say  to  you  that  their  angels  (10)  in  heaven  always  see 
the  face  of  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven  (11).  For,”  continues  he, 
and  this  is  the  second  reason,  and  a  more  affecting  one  than  the  first  ; 
“  for  the  Son  of  man  is  come  to  save  that  which  was  lost.” 

They  were  lost  in  reality,  and  must  become  the  prey  of  the  infer¬ 
nal  wolf.  But  “  what  think  you  :  If  a  man  have  a  hundred  sheep, 

and  one  of  them  should  go  astray,  doth  he  not  leave  the  ninety-nine 

« 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xviii.  10-14. 


(10)  Their  guardian  angels  ;  for  the  words  have  been  so  understood  at  all  times,  and 
this  text  alone  would  suffice  to  prove  it.  We  learn  from  Scripture,  1st.  That  kingdoms 
and  empires  have  each  their  tutelar  angel  ;  2d.  That  each  particular  church  hath  also  its 
own;  3d.  That  each  of  the  faithful  hath  an  angel,  who  watches  over  him  from  his  birth 
until  his  death.  The  manner  in  which  Jesus  Christ  speaks  in  this  passage  seems  to  sup¬ 
pose  that  the  Jews  were  not  ignorant  of  it,  and  they  still  believe  it  at  the  present  day. 
When  the  damsel  to  whom  Peter  spoke  on  his  coming  out  of  prison  had  said  that  Peter 
stood  before  the  gate,  they  who  were  in  the  house  say  to  her:  Thou  art  mad  ;  but  she  af¬ 
firmed  that  it  was  so.  Then  said  they  :  It  is  his  angel.  The  Calvinists  acknowledge 
that  the  angels  are  charged  with  the  administration  of  the  world  ;  but  they  do  not  wish 
to  believe  that  each  angel  hath  his  department  :  their  incredulity  arises  from  an  appre¬ 
hension  lest  they  should  chance  to  believe  the  same  truth  as  the  Catholic  Church.  The 
latter  has  settled,  as  regards  this  point,  the  belief  of  her  true  children,  by  instituting  the 
feast  of  the  holy  guardian  angels. 

Although  it  be  not  a  matter  of  equal  certainty  that  all  men,  without  excepting  the 
heathens,  have  each  their  guardian  angel,  still  it  is  the  most  common  and  the  most  au¬ 
thorized  sentiment.  It  has  been  also  thought  that  each  man  has  his  demon,  who  tempts 
him,  and  that  Saint  Paul  speaks  of  his,  when  he  said  that  the  angel  of  Satan  had  been 
given  to  him  in  order  to  buffet  him.  This  opinion  has  been  followed  by  the  majority  of 
the  ancients,  although  it  does  not  appear  to  have  sufficient  foundation  in  Scripture,  which, 
however,  contains  nothing  contradictory  to  it.  t 

(11)  In  whatever  place  they  may  be,  they  always  retain  the  intuitive  vision  of  God, 
in  which  the  essence  of  beatitude  consists  :  they  carry  their  paradise  everywhere  about 
them,  in  the  same  way  as  the  devils  carry  their  hell. 


m 


in  tlie  mountains,  and  goetli  to  seek  that  which  is  gone  astray  ?  And 
if  it  so  be  that  he  find  it,  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  he  rejoiceth  more  for 
that  than  for  the  ninety-nine  that  went  not  astray  (12).  [This peu s- 
tor  is  the  image  of  the  great  pastor  of  all ,  and~\  Even  so  it  is  not  the 
will  of  your  Father  who  is  in  heaven  that  one  of  these  little  ones 
should  perish.” 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

'  v 

FRATERNAL  CORRECTION. — POWER  OF  BINDING-  AND  LOOSING. — WE  ARE  TO  PARDON 

SEVENTY-SEVEN  TIMES. - PARABLE  OF  THE  WICKED  SERVANT. - SECRET  JOURNEY 

TO  JERUSALEM,  FOR  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. - THE  TEN  LEPERS. 

After  having  commenced  by  humility,  the  Saviour  had  imper¬ 
ceptibly  proceeded  to  speak  of  charity.  This  subject  was  too  dear 
to  his  heart  to  be  lightly  changed  for  another.  Having  treated, 
therefore,  of  the  charity  which  we  should  exercise  towards  those 
whom  we  are  most  inclined  to  despise,  viz.,  the  weak  and  lowly,  he 
gives  rules  for  what  we  are  to  do  with  regard  to  those  whom  we  are 
chiefly  tempted  to  hate,  viz.,  those  from  whom  we  have  received  any 
offence.  If  thy  brother,  said  he  (he  gives  him  this  name,  so  well  cal¬ 
culated  to  disarm  hatred  and  to  awaken  tenderness) — ( a )  “  If  thy 
brother  sin  against  thee,  reprove  him  (1);  [this  solace  is  granted  to 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xvii.  3,  4. 


(12)  This  sheep  is  not  dearer  to  him  than  the  others,  since  he  is  disposed  to  do  for  the 
others,  if  they  happened  to  stray,  the  same  that  he  did  for  this  one  ;  but  this  causes  him, 
at  the'  moment,  a  sensible  joy,  which  the  others  do  not  impart  to  him,  viz.,  the  joy  of 
having  found  it. 

(1)  An  explanation  is  often  sufficient  to  unite  two  divided  hearts  ;  sometimes  it  might 
have  only  the  effect  of  making  the  breach  still  wider.  There  are  some  resentments  which 
give  way  of  their  own  accord  ;  there  are  others  which  require  applications  to  the  wounds. 
Some  minds  easily  forget  injuries — the  best  course  is  not  to  recall  them  to  their  rec¬ 
ollection  ;  there  are  other  persons  in  whose  hearts  the  shaft  remains  until  they  are  sooth¬ 
ed — it  is  desirable  to  furnish  them  with  an  occasion  for  this  alleviation,  by  speaking  to 
them,  We  are  always  wrong  when  we  only  meet  parties  in  order  to  taunt  them  with 


,Ui/. 


tWT  j~Wni]  ‘"mf'  ‘"'-""‘L  (i|  |  J  '!"» 


? 


CHAP.  XXXIII.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


253 


your  weakness  ‘  but ]  if  he  do  penance,  forgive  him.  And  if  he  sin 
against  thee  seven  times  in  a  day,  and  seven  times  in  a  day  be  con¬ 
verted  unto  thee,  saying  :  I  repent,  forgive  him.  [I  have  said  to 
you]  :  Go,  go,  and  rebuke  him  but  remark  with  what  caution  you 
must  proceed  here.  In  the  first  place,  the  matter  must  be  negotia¬ 
ted  “  between  thee  and  him  alone.”  Seeing  you  so  careful  to  avoid 
injuring  his  reputation,  perhaps  he  will  hear  thee  ;  and  (a) .“  if  he 
shall  hear  thee,  thou  shalt  gain  thy  brother  (2).  If  he  will  not  hear 
thee,  take  with  thee  one  or  two  more,  that  in  the  mouth  of  two  or 
three  witnesses  every  word  may  stand  (3).  If  he  will  not  hear  them, 
tell  the  Church  ;  and  if  he  will  not  hear  the  Church  (4),  let  him  be 
to  thee  as  the  heathen  (5)  and  the  Publican  (6).”  He  shall  become 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xviii.  15-35. 


bitter  reproaches  ;  or  when,  whilst  we  cease  our  intercourse,  we  do  not  cease  making 
the  world  ring  with  slanderous  complaints  and  defamatory  insinuations.  We  always  act 
right,  in  the  sight  of  God,  when  we  only  act  from  the  motive  of  charity,  and  with  a  sin¬ 
cere  desire  of  peace. 

(2)  You  shall  have  gained  him  to  God  and  to  yourself.  To  you,  by  reconciling  him 
with  yourself  ;  and  to  God,  by  leading  him  mildly  to  the  point  of  making  you  the  repara¬ 
tion  which  God  prescribes  to  him  in  your  regard,  and  which  God  makes  an  indispensa¬ 
ble  duty  to  him.  See  what  has  been  said  of  the  necessity  of  reparation,  Part  I.,  chapter 
xvi.,  page  123  of  this  volume. 

(3)  In  order  to  represent  to  him  the  injustice  of  his  proceedings,  and  the  justice  of  the 
reparation  which  is  demanded  from  him.  He  might  very  probably  decline  allowing  you 
to  be  the  judge  in  your  own  cause  ;  but  he  cannot  reasonably  mistrust  those  who  must 
be  presumed  to  have  no  other  interest  in  the  affair  than  that  of  equity  and  reason.  The 
witnesses  may  also  be  otherwise  useful.  If  he  does  not  yield  to  their  remonstrances,  they 
will  certify  to  the  Church  that  you  have  not  proceeded  so  far  as  the  denunciation,  until 
after  all  the  means  of  meekness  and  charity  have  been  vainly  employed. 

(4)  That  is  to  say,  the  Republic,  said  the  heretic  Castalion.  This  explanation  is  ab¬ 
surd.  These  first  Protestants  neither  relished  Church  nor  Monarchy.  If  we  were  to 
credit  them,  the  entire  universe,  as  well  sacred  as  profane,  should  be  governed  by  civil 
magistrates.  Tell  it  to  the  Church,  that  is  to  say,  to  the  head  and  the  ancients  of  each 
church,  who  are  the  bishop  and  the  priests.  This  is  the  way  in  which  the  rule  was  prac¬ 
tised  in  the  primitive  ages.  Saint  Paul  imposes  it  as  a  duty  upon  all  Christians,  and  to 
deviate  therefrom  was  reckoned  a  grievous  irregularity.  The  cause  of  this  regulation 
no  longer  exists  ;  it  was  that  in  those  days  all  the  secular  judges  were  heathens. 

(5)  These  words  do  not  authorize  us  to  hate  him  ;  they  only  signify  that,  after  the 
judgment  of  the  Church,  we  should  deal  with  him  as  with  an  excommunicated  person. 

(6)  That  is  to  say,  treat  him  as  you,  who  are  Jews,  treat  Publicans,  and  not  as  Publi¬ 
cans  deserve  to  be  treated.  The  Jews  exclude  them  from  their  religious  assemblies,  just 
as  they  exclude  Pagans.  The  exclusion  of  the  latter  was  just  ;  but  that  of  the  Publicans 


îf£^ 


tv. 


r 


- 


g 


a  a  o  q  a 


254 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I, 

sucli,  in  point  of  fact,  when  the  Church  shall  have  cut  off  from  her 
bosom  this  incorrigible  sinner;  I  say  he  shall  become  such  in  the 
eyes  of  God  and  his  angels.  For,  “Amen,  I  say  to  you  [and  in  your 
person  I  say  it  to  all  those  who  shall  succeed  to  your  ministry]  : 
Whatsoever  you  shall  bind  upon  earth,  shall  be  bound  also  in  heav¬ 
en,  and  whatsoever  you  shall  loose  upon  earth  shall  be  loosed  also 
in  heaven.” 

But,  in  order  that  you  may  better  understand  how  agreeable  to 
God  is  the  union  of  hearts,  and  the  power  which  it  has  over  his 
heart,  “  Again  I  say  to  you,  that  if  two  of  you  shall  consent  upon 
earth  concerning  any  thing  whatsoever  they  shall  ask,  it  shall  be 
done  to  them  by  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven  (7 )  ;  for  where  there 
are  two  or  three  gathered  together  in  my  name,  there  am  I  in  the 
midst  of  them,”  praying  with  them  and  for  them. 

The  Saviour  had  previously  said  that  if  our  brother  sin  against  us 
seven  times  in  the  day,  we  must  pardon  him  just  as  often.  This  num¬ 
ber  seven  might  require  explanation  ;  for  if  it  usually  signifies  the 
precise  number  which  it  expresses,  it  is  likewise  employed  sometimes 
to  signify  an  indeterminate  number.  Jesus  Christ  has  not  specified 
in  which  of  these  two  meanings  he  used  the  word.  “  Peter  [who 
desired  to  be  enlightened  on  this  point]  then  came  unto  Jesus,  and 
said  :  How  often  shall  my  brother  offend  against  me,  and  I  forgive 
him  ?  Till  seven  times  ?”  This  mode  of  interrogation  shows  clearly 
that  he  thought  the  acts  of  forgiveness  should  fall  short  of,  rather 
than  exceed,  that  number.  He  must  have  been  highly  surprised 
when  Jesus  saith  to  him  :  “  I  say  not  to  thee  seven  times,  but  till  sev¬ 
enty  times  seven  times  ;”  which  undoubtedly  signifies  that  we  must 
pardon  injuries  without  end,  and  as  often  as  we  have  been  offended. 
Therefore,  added  he,  to  make  them  feel  how  justly  God  requires  this 


was  not.  Their  profession,  which  was  necessary  for  the  State,  was  not  condemned  by  re¬ 
ligion.  John  the  Baptist  does  not  oblige  them  to  renounce  it  ;  he  is  satisfied  with  saying 
to  them:  Do  nothing  more  than  that  which  is  appointed  you. — (St.  Luke,  iii.  13.) 

C)  When  prayer  has  the  qualities  which  it  ought  to  have,  it  is  of  faith  that  God  listens 
to  it.  He  either  confers  what  i3  petitioned  for,  or  he  confers  some  favor  more  desirable. 
This  something  more  desirable  is  sometimes  the  contrary  of  what  we  petition  for  :  You 
k now  not  what  you  ask. — (St.  Matthew,  xx.  22.)  But  God  well  knows  what  is  necessary 
for  you.  Ever  pray,  and  leave  him  to  act. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


255 


CHAP.  XXXIII.] 

pardon  from  ns,  and  with  what  injustice  and  inhumanity  we  refuse 
it — “Therefore  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven  likened  to  a  king  who 
would  take  an  account  of  his  servants  (8).  And  when  he  had  begun 
to  take  the  account,  one  was  brought  to  him  that  owed  him  ten  thou¬ 
sand  talents.  As  he  had  not  wherewith  to  pay  it,  his  lord  command¬ 
ed  that  he  should  be  sold,  and  his  wife  and  children,  and  all  that  he 
had,  and  payment  to  be  made.  That  servant,  falling  down,  besought 
him,  saying  :  Have  patience  with  me,  and  I  will  pay  thee  all.  Then 
the  lord  of  that  servant,  being  moved  with  pity,  let  him  go  and  for¬ 
gave  him  the  debt.  But  when  that  servant  was  gone  out,  he  found 
one  of  his  fellow-servants,  that  owed  him  an  hundred  pence  ;  and  lay¬ 
ing  hold  of  him,  he  throttled  him,  saying:  Pay  what  thou  owest. 
His  fellow-servant,  falling  down,  besought  him,  saying:  Have  pa¬ 
tience  with  me,  and  I  will  pay  thee  all.  He  would  not,  but  went 
and  cast  him  into  prison  till  he  paid  his  debt.  How  his  fellow-ser¬ 
vants,  seeing  what  was  done,  were  very  much  grieved,  and  they  came 
and  told  their  lord  all  that  was  done.  Then  his  lord  called  him,  and 
said  to  him  :  Thou  wicked  servant,  I  forgave  thee  all  the  debt,  be¬ 
cause  thou  besoughtest  me  ;  shouldst  not  thou,  then,  have  had  com¬ 
passion  on  thy  fellow-servant,  even  as  I  had  compassion  on  thee  ? 
And  his  lord,  being  angry,  delivered  him  to  the  torturers  (9),  until 
he  paid  all  the  debt.  So  also  shall  my  heavenly  Father  do  to  you 
if  you  forgive  not  every  one  his  brother  from  your  hearts.” 

(a)  “  How  the  Jews’  feast  (10)  of  tabernacles  was  at  hand.  The 

(a)  St.  John,  vii.  2-11,  25,  26. 


(8)  The  reference,  properly  speaking,  is  neither  to  the  Church  nor  to  Heaven.  By  the 

kingdom  of  heaven  is  understood  the  conduct  which  God  pursues  in  the  administration  of 
the  world  ;  it  is  as  if  the  proposition  were  :  Behold  in  what  manner  God,  who  is  the  king 
of  the  universe,  conducts  himself  with  regard  to  men,  who  are  his  creatures  and  his  sub¬ 
jects.  < 

(9)  Creditors  at  that  period  were  not  satisfied  with  thrusting  their  debtors  into  prison  ; 
they  made  them  there  endure  buffets  and  tortures  until  they  satisfied  their  creditors — a 
cruel  policy,  which  the  meekness  of  the  Gospel  seems  to  have  abolished  everywhere. 

(10)  It  was  one  of  the  principal  feasts  of  the  Jews.  It  had  been  instituted  in  remem¬ 
brance  of  the  tents  under  which  the  Israelites  had  encamped  in  the  desert  during  forty 
years.  It  lasted  eight  days,  and  commenced  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  seventh  month  of 
the  Jewish  year.  The  Jews  at  the  present  day  record  the  memory  thereof  on  the  15th 
of  September,  raising  in  an  open  space  a  hut  embellished  and  covered  with  foliage. 


wt 


\ 


brethren  of  Jesus  said  to  him:  Pass  from  hence  and  go  into  Judea, 
that  thy  disciples  also  may  see  the  works  which  thou  dost  ;  for  there 
is  no  man  that  doth  any  thing  secret,  and  he  himself  seeketh  to  be 
known  openly.  If  thou  do  these  things,  manifest  thyself  to  the 
world.” 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  relatives  of  Jesus  should  desire  him 
to  show  himself  in  the  capital.  The  glory  which  he  might  there 
acquire  must  have  reflected  back  on  them.  It  was  natural  that  they 
should  not  be  insensible  to  this  at  a  time  when  we  see  that  the  apos¬ 
tles  themselves  were  not  altogether  exempt  from  ambition.  But 
that  which  does  appear  surprising  is,  that  they  should  have  had  the 
boldness  to  reproach  the  Saviour  with  the  alleged  inconsistency  of 
his  conduct,  and  the  presumption  to  think  that  he  could  be  in  want 
of  their  advice.  The  evangelist  explains  the  reason  of  this.  “  For 
neither  did  his  brethren  believe  in  him  not  that  they  did  not  be¬ 
lieve  him  to  have  the  power  of  working  miracles — what  they  have 
mst  said  evidently  supposes  that  they  had  this  faith;  but  they 
doubted,  at  least,  whether  he  was  the  Messiah,  and  that  the  Mes¬ 
siah  should  be  the  only  Son. of  the  living  God — God  himself,  the  un¬ 
created  and  incarnate  wisdom.  He  who  did  not  usurp  equality  with 
the  Most  High,  but  who  possesses  it  in  right  of  his  eternal  genera¬ 
tion,  did  not  disdain  to  give  them  a  reason  for  his  conduct  ;  and  in¬ 
stead  of  reproaching  them  with  their  indiscreet  temerity,  “  He  said 
to  them  [with  his  usual  moderation ]  :  My  time  is  not  yet  come  ;  but 
your  time  is  always  ready.  The  world  [with  whom  you  have  no 
cause  of  (quarrel]  cannot  hate  you.  But  me  it  hateth  :  because  I 
give  testimony  of  it  that  the  works  thereof  are  evil  and  its  hatred 
obliges  me  to  take  precautions  which  are  not  necessary  for  those 
who  have  nothing  to  fear.  “  Go  [therefore]  you  up  to  this  festival 
day.  But  I  go  not  up  to  this  festival  day  (11),  because  my  time  is 


(11)  We  have,  in  the  Greek  :  I  do  not  go,  as  yet  ;  which  removes  all  difficulty  in  rec¬ 
onciling  the  conduct  of  Jesus  Christ  with  his  words.  Among  the  old  Greek  manuscripts, 
some  have  :  I  do  not  go  there,  as  yet  ;  in  the  others,  we  read  simply,  as  in  the  Vulgate  : 
I  go  not  up.  The  Fathers  and  the  ancient  interpreters  have  read  the  text,  some  in  one 
way,  some  in  another.  What  follows  these  expressions  seemed  to  me'sufficient  to  fix  the 
sense  of  I  do  not  go,  to  that  of  I  do  not  go  as  yet,  as  shall  be  seen  in  the  continuation  of 
our  text. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


not  accomplished.”  It  was  not  long  before  it  was  accomplished,  for 
the  delay  alluded  to  here  was  only  of  very  few  days’  duration  ;  “  and 
after  his  brethren  were  gone  up,  Jesus  also  went  up  to  the  feast,  not 
openly,  but,  as  it  were,  in  secret.” 

Throughout  all  this  there  is  neither  that  levity  of  conduct  nor 
want  of  sincerity  in  words,  wherewith  the  enemies  of  Christianity 
in  early  times  have  reproached  him.  If  he  says  that  he  will  not  go 
up  to  the  festival,  he  immediately  adds  that  the  reason  is  because 
his  time  is  not  yet  come  ;  which  implies  that  when  his  time  shall  be 
come  he  can  go  there,  and  that  in  going  there  he  shall  neither  act 
against  his  word  nor  against  his  first  resolution.  It  appears  certain 
that  his  enemies  had  formed  a  plot  to  make  an  attempt  on  his  life 
during  this  festival,  calculating  to  a  certainty  that  he  would  be  pres¬ 
ent.  We  shall  shortly  read  that  “the  Jews  sought  him  on  the  fes¬ 
tival  day  ;”  and  we  shall  see  the  surprise  of  those  who,  aware  of  the 
plot  without  participating  therein,  said  :  “  Is  not  this  he  whom  they 
seek  to  kill  ?  Behold,  he  speaketh  openly,  and  they  say  nothing  to 
him.”  But  should  not  the  cause  which  hindered  him  from  being 
found  there  on  the  first  days,  hinder  him  also  from  showing  himself 
there  on  the  following  days  ?  Yes,  had  he  been  an  ordinary  man, 
because  then  he  would  not  have  known  what  day  the  plot  was  to 
be  put  in  execution  ;  and  this  ignorance  would  have  obliged  him  to 
keep  from  Jerusalem,  or  at  least  to  remain  concealed  there  during 
the  entire  festival.  But,  as  he  was  ignorant  of  nothing,  he  knew 
that  the  plot  must  have  succeeded,  if  at  all,  during  the  first  days, 
and  that  after  the  lapse  of  some  days  it  must  fail.  This  statement 
alone  would  suffice  to  explain  all,  if  it  were  not  that  a  further  ques¬ 
tion  may  be  started,  viz.,  Was  it  not  easy  for  the  Saviour  to  render 
useless,  by  a  miracle,  all  the  efforts  of  his  enemies  ?  Who  can  doubt 
it?  But  he  did  not  wish  to  employ  miracles  until  human  means 
were  insufficient.  To  act  otherwise  is  tempting  God,  as  he  himself 
said  to  Satan.  True,  he  was  incapable  of  this,  not  only  because  he 
was  impeccable,  but  also  because  it  cannot  be  said  that  God  could 
be  tempted  by  him  who,  being  God  himself,  has  all  nature  at  his 
supreme  disposal.  But  he  wished  to  instruct  his  disciples,  and  to 
teach  them,  by  his  example,  that  it  is  only  when  all  natural  means 
fail,  that  rational  confidence  can  rely  on  miracles. 


wmi 


258 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PÀRT  L 

(a)  “Jesus  [therefore]  would  not  walk  [publicly]  in  Judea,  be¬ 
cause  tbe  Jews  sought  to  kill  him.”  Not  so  in  the  province  where 
he  usually  resided.  Although  there  he  had  to  encounter  opposition, 
yet  hatred  and  fury  did  not  go  to  the  extent  of  wishing  to  attempt 
his  life.  Wherefore,  reserving  precautions  for  the  moment  when  he 
should  enter  Judea,  in  (b)  “  going  to  Jerusalem,  he  passed  [publicly] 
through  the  midst  of  Samaria  and  Galilee.  As  he  entered  into  a 
certain  town,  there  met  him  ten  men  that  were  lepers,  who  stood  afar 
off,”  to  obey  the  law,  which  interdicted  them  from  all  commerce  with 
men.  Obliged  to  raise  their  voice,  so  as  to  make  themselves  heard, 
“  they  lifted  up  their  voice,  saying  :  Jesus,  Master,  have  mercy  on  us. 
Whom  when  [this  good  Master]  saw,  Go,  said  he,  show  yourselves 
to  the  priests.”  This  implied  a  promise  that  they  should  be  cured 
before  they  arrived  there,  since  this  ceremony  was  merely  the  judi¬ 
cial  verification  of  their  cure.  They  believed  him,  and  set  off  at 
once.  Their  faith,  joined  with  this  prompt  obedience,  soon  produced 
its  effect.  “  As  they  went  they  were  made  clean.  One  of  them, 
when  he  saw  that  he  was  made  clean,  went  back,  with  a  loud  voice 
glorifying  God  (12);  and  he  fell  on  his  face  before  Jesus’  feet,  giv- 

(a)  St.  John,  vii.  1.  ( h )  St.  Luke,  xvii.  11-19. 


(12)  Leprosy  is  the  figure  of  sin;  and  what  passes  here  is  the  natural  image  of  pen¬ 
ance,  which  is  the  remedy  of  sin.  The  man  infected  with  this  spiritual  leprosy  keeps 
himself,  out  of  respect,  at  a  distance  from  Jesus  Christ.  His  humility  does  not  in  any¬ 
wise  lessen  his  confidence.  From  the  bottom  of  his  heart  he  cries  aloud  to  the  supreme 
physician,  which  obliges  the  God  of  mercy  to  cast  upon  him  a  glance  of  compassion.  Je¬ 
sus  Christ,  who  can  cure  him  in  an  instant,  and  by  himself  alone,  sends  him  to  the  priests, 
whose  rights  he  wishes  to  be  recognized,  and  their  ministry  honored.  The  dispositions 
are  sometimes  so  perfect,  that  the  sinner  is  justified  before  he  presents  himself  before  the 
minister.  Still  he  must  observe  the  law  ;  but  he  must  be  exceedingly  cautious  not  tc 
forget  his  benefactor,  and  the  sinner,  when  truly  and  profoundly  contrite,  doth  not  forget 
him.  The  more  bitter  the  grief  he  has  felt  for  his  sin,  the  more  lively  is  his  gratitude  for 
the  grace  he  has  received.  He  cannot  be  silent  on  the  mercies  of  the  Lord  ;  he  publishes 
them  aloud  ;  he  recounts  them  to  the  universe.  Come,  saith  he  with  the  prophet,  come 
and  see  the  great  things  which  the  Lord  hath  done  to  my  soul.  He  then  ventures  to  ap¬ 
proach  the  Saviour,  and  thereupon  he  only  becomes  the  more  humble.  He  casts  him¬ 
self  at  his  feet,  the  ordinary  asylum  of  all  true  penitents — the  asylum  of  Magdalen,  whom 
we  always  find  there  after  her  conversion.  Let  those  who  imitate  her  tell  us  the  sweets 
which  he  makes  them  relish  when  embracing  his  sacred  feet  ;  let  them  tell  us  whether 
all  the  joys  of  the  world  are  worth  one  of  the  tears  with  which  they  water  those  sacred 


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CHAP.  XXXIV.] 

ing  tlianks.  This  was  a  Samaritan.  Then  Jesus,  answering,  said: 
Were  not  ten  made  clean  ?  And  where  are  the  nine  ?  There  is  no 
one  found  to  return  and  give  glory  to  God  but  this  stranger.  After¬ 
wards  he  said  to  him  :  Arise,  go  thy  way  ;  for  thy  faith  hath  made 
thee  whole.”  This  should  be  understood  to  mean  the  salvation  of 
the  soul  ;  for  the  faith  of  the  others  had  procured  for  them  also  the 
cure  of  the  body.  But  the  faith  of  this  latter  being  more  lively, 
more  durable,  and,  above  all,  more  grateful,  merited  for  him  this 
second  favor,  infinitely  more  precious  than  the  first,  which  is  little 
more  than  the  shade  and  figure  thereof. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

JESUS  SHOWS  HIMSELF  AT  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. - HE  PREACHES  IN  THE  TEM¬ 
PLE. - DIVERS  JUDGMENTS  CONCERNING  HIM. - ARCHERS  SENT  TO  APPREHEND 

HIM. 

In  the  mean  time,  Jesus  continued  his  journey,  and  arrived  at  Je¬ 
rusalem.  But  whether  it  be  that  he  was  not  to  be  found  at  the  com¬ 
mencement  of  the  solemnity  of  the  tabernacles,  or  perhaps  that  at 
the  outset  he  kept  himself  concealed  there,  which  was  not  difficult 
amongst  so  prodigious  a  multitude  ;  (a)  “  the  J ews  [of  Jerusalem , 
who  expected  to  see  him  there ]  sought  him  on  the  festival-day,  and 
said  :  Where  is  he  ?  And  there  was  much  murmuring  among  the 
multitude  concerning  him  ;  for  some  said,  He  is  a  good  man  ;  others 
said,  No,  but  he  seduceth  the  people  (1).  Yet  no  man  [of  those  who 

(a)  St.  John,  vii.  11-30. 


(1)  It  is  thus,  remarks  Saint  Augustine,  that  we  speak  eveiy  day  of  his  servants.  If 
any  one  appear  gifted  with  some  extraordinary  grace,  or  if  he'  make  considerable  prog¬ 
ress  in  virtue,  some  say  he  is  a  worthy  man  ;  others  allege  that  he  is  a  deceiver.  But, 
adds  this  Father,  those  who  praise  him,  do  so  in  a  subdued  tone  ;  and  those  who  blame 
him  vociferate  aloud.  There  are  several  reasons  for  this  difference.  Firstly,  esteem  and 
affection  make,  naturally,  less  noise  than  hatred  ;  and  criticism  is  always  more  boisterous 
than  approbation.  Moreover,  when  the  wicked  rise  up  against  those  to  whom  men  of 


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had  espoused  Ms  side ]  spoke  openly  of  him,  for  fear  of  the  Jews. 
Now  about  the  midst  of  the  feast  Jesus  went  up  into  the  temple,  and 
taught.”  Wisdom  and  science  flowed  like  a  mighty  stream  from  his 
divine  lips.  The  admiration  with  which  he  was  heard  suspended  for 
a  time  all  other  sentiments.  “The  Jews  wondered,  saying:  How 
doth  this  man  know  letters,  having  never  learned  ?”  Jesus  explains 
this  mystery,  by  informing  them  from  whom  this  knowledge  came 
which  surprised  them  so  highly.  “  My  doctrine,”  he  answered  them, 
“is  not  mine,  but  his  that  sent  me,”  that  is  to  say,  it  is  from  God. 
Tiie  Jews  believed  not,  because  they  did  not  see  ;  and  they  saw  not, 
because  they  did  not  wish  to  be  enlightened.  Their  incredulity  was 
the  natural  effect  of  their  blindness,  and  it  in  turn  proceeded  from 
the  evil  dispositions  of  their  hearts.  That  saying  of  the  Psalmist, 
which  we  every  day  see  accomplished  before  our  eyes,  was  then  veri¬ 
fied  in  them:  He  would  not  understand ,  that  he  might  do  well. — • 
(Psalm  35.)  “For,”  adds  the  Saviour,  “if  any  man  will  do  the  will 
of  him,  he  shall  know  of  the  doctrine  whether  it  be  of  God,  or  wheth¬ 
er  I  speak  of  myself.” 

He  has  just  discovered  to  them  the  source  of  their  incredulity. 
What  follows  gives  them,  if  not  an  infallible  proof,  at  least  a  rea¬ 
sonable  presumption,  of  the  truth  of  his  doctrine,  and  of  the  divinity 
of  his  mission  :  “  He  [saith  die]  that  speaketh  of  himself,  seeketh 
his  own  glory  ;  but  he  that  seeketh  the  glory  of  him  that  sent  him, 
he  is  true,  and  there  is  no  injustice  in  him.”  Jesus  Christ  cannot, 
therefore,  be  suspected  of  fraud  and  of  lying,  which  are  here  ex¬ 
pressed  by  the  term  injustice ,  because  it  is  evident  to  any  one  who 
pays  attention  to  the  fact,  that,  in  all  his  words  and  in  all  his  ac- 


worth  are  attached,  they  know  that  there  is  nothing  to  apprehend  from  the  latter  :  where¬ 
as  good  men,  on  the  contrary,  have  every  thing  to  apprehend  from  the  wicked,  if  they 
venture  at  all  to  declare  in  favor  of  those  whom  the  wicked  persecute.  We  may  also  add, 
that  good  men  are  silent  from  delicacy  towards  the  just  man  who  is  persecuted.  The 
hatred  entertained  towards  the  just  is  irritated  by  contradiction  ;  and  the  greater  number 
of  partisans  in  favor  of  the  just,  the  more  rampant  is  the  fury  of  the  wicked  against  them. 
Hatred,  therefore,  alone  speaks  out  :  at  all  events,  it  alone  makes  itself  heard.  This 
should  be  carefully  noticed  ;  for  those  who  merely  listen,  imagine  that  the  hatred  is  uni¬ 
versal,  because  they  hear  nothing  but  the  yell  of  hatred  :  they  are  deceived.  The  peo¬ 
ple  of  worth,  who  love  the  virtuous,  and  who  honor  them  even  to  veneration,  but  who  dq. 
not  make  themselves  heard,  are  sometimes  a  hundred  to  one. 


CHAP.  XXXIV. J  OF  OCR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  261 

tions,  lie  has  only  in  view  the  glory  of  God,  whom  lying  offends, 
and  whom  truth  alone  honors.  Still,  it  is  not  absolutely  impossible 
that  a  good  man,  who  has  only  in  view  the  glory  of  God,  should 
state  things  contrary  to  truth.  Here  is  the  reason  why  we  have 
said  that  this  was  here  rather  a  reasonable  presumption,  than  an  in¬ 
fallible  proof  of  the  truth  of  his  doctrine.  A  man  of  this  charac¬ 
ter  may  then  deceive  himself,  without  wishing  or  intending  to  do 
so  :  it  is  error  in  him,  and  neither  fraud  nor  lying.  The  thing  is 
easily  recognized,  if  he  happen  to  be  reproved  for  it.  He  submits 
immediately,  and  subscribes  without  resistance  to  the  judgment 
which  condemns  him  :  whereas,  he  that  seeketh  his  own  glory,  can¬ 
not  bear  a  like  humiliation  ;  he  bristles  up,  he  is  transported  with 
passion,  he  judges  his  judges,  and  condemns  his  pastors. 

It  would  be  useless  to  add,  that  this  is  inapplicable  to  the  Man- 
God.  Incapable  of  lying,  neither  is  he  susceptible  of  error.  If  the 
thing  be  evident  to  any  one  who  recognizes  his  divinity,  even  those 
who  do  not  as  yet  acknowledge  it,  can  in  no  way  doubt  it  in  view 
of  his  miracles,  which  were  the  seal  with  which  God  confirmed  the 
truth  of  all  his  words.  But  as  he  then  proposed  to  convince  the 
Jews  rather  by  reason  than  by  prodigies,  he  proceeds  to  show  them, 
by  their  own  conduct,  that  wEat  they  regarded  in  him  as  a  capital 
crime,  was  a  lesser  infraction  of  the  law  than  what  they  permitted 
to  themselves  without  scruple.  For  the  question  at  issue  still  was, 
the  violation  of  the  Sabbath  ;  and  if  envy  was  the  true  cause  of  the 
plots  formed  against  the  Saviour’s  life,  the  cure  of  a  paralytic, 
wrought  miraculously  on  the  Sabbath-day,  was  the  pretext  on 
which  they  acted.  Eighteen  months  had  rolled  away  since  this 
event,  which  had  been  fully  justified  at  the  time  when  it  occurred. 
But  they  had  forgotten  the  justification,  and  still  remembered  the 
pretended  crime.  Here,  then,  is  what  Jesus  Christ  again  said  to 
them  on  this  subject  :  “  Did  not  Moses  give  you  the  law  ?  And  yet 
none  of  you  keepeth  the  law  [if  it  be  true ,  as  you  say ,  that  I  have 
broken  it].  Why  seek  you  to  kill  me  ?  The  multitude  answered 
and  said  :  Thou  hast  a  devil  :  who  seeketh  to  kill  thee  ?”  We  per¬ 
ceive  in  these  wrathful  words  the  hatred  which  had  conceived  the 
crime,  now  wrought  up  to  a  furious  height  on  hearing  this  just  re¬ 
proach.  “  Jesus,”  without  evincing  any  emotion ,  continued  his  dis - 


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262 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


.[PART  I. 


course ,  and  “  said  to  them  :  One  work  I  have  done,  and  you  all 
wonder.  Yet  Moses  gave  you  circumcision  (not  because  it  [ origi¬ 
nally ]  is  of  Moses,  but  of  the  Fathers),  and  on  the  Sabbath-day 
you  circumcise  a  man,”  when  it  happens  to  be  the  eighth  day  after 
his  birth.  “  If  a  man  receive  circumcision  on  a  Sabbath-day,  that 
the  law  of  Moses  may  not  be  broken,  are  you  angry  with  me  be¬ 
cause  I  have  healed  the  whole  man  on  the  Sabbath-day  ?  Judge 
not  according  to  the  appearance,  but  judge  just  judgment.” 

This  last  expression  reminded  the  Jews  of  another  law  of  Moses 
which  they  were  actually  infringing,  viz.,  that  of  Deuteronomy, 
which  admonishes  them,  almost  in  the  same  terms,  to  judge  accord¬ 
ing  to  the  very  equity  of  the  thing,  without  regard  to  persons. 
Now,  on  this  occasion,  they  judged  the  action  of  Jesus  Christ  not 
according  to  what  it  was,  but  by  its  author,  whose  person  was 
odious  to  them.  Hence  they  pronounced  as  criminal,  that  which  in 
reality  was  a  lesser  infraction  of  the  Sabbath  than  circumcision. 
For  the  law  of  nature,  which  obliges  us  to  succor  the  unfortunate, 
should  take  precedence  of  the  law  of  circumcision,  which  is  merely 
a  positive  injunction.  To  wound  a  man,  supposing  there  be  a  law 
that  commands  the  act,  is  always  a  lesser  good  than  to  cure  another 
man  ;  and  if  we  wish  to  carry  out  the  comparison  of  the  two  actions, 
circumcision  being  a  manual  operation  which  entails  the  necessity  of 
dressing  the  wound,  is  a  much  more  servile  work  than  the  simple 
word  used  by  Jesus  Christ  in  restoring  health  to  the  paralytic. 
However,  those  who  were  aware  of  the  conspiracy  which  the  prin¬ 
cipal  men  of  the  nation  had  formed  against  the  Saviour,  were  highly 
surprised  to  hear  him  speak  so  publicly  and  so  fearlessly.  “  Some, 
therefore,  of  Jerusalem  said  :  Is  not  this  he  whom  they  seek  to  kill  ? 
Behold,  he  speaketh  openly,  and  they  say  nothing  to  him.  Have 
the  rulers  known  for  a  truth  that  this  is  the  Christ  ?  But  [added 
they]  we  know  this  man  whence  he  is  ;  but  when  the  Christ  com- 
eth,  no  man  knoweth  whence  he  is.” 

We  know  not  how  they  had  conceived  this  idea,  that  when  the 
Christ  should  come,  his  origin  was  to  be  entirely  unknown  ;  and  it 
is  conjectured,  with  sufficient  probability,  that  the  error  arose  from 
this  text  of  Isaias  :  Who  shall  decla/re  his  generation  f  The  prophet 
understood  this  of  his  eternal  generation,  not  as  of  a  thing  to  remain 


OH  A  P-  XXXI  Y.]  OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CHKIST.  263 

concealed,  but  as  alluding  to  an  ineffable  mystery.  These  persons, 
who  were,  undoubtedly,  the  most  ignorant  of  the  people — for  Mm 
shall  soon  hear  others  speak  who  were  better  informed — these  per¬ 
sons,  I  say,  explained  the  text  as  referring  to  the  temporal  birth, 
and  seemed  to  believe  that  the  Messiah  was  to  appear  suddenly, 
without  it  being  known  whence  he  came,  or  who  were  his  parents. 
Jesus  was  aware  of  their  discourse,  whether  he  was  or  was  sot 
within  reach  of  hearing.  “  He,  therefore,  cried  out  in  the  ter  tple, 
teaching  and  saying  :  You  both  know  me  and  you  know  wf  mce  I 
am.  I  am  not  come  of  myself,  but  he  that  sent  me  is  tru< ,  whom 
you  know  not.”  You  do  not,  therefore,  know  in  fact  vdience  I  am  ; 
and  this  character  of  the  Messias,  if  indeed  it  be  one,  yon  cannot 
deny  that  I  have.  “  I  know  him,  because  I  am  from  him  (2),  and 
he  hath  sent  me.” 

The  first  of  these  latter  words  alludes  to  the  eternal  generation 
of  the  Son  of  God,  and  the  second  to  his  birth  in  the  course  of  time. 
The  Jews  must  then  have  understood  the  sense  of  the  words,  since 
it  is  said,  that  in  consequence  of  what  he  had  been  saying,  “  they 
sought  to  apprehend  him  ;”  and  we  have  elsewhere  seen  that  one  of 
the  principal  reasons  for  which  they  sought  to  put  him  to  death  is, 
because  he  said  God  was  his  father,  making  himself  equal  to  God. 
(a)  “  But  no  man  laid  hands  on  him,  because  his  hour  was  not  yet 
come.  \In  the  mean  time ]  of  the  people  many  believed  in  him  and 
said  :  When  the  Christ  cometh,  shall  he  do  more  miracles  than  these 
which  this  man  doth  (3)  ?” 

(a)  St.  John,  v.  18  ;  vii.  18-36. 


(2)  Literally,  I  am  from  him.  This  is  not  a  French  expression  ;  hence  the  majority  of 
\FrencK\  interpreters  have  translated,  I  come  from  him.  This  translation  does  not  seem 
sufficient  to  render  the  full  force  of  the  ah  ipso  sum,  which  properly  signifies,  I  draw  my 
existence  from  him.  N.B.— Our  author  thinks  he  comes  nearest  to  the  sense  by  trans¬ 
lating  thus:  Je  procède  de  lui.— P.  De  Ligny’s  French  translation  is  considered  the 
most  faithful  and  exact  Scriptural  version  in  the  F rencli  language.  See  introduction  to 
edition  of  1843,  Libraire  Catholique  de  Périsse,  Frères. 

(3)  He  performs  an  infinite  number  of  miracles,  in  order  to  prove  that  he  is  the  Christ; 
he  is,  therefore,  such  in  point  of  fact.  Common  sense  led  them  directly  to  this  conse¬ 
quence.  Others  were  drawn  aside  by  sophistry,  and  rejected  this  plain  truth.  Good 
sense  and  subtlety  are  two  very  different  things,  and  often  widely  opposed  to  each 
other. 


£,Cl\VW§fl 


Those  who  were  friendly  towards  the  Saviour  did  not  venture,  as 
we  have  said,  to  testify  it  openly  ;  but  nothing  escapes  passion. 
“The  Pharisees  heard  [that portion  of  \  the  people  murmuring  these 
things  concerning  him.”  They  grew  apprehensive  of  the  conse¬ 
quences,  and  began  to  fear,  lest  what  they  termed  seduction  might 
in  a  short  time  captivate  the  minds  of  all.  To  check  its  course 
“  the  rulers  and  Pharisees  sent  ministers  to  apprehend  Jesus.”  We 
cannot  say  whether  Jesus  was  yet  there  when  the  latter  arrived,  or 
if  it  was  to  them,  or  to  the  people  who  were  still  listening,  that  he 
addressed  the  following  words,  apparently  that  they  plight  be 
repeated  :  “  He  therefore  said  to  them  :  Yet  a  little  while  I  air 
with  you,  and  then  I  go  to  him  that  sent  me  :  you  shall  seek  me 
and  shall  not  find  me  ;  and  where  I  am  (4),  thither  you  cannot 
come.”  Thus  he  declared  to  them  the  futility  of  the  projects  which 
they  formed  against  his  person,  until  the  moment  when  he  should 
permit  them  to  do  what  he  had  resolved  upon  enduring.  That  mo¬ 
ment  was  not  far  distant  ;  but  it  was  to  be  followed  immediately 
by  his  ascension,  and  his  entrance  into  heaven,  whither  they  could 
not  follow  him,  because  they  should  have  closed  it  forever  against 
themselves.  From  that  heavenly  abode  he  was  to  survey  them  oc¬ 
cupied  with  useless  care,  and  despairing  ever  to  find  among  the  false 
Messiahs  the  true  one  whom  they  should  have  already  disowned. 
Those  who  believed  in  him  were  afterwards  given  to  understand 
these  mysteries.  But  whilst  the  first  words  he  uttered  were  then 
understood,  the  latter  were  still  a  mystery.  “  The  Jews  therefore 
said  among  themselves  :  Whither  will  he  go  that  we  shall  not  find 
him  ?  Will  he  go  unto  the  dispersed  among  the  Gentiles,  and 


(4)  In  the  text  we  find  the  present  tense  where  I  am,  ubi  ego  sum.  Among  the  in¬ 
terpreters,  some  translate  where  I  am  to  go,  où  je  dois  aller  ;  others,  where  I  shall  be,  où 
je'  serai,  in  the  future,  because,  in  point  of  fact,  Jesus  Christ  speaks  of  a  time  to  come. 
We  have  adhered  to  the  present,  because  it  comprises  a  truth  which  disappears  when 
the  future  is  substituted.  In  reality  Jesus  Christ  was  already  there,  where  he  was  to 
go  ;  that  is*  to  say,  in  heaven,  where  he  was  always  present  by  his  immensity.  The 
present  had,  therefore,  with  respect  to  him,  its  proper  signification,  which  it  would  not 
have  had  if  Jesus  Christ  were  purely  man.  We  know  that  Saint  John,  when  writing 
his  Gospel,  chietly  sought  to  manifest  the  divinity  of  the  Saviour.  Every  thing  which 
refers  to  this  should  be  presumed  to  have  been  written  with  this  design,  which  should 
be  ever  borne  in  mind. 


■,//*/ 


W 


W  '  j  '  viq  t 


N 


THE  DESCENT  OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST. 


NEW  YOBK  D  8c  J.SADUER  8c  CV 


'à  m 

4. 

p 
! 


m 


Wi 


CHAP.  XXXV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


266 


teach  the  Gentiles  ?  What  is  this  saying  that  he  hath  said  :  You 
shall  seek  me,  and  shall  not  find  me  ;  and  where  I  am  you  cannot 
come  ?” 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

MYSTIC  WATER. - EFFUSION  OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST. - THE  JEWS  DIVIDED  AMONGST 

THEMSELVES. - COUNCIL  OF  THE  PRIESTS. - OPPOSITION  OF  NICODEMUS. - THE  WO¬ 

MAN  TAKEN  IN  ADULTERY. 

A  religious  ceremony  which  the  Jews  practised  during  the  feast 
of  tabernacles  may  have  given  occasion  for  the  last  words  which  the 
Saviour  addressed  to  them  during  this  solemnity.  They  went  to 
draw  water  from  the  fountain  of  Siloe,  and  then  poured  it  upon  the 
altar,  beseeching  God  to  bless  them  with  an  abundance  of  the  fruits 
of  the  earth.  There  is  every  appearance  that,  on  the  subject  of  this 
water,  he  spoke  to  them,  as  to  the  Samaritan,  of  a  more  wondrous 
and  more  desirable  water.  It  was  the  last  and  greatest  day  of  the 
festivity,  (a)  “  Jesus  stood,  and  cried,  saying  :  If  any  man  thirst, 
let  him  come  to  me,  and  drink.  He  that  believeth  in  me  (this  ex¬ 
plains  the  word  1 d/rink ’),  as  the  Scripture  saith,  out  of  his  belly  shall 
flow  rivers  of  living  water.  This  he  said  of  the  Spirit  which  they 
should  receive  who  believed  in  him  ;  for  as  yet  the  Spirit  was  not 
given,  because  Jesus  was  not  yet  glorified  (1).” 

“  Of  that  multitude,  therefore,  when  they  had  heard  these  words 
of  his,  some  said  :  This  is  the  prophet  indeed.  Others  said  :  This  is 

(a)  St.  John,  vii.  37-53. 


(1)  The  Holy  Ghost  had  been  given  to  the  holy  sage,  Simon,  to  Zachary,  to  John  the 
Baptist,  and  to  some  others  ;  but  they  were  few  in  number.  It  was  not  until  after  the 
Lord  Jesus  had  been  fully  glorified — that  is  to  say,  after  his  ascension,  and  upon  Pente- 
cost-day — that  the  Holy  Ghost  was  given  to  all  the  disciples,  and  in  such  plenitude  as 
served  to  diffuse  the  Spirit  over  all  the  earth.  This  diffusion,  proceeding  from  this  plen¬ 
itude,  is  signified  by  the  preceding  words  :  Out  of  his  belly  shall  flow  rivers  of  living 
water. 


7/t 


_U.ll/A 


'  ~rm\  \ 


41 

«v 

i)  y 

'Al  AaAu 

Æï 


<S 


\ 


266 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part 


the  Christ.  But  some  said  :  Doth  the  Christ  come  out  of  Galilee  ? 
Doth  not  the  Scripture  say  that  Christ  cometh  of  the  seed  of  David, 
and  from  Bethlehem,  the  town  where  David  was  ?  So  there  arose 
a  dissension  among  the  people,  because  of  him  ;  and  some  of  them 
would  have  apprehended  him.  But  no  man  laid  hands  upon  him.” 

These  were  the  priests’  ministers  or  officers,  who  were  in  hopes  of 
executing  on  that  day  what  they  were  unable  to  accomplish  on  the 
preceding  days.  His  divine  eloquence  was  the  charm  which  tied  up 
their  hands.  “They  came,  therefore,  to  the  chief  priests  and  the 
Pharisees.  And  they  said  to  them  :  Why  have  you  not  brought 
him  ?  The  ministers  answered  :  Never  did  man  speak  like  this  man. 
The  Pharisees  answered  them  :  Are  you  also  seduced  ?  Hath  any 
one  of  the  rulers  believed  in  him,  or  of  the  Pharisees  ?  But  this  mul¬ 
titude  that  knoweth  not  the  law  are  accursed  [of  God\.  Nicodemus, 
he  that  came  to  Jesus  by  night,  who  was  one  of  them,  said  to  them  : 
Doth  our  law  judge  any  man  unless  it  first  hear  him,  and  know  what 
he  doth  ?”  It  was  easy  for  them  to  answer  :  When  we  have  him  in 
our  power  we  shall  interrogate  him,  and  we  shall  hear  what  he  has 
to  say.  There  is,  therefore,  every  reason  to  believe  that  their  de¬ 
sign  was  to  put  the  Saviour  to  death  without  any  form  of  trial,  be¬ 
cause,  instead  of  making  this  answer,  which  would  have  silenced  Nic- 
odemus,  they  were  reduced  to  answer  him  with  offensive  language  : 
“  Art  thou  also  a  Galilean  (2)  ?  they  answered  to  him.  Search  the 
Scriptures,  and  see  that  out  of  Galilee  a  prophet  rispth  not.  And 
every  man  returned  to  his  own  house  (3)  ” 


yv  Æm 

Û, 


(2)  They  all  start  from  this  principle — He  is  a  Galilean.  The  Jews — properly  speak¬ 
ing,  that  is  to  say,  those  of  the  province  of  Judea,  and  principally  those  of  Jerusalem — 
regarded  the  Galileans  -with  contempt.  This  is  the  reason  why  the  enemies  of  the  Sa¬ 
viour  affectedly  pointed  him  out  by  this  name.  They  were  persuaded,  and  with  some 
justice,  that  a  disreputable  name  is  the  shortest  and  surest  means  of  lowering  in  popular 
estimation  even  the  most  respectable  persons.  Subsequently  the  Jews  continued  to  des¬ 
ignate  Jesus  Christ  by  this  name,  and  it  was  from  them  that  Julian  the  Apostate  bor¬ 
rowed  it.  Perhaps  this  same  Julian  had  the  most  disordered  brain  which  was  ever  en¬ 
circled  with  a  diadem,  no  matter  what  his  panegyrists  may  say,  who  could  never  have 
been  led  to  eulogize  such  a  man  unless  their  own  intellects  had  also  been  unsettled. 

(3)  A  good  man  parleying  in  counsel  with  the  wicked  will  never  reclaim  them  back  to 
reason  and  equity  :  but  by  representing  reason  and  equity  to  them  in  so  clear  a  light  that 
they  cannot  elude  the  evidence  thereof,  he  disconcerts  their  projects,  and,  at  all  events 


(S  - > 


CHAP.  XXXV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


True  it  is  we  do  not  find  in  Scripture  that  a  prophet  ever  came 
forth  from  Galilee  ;  hut  much  less  do  we  find  it  said  that  there  never 
should  be  one  from  thence.  What,  then,  should  hinder  God  from 
raising  up  one  in  that  country  as  in  others  ?  Thus,  without  cavilling 
about  country,  the  only  thing  to  be  done  was  to  examine  whether 
this  was  or  was  not  a  prophet.  Yet  this  reason — so  bad,  that  a  man’s 
contenting  himself  with  it  was  tantamount  to  an  avowal  that  he  re¬ 
jected  Jesus  Christ  without  any  reason — this  reason,  I  say,  was  more 
than  sufficient  for  hearts  transported  with  passion  ;  and  in  this  re¬ 
gard  no  difference  can  be  drawn  between  the  enlightened  and  the 
unenlightened  mind.  Those  who  alleged  this  reason  were,  without 
contradiction,  the  most  polished  and  the  most  learned  class  amongst 
the  Jews.  Nevertheless,  of  all  those  who  refused  to  acknowledge 
the  Saviour,  they  are  those  who  give  the  most  absurd  reason  for 
their  refusal — one,  in  fact,  that  a  child  could  refute.  For  that  igno¬ 
rant  populace,  who  maintained  that  it  was  not  known  whence  the 
Messias  should  come,  appeared  to  think  so,  on  the  faith  of  sundry 
texts  of  Scripture,  which  seemed,  at  first  sight,  to  present  this  mean¬ 
ing  to  the  mind.  Those  who  said  that  he  should  spring  from  the 
race  of  David,  and  be  born  at  Bethlehem,  said  the  truth  ;  and  they 
only  erred  in  thinking  that  the  second  of  these  two  marks  did  not 
belong  to  Jesus  Christ:  an  error  against  which  they  could  only  se¬ 
cure  themselves  by  a  minute  research  into  the  entire  life  of  the  Sa¬ 
viour,  who,  being  removed  from  Bethlehem  to  Egypt  immediately 
after  his  birth,  and  brought  thence  into  Galilee,  where  he  dwelt  after 
his  return  from  Egypt  until  the  commencement  of  his  mission,  gave 
ground  for  thinking  that  he  was  a  native  of  that  province.  They 
deceived  themselves,  therefore  ;  and  what  rendered  their  error  in¬ 
excusable  before  God  is,  that  the  miracles  of  Jesus  Christ  obliged 
them  to  subscribe  to  the  truth  of  all  he  advanced  concerning  him¬ 
self,  and  forced  them  to  seek  in  him  the  characters  of  the  Messias, 
which  they  did  not  at  once  perceive,  but  which  were  easily  ascer- 


suspends  the  execution  thereof.  Injustice  is  disarmed  when  stripped  of  all  color  of  jus¬ 
tice.  A  good  man  cannot  always  succeed  in  securing  this  result  ;  but  whenever  he  can, 
he  ought  to  do  so  ;  and  the  apprehension,  or  even  the  certainty,  of  encountering  their 
hatred,  ought  never  to  deter  him  from  doing  his  duty. 


y&k 


ll 


» 


tained  if  they  had  only  set  about  examining  the  subject.  But,  after 
all,  their  error  was  not  without  some  appearance  of  reason,  whereas 
that  of  the  Pharisees  had  not  the  slightest  excuse  ;  for  to  reject  Je¬ 
sus  Christ,  merely  because  no  prophets  had  heretofore  appeared  in 
Galilee,  was  tantamount,  as  we  have  already  said,  to  maintaining 
that  God  could  not,  or  never  would,  raise  one  from  that  country. 
The  first  position  is  notoriously  false  :  how  did  they  know  the  sec¬ 
ond  ?  This  would  establish,  by  consequence,  that  they  should  reject 
as  false  prophets  all  those  who  were  the  first  prophets  of  their  coun¬ 
try.  What  could  be  more  absurd  !  Yet  this  is  the  groundwork 
on  which  the  masters  and  doctors  in  Israel  found  their  opposition  : 
which  shows,  as  we  have  already  stated,  that  even  by  the  most  en¬ 
lightened  persons,  when,  unhappily,  they  have  allowed  themselves 
to  be  biased,  the  most  palpable  blunders  are  converted  into  demon¬ 
stration  ;  for  the  reproach  of  ignorance  wherewith  they  taunt  Nico- 
demus  only  springs  from  the  fact  that  he  cannot  feel  as  they  do  the 
force  of  this  reasoning  :  There  never  was  a  prophet  of  Galilee  ;  there¬ 
fore  there  never  shall  be  such. 

(«)  “  In  the  mean  time  [as  it  grew  late ],  Jesus  went  unto  Mount 
Olivet,”  so  called  on  account  of  an  olive  plantation,  with  which  it 
was  covered.  It  lies  beyond  the  torrent  of  Kedron,  east  of  Jerusa¬ 
lem,  and  as  far  distant  from  that  city  as  a  man  was  allowed  to  travel 
on  the  Sabbath-day,  that  is  to  say,  two  Italian  miles.  When  Jesus 
sojourned  at  Jerusalem,  he  was  accustomed  to  pass  the  night  there 
in  prayer,  and  the  traitor  Judas  knew  this  but  too  well.  Adjacent 
to  this  lay  Bethania,  where  Mary  and  Martha  resided,  with  their 
brother  Lazarus.  We  know  how  dear  this  family  was  to  the  Sa¬ 
viour,  and  their  vicinity  may,  indeed,  have  been  one  of  the  reasons 
for  the  preference  which  he  had  given  to  this  place.  After  having 
passed  the  night  there,  according  to  his  custom,  “  early  in  the  morn¬ 
ing  he  came  again  into  the  temple,  and  all  the  people  came  to  him. 
Sitting  down,  he  taught  them,”  when  he  was  interrupted  by  a  new 
machination,  which  his  enemies  set  in  motion  against  him,  but  which 
he  easily  turned  against  themselves. 

“  The  Scribes  and  the  Pharisees  bring  unto  him  a  woman  taken  in 

(a)  St.  John,  viii.  1—11. 


CHAP.  XXXV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


269 


adultery  (4),  and  they  set  her  in  the  midst  [of  the  assembly].  Mas¬ 
ter,  they  said  to  Jesus,  this  woman  was  even  now  taken  in  adultery. 
Now,  Moses  in  the  law  commanded  us  to  stone  such  a  one.  But 
what  sayest  thou  ?  This  they  said,  tempting  him,  that  they  might 
accuse  him”  either  of  prevarication,  if  he  undertook  to  moderate  the 
rigor  of  the  law,  or  of  contradicting  himself,  if  he  was  of  opinion  that 
they  should  enforce  the  extreme  rigor  of  the  law — he  who  hitherto 
had  always  evinced  the  greatest  indulgence  and  compassion  for  sin¬ 
ners.  Jesus,  who  knew  their  designs,  and  who  did  not  wish  to  an¬ 
swer  them,  did  at  first  what  is  customary  whenever  any  one  wishes 
to  elude  an  importunate  or  captious  question  :  it  is  usual  on  such  an 
occasion  to  seem  inattentive,  as  if  the  mind  were  occupied  by  some 
other  thought.  It  was,  therefore,  with  this  intention,  “  bowing  him¬ 
self  down,  he  wrote  with  his  finger  on  the  ground  (5).”  His  ene- 


(4)  This  narrative  is  not  found  in  most  of  the  Greek  manuscripts  ;  yet  it  is  found  in 
some  of  very  great  antiquity,  and  in  almost  all  the  ancient  Latin  manuscripts.  If  we 
were  merely  to  consult  the  rules  of  criticism,  it  would  be  questionable  enough  whether 
or  not  the  passage  is  truly  part  of  the  Scripture.  Calvin  thinks  he  recognizes  here  the 
Spirit  of  God — which  Beza  denies.  It  is  optional  with  their  disciples  to  credit  which  of 
the  two  they  like  best.  Not  so  with  the  Catholics.  The  Church  hath  fixed  their  belief 
upon  this  point  by  the  decree  of  the  Council  of  Trent,  which  makes  it  obligatory  to’  re¬ 
ceive  as  books  of  Scripture  all  those  that  the  Council  enumerates,  and  to  receive  them  in 
all  their  parts,  just  as  they  are  found  in  the  ancient  Yulgate.  Now  the  Gospel  of  Saint 
John  is  one  of  these  books  ;  and  in  the  Yulgate  the  narrative  referring  to  the  adulteress 
constitutes  part  of  the  Gospel  of  Saint  John.  We,  therefore,  know  what  we  are  to  be¬ 
lieve,  because  we  know  whom  we  are  to  believe. 

(5)  We  do  not  know  what  he  wrote.  We  scarcely  know  whether  he  formed  charac¬ 
ters,  or  whether  he  merely  traced  lines,  although  the  first  conjecture  is  most  probable, 
because  it  is  said  that  he  wrote.  Nevertheless,  some  have  asserted  not  only  that  he  did 
Avrite,  but  even  what  he  wrote.  A  great  many  individuals  assure  us  that  he  Avrote  the 
secret  sins  of  the  accusers  of  the  adulteress.  Where  have  they  learned  this  ?  They  add, 
that  it  was  this  disclosure  which  obliged  these  sinners  when  thus  unmasked  to  fly  off  one 
after  the .  other.  This  does  not  appear  to  have  been  the  case  ;  for  the  evangelist  doth 
not  say  that  they  AvithdreAv  after  lia-ving  seen  Avhat  Jesus  wrote,  but  after  having  heard 
Avhat  he  said.  Other  interpreters  think  that  the  Saviour  confined  himself  to  the  writing 
of  some  short,  energetic  sentence,  calculated  to  confound  these  rash  accusers — for  in¬ 
stance,  these  Avords  of  Jeremias,  xxii.,  29,  30 :  0,  earth,  earth,  earth,  hear  the  word  of 
the  Lard.  Thus  saith  the  Lord:  Write  this  man  barren.  Or  else  these  words,  which 
he  had  already  pronounced  upon  another  occasion  (MattheAv,  vii.  5)  :  Thou  hypocrite, 
cast  out  first  the  beam  out  of  thy  own  eye,  and  then  shalt  thou  see  to  cast  out  the  mote  out 
of  thy  brother’s  eye.  One  thing  alone  is  certain,  viz.,  that  Ave  are  ignorant  of  Avhat  he 
wrote. 


270 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[‘PART  J. 


mies  either  did  not  comprehend  him,  or  wished  to  force  from  him 
the  answer  which  should,  furnish  matter  for  their  calumny,  whilst 
his  goodness  was  seeking  to  spare  them  the  confusion  which  he  knew 
would  result  to  them.  As  they  persisted,  “when,  therefore,  they 
continued  asking  him,  he  lifted  up  his  head,  and  said  to  them  :  He 
that  is  without  sin  among  you,  let  him  first  cast  a  stone  at  her.  And 
again  stooping  down,  he  wrote  on  the  ground.”  The  stroke  told,  and 
this  expression,  together  with  the  light  by  which  he  discovered  to 
these  false  zealots  all  the  crimes  of  their  impure  conscience,  produced 
its  effect  upon  the  spot.  “  They,  hearing  this,  went  out  one  by  one, 
beginning  at  the  eldest  [as  more  shrewd  or  'perhaps  more  criminal ], 
so  that  Jesus  alone  remained,  and  the  woman  standing  in  the  midst. 
Then  Jesus,  lifting  up  himself,  said  to  her  :  Where  are  they  that  ac¬ 
cuse  thee  ?  Hath  no  man  condemned  thee  ?  Who  said  :  Ho  man, 
Lord.  Jesus  said  :  Neither  will  I  condemn  thee.  Go,  and  now  sin 
no  more.”  Thus,  by  the  virtue  of  one  single  word,  we  see  all  at  once 
mercy  exercised  and  the  law  respected — the  sinful  woman  rescued 
and  her  liberator  justified — hypocrisy  unmasked  and  malice  con¬ 
founded — J esus  victorious,  and  his  enemies  put  to  flight. 


CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

4JSTOTHER  DISCOURSE  OF  JESUS  CHRIST  TO  THE  JEWS. - HE  GIVES  TESTIMONY  OF 

HIMSELF. - DEATH  IN  SUN. - SLAVERY  OF  SIN. - WE  ARE  EMANCIPATED  FROM  IT 

BY  THE  SON  ALONE. 

Having  at  last  got  rid  of  this  importunate  group,  (a)  “  Jesus 
again  spoke  to  the  people,  saying  :  I  am  the  light  of  the  world. 
He  that  followeth  me,  walketh  not  in  darkness,  but  shall  have  the 
light  of  life  (1).” 

(a)  St.  John,  viii.  12-15. 


(1)  Thus  denominated,  because  it  conducts  to  the  life  of  glory,  or  rather  because  even 
from  the  present  time  it  confers  life  and  grace.  Both  constructions  are  true,  and  it  may 
be  understood  in  both  senses,  neither  of  which  excludes  the  other. 


CHAP.  XXXVI, 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


It  is  conceded  on  all  sides  that  such  magnificent  statements  should 
not  be  advanced  without  proofs  ;  and  it  must  also  be  conceded  that 
whatever  proved,  in  a  general  way,  the  divinity  of  our  Saviour’s 
mission,  proved,  at  the  same  time,  the  truth  of  all  his  statements. 
But  who  ever  required  human  proof  of  an  extraordinary  and  divine 
mission  ?  God  himself  must  attest  this,  and  if  he  doth  not  do  so, 
the  testimony  of  man  is  insufficient.  By  this  mark  had  the  Jews 
recognized  all  the  prophets,  commencing  with  Moses.  God  had 
stamped  their  mission  with  the  seal  of  his  omnipotence  :  this  was 
quite  enough,  and  the  Jews  had  never  entertained  the  notion  of 
asking  from  them  any  thing  further.  And,  in  point  of  fact,  we  can¬ 
not  but  feel  how  absurd  it  would  have  been  to  have  asked  Moses, 
after  the  division  of  the  waters  of  the  Bed  Sea,  to  prove  the  divin¬ 
ity  of  his  mission.  Jesus  Christ,  after  so  many  miracles,  was  at  least 
in  the  same  position.  Nevertheless,  his  enemies  were  not  ashamed 
to  confront  him  with  this  pitiful  objection.  “  The  Pharisees  there¬ 
fore  said  to  him  :  Thou  givest  testimony  of  thyself  ;  thy  testimony 
is  not  true.  Jesus  answered  and  said  to  them  :  Although  I  give 
testimony  of  myself,  my  testimony  is  true  ;  for  I  know  whence  I 
come  and  whither  I  go.  But  you,  you  know  not  whence  I  come,  or 
whither  I  go.” 

He  came  from  heaven,  and  thither  he  was  to  return  ;  this  is  what 
he,  at  least,  insinuates  by  these  words.  But  he  gives  them  to  un¬ 
derstand,  at  the  same  time,  that  his  testimony  can  only  come  from 
heaven  ;  that  we  must  not,  therefore,  pause  to  seek  witnesses  for  it 
on  earth,  because  those  who  inhabit  it  see  at  most  only  the  objects 
within  the  compass  of  their  sight,  and  that,  as  celestial  things  are 
above  their  senses,  they  are  not  in  a  position  to  attest  the  existence 
thereof,  and  therefore  they  are  incapable  of  bearing  certain  testi¬ 
mony.  This  is  signified  more  expressly  by  the  following  words  : 
“  You  [ men ]  judge  according  to  the  flesh,”  which  can  only  judge  of 
what  falls  under  the  carnal  senses.  “  I,  said  he,  judge  not  any 
man  ;”  which  does  not  mean  that  he  had  no  discernment  of  men’s 
guilt,  he  who,  by  divine  light,  (a)  “  knew  [ thoroughly ]  what  was  in 
man  but  this  discernment  was  all  interior,  and  Jesus  Christ  did 

(a)  St.  John,  ii.  25. 


272  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  £PART  I. 

not  display  it  in  exterior  judgment,  which  he  is  always  entitled  to 
pronounce,  but  which  he  has  reserved  for  his  second  coming,  in  con¬ 
formity  with  what  he  himself  said,  speaking  of  the  first  coming  : 
(«)  “  God  sent  not  his  Son  into  the  world  to  judge  the  world,  but 
that  the  world  may  be  saved  by  him.  But  [added  he]  if  I  do  judge, 
my  judgment  is  true,  because  I  am  not  alone  ;  but  I  and  the  Father 
that  sent  me:  and  in  your  law  it  is  written  that  the  testimony  of 
two  men  is  true.  I  am  one  that  give  testimony  of  myself  ;  and  the 
Father  that  sent  me  giveth  testimony  of  me.” 

However,  he  who  is  the  subject  of  the  testimony  cannot  be  one 
of  the  witnesses  ;  and,  in  the  eye  of  the  law,  these  two  witnesses 
merely  constituted  one.  That  is  true  in  ordinary  cases  ;  but  this 
was  visibly  an  exception  ;  for  here  the  subject  of  the  deposition 
commenced  by  proving,  beyond  all  doubt,  that  all  he  should  depose 
must  be  conformable  to  truth.  In  this  case,  which  was  that  of  all 
God’s  envoys,  a  man  might  render  testimony  of  himself,  and  he  ought 
to  be  believed,  because  he  proved  in  advance  that  he  should  tell  the 
truth.  It  is  needless  to  repeat  that  no  one  had  had  this  advantage 
in  so  sensible  a  manner,  nor  in  so  eminent  a  degree,  as  Jesus  Christ. 
And,  indeed,  at  this  juncture,  the  Jews,  despite  of  themselves,  must 
have  felt  this  truth,  since,  instead  of  objecting  to  him,  as  it  was  nat¬ 
ural  for  them  to  do,  that  the  party  interested  cannot  bear  testimony 
in  his  own  cause,  and  that  he  must  seek  for  another  witness  ;  if  he 
wished  to  produce  two,  (b)  “  They  [as  if  not  knowing  well  what  to 
answer]  said  therefore  to  him  :  Where  is  thy  Father  ?”  Jesus  had 
said  quite  enough  to  make  his  Father  known  to  all  upright  and  un¬ 
prejudiced  minds,  and  he  did  not  choose  to  make  him  further  known 
to  those  who  only  sought  to  make  him  speak,  in  order  to  find  in  his 
words  matter  for  new  calumnies.  Thus,  without  farther  explaining 
himself,  he  answered  :  “  Neither  me  do  you  know,  nor  my  Father. 
If,  you  did  know  me,  perhaps  you  would  know  my  Father  also  (2) 

(a)  St.  John,  iii.  17.  (6)  St.  John,  viii.  19-36. 


(2)  If  you  acknowledge  that  I  am  the  Messias  and  the  Christ,  perhaps  you  will  come 
to  know  and  believe  that  God  is  my  Father,  and  that  from  all  eternity  I  am  the  Son  of 
the  Eternal.  A  person  may  absolutely  believe  the  first  and  not  believe  the  second — as,  for 


These  words  Jesus  spoke  in  the  treasury,  teaching  in  the  temple. 
This  was  the  most  frequented  part  of  it,  where  he  ran  the  greatest 
risk  in  speaking,  because  it  was  the  easiest  place  to  arrest  him. 
However,  “  no  man  laid  hands  on  him,  because  his  hour  was  not  yet 


come. 


His  enemies  did  not  withal  abandon  the  design.  They  were  al¬ 
ways  seeking  the  means  of  seizing  his  person.  The  knowledge  which 
he  had  that  they  were  thinking  of  this  scheme  at  the  very  moment 
he  was  speaking  to  them,  was  apparently  the  reason  why  he  re¬ 
peated  those  words  which  he  had  already  said  when  they  sent  mes¬ 
sengers  to  apprehend  him  :  “  Again,  therefore,  Jesus  said  to  them  : 
I  go,  and  you  shall  seek  me  to  which  he  adds  this  threat,  which 
he  had  not  as  yet  made  :  “  And  you  shall  die  in  your  sin.  Whith¬ 
er  I  go  [said  he  further]  you  cannot  come.” 

These  hardened  men  appeared  only  to  pay  attention  to  these  lat¬ 
ter  words,  to  which  they  gave  a  meaning  that  suited  the  sanguinary 
disposition  in  which  they  then  were.  “  The  Jews  therefore  said  : 
Will  he  kill  himself?  because  he  said,  Whither  I  go  you  cannot 
come.”  Jesus  discarded  this  gloomy  interpretation,  by  declaring  to 
them,  although  in  mysterious  terms,  the  place  whither  he  was  to  re¬ 
turn,  and  the  reason  why  they  could  not  follow  him  thither.  “  You 
[he  said  to  them],  you  are  from  beneath,  I  am  from  above  ;  you  are 
of  this  world,  I  am  not  of  this  world.”  He  neither  was  so  by  origin 
or  by  affection,  and  the  J ews  were  so  in  both  these  ways  ;  and  as  it 
is  natural  for  every  thing  to  return  to  the  place  whence  it  hath  its 
origin,  and  to  which  it  naturally  tends,  their  term  should  therefore 
be  the  centre  of  the  earth  ;  and  his,  the  sublimity  of  the  highest 
heaven.  Now,  between  these  two  points  there  lies  an  immense 
chaos,  forming  an  insurmountable  barrier.  But,  in  order  that  they 
may  not  be  ignorant  of  the  cause  of  the  fearful  evil  with  which 
they  are  threatened,  Jesus  resumes,  and  continues  thus  :  “  There¬ 
fore  I  said  to  you  that  you  shall  die  in  your  sins  ;  for  if  you  believe 
not  that  I  am  he  [who  I  am  in  reality],  you  shall  die  in  your  sin  (3). 


instance,  the  Arfans  and  Socinians.  With  reference  to  the  perhaps,  see  note  4,  chap,  ix., 
page  63. 

(3)  When  Jesus  Christ  saith,  You  shall  die  in  your  sin,  the  particular  sin  he  speaks 

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Who  art  thou  ?  they  said  to  him.  Jesus  said  to  them  :  The 
beginning,  I  who  also  speak  unto  you  (4).  [. Although  now  I  only 

reproach  you  with  one  ■ sin ]  Many  things  I  have  to  speak  and  to 
judge  of  you.  But  he  that  sent  me  is  true,  and  the  things  I  have 
heard  of  him,  these  same  I  speak  in  the  world.”  You,  therefore, 
ought  to  receive  my  words  as  if  he  himself  spoke  to  you.  “  And 
they  understood  not  that  he  called  God  his  Father.” 

Then,  reverting  to  the  question  which  they  had  just  put  to  him, 
he  gave  them  to  understand  that  he  did  not  wish  to  give  them  at 
that  time  a  more  distinct  knowledge  of  what  he  was  than  he  had 
already  given  in  the  preceding  words,  inasmuch  as  he  reserved  all 
further  information  for  a  future  time.  He  therefore  said  to  them  : 
“  When  you  shall  have  lifted  up  the  Son  of  man,  then  shall  you 
know  that  I  am  he,  and  that  I  do  nothing  of  myself;  but  as  the  Fa¬ 
ther  hath  taught  me,  these  things  I  speak.  He  that  sent  me  is  with 
me,  and  he  hath  not  left  me  alone,  for  I  do  always  the  things  that 


of  is  that  of  infidelity.  To  die  in  this  sin,  is  to  die  in  all  the  other  sins  because,  as 
there  can  be  neither  justification  nor  remission  without  faith,  so  whilst  infidelity  remains, 
all  the  other  sins  must  remain.  Here  we  have  the  reason  why  Jesus  Christ  might  either 
say.  You  shall  die  in  your  sins,  or,  You  shall  die  in  your  sin. 

(4)  This  is  the  text  translated  literally.  Interpreters  differ  widely  in  the  constructions 
they  put  upon  it.  According  to  several,  Jesus  Christ  replies  :  I  am  the  beginning  who 
also  speak  to  you — Je  suis  le  principe  de  toutes  choses,  moi  qui  vous  parle.  According 
to  others,  he  said  :  /  am  what  I  told  you  from  the  beginning.  This  explanation  is  more 
conformable  to  the  Greek  text.  Others  construe  it  thus  :  Above  all  things,  attend  to 
what  I  say  to  you.  A  complete  volume  might  he  compiled  setting  forth  the  reasons 
upon  which  these  different  interpretations  are  grounded,  and  the  difficulties  which  they 
present  ;  and,  after  a  thorough  investigation  of  the  matter,  the  inquirer  would  still  re¬ 
main  undecided  as  to  which  construction  he  should  regard  as  the  proper  one.  This  has 
induced  the  writer  to  give  merely  the  very  words,  without  struggling  to  dissipate  the 
mysterious  darkness  which  God  has  been  pleased  to  shed  around  it.  Yet,  as  nothing  is 
useless  in  Scripture,  it  is  natural  to  believe  that  God  discovers  therein  to  the  pious  souls 
who  meditate  on  the  passage,  meanings  which  he  is  pleased  to  hide  from  commen¬ 
tators.  God,  who  wishes  that  men  should  be  instructed  by  men,  still  reserves  to  him¬ 
self  the  right  of  teaching,  through  himself,  those  truths  which  men  cannot  teach  to  his 
faithful  servants — truths  which  render  the  disciples,  in  certain  respects,  more  learned 
than  their  masters.  This  is  the  hidden  manna  which  is  only  known  to  those  who  are 
nourished  by  it — the  accomplishment  of  those  words  of  the  Psalmist  :  I  have  under¬ 
stood  more  than  all  my  teachers. — Psalm  cxviii.  See  note  20,  chapter  ix.,  page  70,  with 
reference  to  obscure  texts. 


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CIIAP.  XXXVI.] 


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please  him  (5).”  The  exaltation  just  spoken  of  expresses  the  kind 
of  death  which  he  was  to  undergo.  It  was  followed,  as  he  had  fore¬ 
told,  by  the  conversion  of  a  considerable  part  of  the  nation  ;  and 
the  effect  of  his  death  was  so  prompt,  that  when  he  had  scarcely  ex¬ 
pired,  and  while  he  was  still  fastened  to  the  cross,  many  of  the  spec¬ 
tators  struck  their  breasts,  and  confessed  that  he  was  truly  the  Son 
of  God.  It  was  principally  in  this  quality  that  they  were  to  recog¬ 
nize  him,  and  the  cross  forced  them  to  do  so  by  an  incomprehensi¬ 
ble  miracle  of  God’s  omnipotence,  which  extracted  from  the  shades 
of  death  the  light  which  was  to  illumine  the  world,  and  the  glory 
of  his  Son  from  the  infamy  of  an  ignominious  death.  It  seems  that 
the  virtue  of  the  cross  operated  by  anticipation  ;  for  “  When  he 
spoke  these  things,  many  believed  in  him.”  We  may,  perhaps,  feel 
surprised  at  this,  considering  the  almost  impenetrable  depth  of  his 
words.  We  can  scarcely  understand  them  when  reading  and  study¬ 
ing  them — we  who  may  be  said  to  have  the  key  thereof  in  the  dis¬ 
tinct  knowledge  which  we  otherwise  have  of  the  principles  of  Chris¬ 
tianity.  How  could  they  comprehend  them — they  who  as  yet  had 
no  idea  of  those  truths  which  we  have  here  such  difficulty  in  unrav¬ 
elling  ?  It  is  this  which  has  induced  a  belief,  and  a  well-grounded 
one,  that  Jesus  Christ,  in  order  to  place  his  instructions  within 
reach  of  his  hearers,  gave  them  much  more  amply  than  they  are  re¬ 
ported  in  the  sacred  text,  and  that  what  we  have  of  them  is  only  an 
abstract.  Thus  we  can  conceive  that  what  is  obscure  to  us  may  have 
been  clear  to  those  who  heard  him  ;  and  in  this  way  we  can  account 
for  the  faith  of  those  who  believed.  Although,  even  in  the  supposi¬ 
tion  that  the  Saviour’s  words  might  not  have  been  understood,  there 
would  still  be  reason  to  believe  that  he  left  no  excuse  for  the  in- 
fid  elity  of  those  who  did  not  believe  him.  The  miracles  which  he 
performed  rendered  it,  as  we  have  already  said,  obligatory  on  all  to 
believe  him,  even  without  understanding  what  he  said. 


(5)  Unity  of  nature  renders  the  Father  inseparable  from  the  Son  ;  but  God  unites  him¬ 
self  inseparably  with  those  who  always  execute  his  wishes  ;  and,  for  this  reason  alone, 
he  would  have  been  inseparable  from  Jesus  Christ.  This  is  what  the  Saviour  here 
teaches  to  all  the  just,  who  should,  therefore,  both  derive  courage  and  consolation  supe- , 
rior  to  every  emergency  from  this  consolatory  reflection,  viz.,  God  is  with  me,  and  he 
will  never  desert  me  so  long  as  I  endeavor  to  execute  his  wishes. 


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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


But  it  was  necessary  to  instruct  and  to  strengthen  the  new  prose¬ 
lytes.  “  Jesus  said  then  to  those  who  believed  him  :  If  you  continue 
in  my  word,  you  shall  be  my  disciples  indeed.”  For  you  are  not  es¬ 
tablished  as  such  by  a  meTe  transient  acquiescence  :  you  must  act  on 
a  clear  and  settled  conviction.  If  to  that  end  you  are  called  upon  to 
make  many  sacrifices,  they  shall  not  be  without  their  reward.  In¬ 
telligence  shall  follow  faith  ;  and  because  you  have  commenced  by 
believing,  as  a  premium  for  this  humble  and  prompt  docility,  “You 
shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  make  you  free.” 

The  children  of  the  patriarchs  took  offence  at  the  terms  “  make 
you  free.”  “We  are,”  they  answered  him,  “the  seed  of  Abraham, 
and  we  have  never  been  slaves  to  any  man.  How  sayest  thou,  You 
shall  be  free  ?”  They  would  have  spoken  with  more  truth,  had  they 
spoken  with  more  modesty.  These  men,  who  were  so  proud  of  their 
liberty,  had  been  slaves  in  Egypt  and  in  Babylon,  and  they  were 
then  actually  subject  to  the  Romans.  But  Jesus  Christ  wished  to 
teach  them  that  there  is  a  slavery  more  shameful  still  than  that  exte¬ 
rior  and  transient  slavery  which  is  not  incompatible  with  the  liberty 
of  the  children  of  God.  It  was,  therefore,  with  a  view  to  impress 
them  further  with  this  important  truth,  and  to  fix  it  firmly  in  their 
minds,  that  “  Jesus  answered  them  \fwitli  a  sort  of  oatli\  :  Amen, 
amen,  I  say  unto  you  :  whosoever  committeth  sin  (6)  is  the  servant 


*  Espèce  de  serment. — The  French  expression  of  P.  De  Ligny. 

(6)  The  apostle  Saint  Peter  assigns  the  reason.  Whoever,  saith  he,  allows  himself 
to  be  vanquished,  becomes  the  slave  of  the  conqueror.  In  these  words,  as  in  those  of 
Jesus  Christ,  sin  is,  as  it  were,  personified,  and  represented,  first  as  an  enemy  with  whom 
we  are  at  warfare  ;  and  then  as  a  master,  or  rather  as  a  tyrant  after  victory.  We  are  its 
slave  in  many  different  ways  :  1st.  By  the  enslavement  to  sin  itself.  The  will  scarcely 
retains  any  force  to  resist  sin,  and  the  habit  of  committing  it  becomes  a  species  of  neces¬ 
sity.  2d.  By  subjection  to  the  demon,  the  father  of  sin  and  the  tyrant  of  all  sinners, 
over  whom  he  acquires  those  rights  which  he  begins  to  exercise  in  this  life,  and  which 
shall  render  him  eternally  the  master  and  the  executioner  of  their  souls  and  bodies. 
3d.  We  are  enslaved  by  sin,  and  we  are,  in  a  certain  sense,  its  eternal  slave,  by  the  ab¬ 
solute  impossibility  of  bursting  its  chains.  All  the  strength  of  creatures  is  insufficient  to 
effect  this  liberation,  and  God  alone  can  do  it  by  the  omnipotence  of  his  grace.  Oh, 
sinner  !  even  though  you  be  a  freeman — were  you  even  the  master  of  all  mankind — you 
would  still  be  no  more  than  a  vile  slave,  and  the  lowest  of  slaves,  if  you  be  the  greatest 
of  sinners. 


J  •/& IT  ~C  vnij  'j  | 


A 


7/t 


A 


AA1 

iWvv-ssS 


CHAP,  xxxvn.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


277 


of  sin.  Now,  the  servant  abideth  not  in  the  house  for  ever,  but 
the  Son  abideth  for  ever.  If,  therefore,  the  Son  shall  make  you 
free,  you  shall  be  free  indeed  (7 ).” 


CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

SEQUEL  OF  THE  DISCOURSE. - JEWS  CHILDREN  OF  ABRAHAM,  ACCORDING  TO  THE 

FLESH  ;  CHILDREN  OF  THE  DEVIL,  BY  IMITATION. - JESUS  CHRIST  BEFORE  ABRA¬ 
HAM. - THE  JEWS  WISH  TO  STONE  HIM. 

The  preceding  instructions  are  addressed,  at  least  in  part,  to  those 
who  had  believed  in  the  Saviour;  not  so  the  words  which  imme¬ 
diately  follow.  Although  it  does  not  appear  that  Jesus  Christ  in¬ 
terrupted  his  discourse,  yet  he  here  treats  his  hearers  as  murderers 
and  children  of  the  devil.  We  cannot  conceive  how  such  reproaches 
could  apply  to  these  new  believers  ;  it  can  only  be  explained  in  one 
or  other  of  these  two  ways.  Either  the  faithful  were  mixed  up  with 
the  crowd  of  unbelievers,  where  the  eye  of  Jesus  Christ  well  knew 
how  to  distinguish  them,  although  there  was  no  outward  mark 
whereby  men  could  know  them.  In  this  supposition,  the  commence¬ 
ment  of  this  discourse  might  have  been  to  them,  and  the  sequel  to 
others.  Or,  perhaps  these  fickle  converts,  irritated,  because  he 
seemed  to  treat  them  as  slaves,  had  passed  suddenly  from  faith  an 
his  doctrine  to  hatred  towards  his  person,  and  entered  into  the  cle- 


(7)  Neither  Abraham,  nor  Moses,  nor  the  prophets  possessed  the  power  to  emancipate 
them.  These  great  men  themselves  could  only  have  been  made  free  by  the  Son.  He 
had  raised  them  from  the  rank  of  slaves  to  that  of  children,  by  associating  them  through 
grace  in  the  divine  filiation,  which  he  alone  possesses  by  nature.  By  this  title  they 
and  all  the  just  who  either  existed  before  or  after  the  Incarnation,  shall  dwell  eternally 
in  the  house  ;  that  is  to  say,  in  alliance  with  God.  Whereas,  the  incredulous  Jews  are 
already  visibly  excluded  ;  so,  likewise,  impenitent  sinners  are  invisibly  excluded  at  the 
moment  of  death  ;  and  both  one  and  the  other  shall  be  visibly  excluded,  and  in  the  most 
conspicuous  manner,  at  the  day  of  judgment — that  day  when  the  last  and  universal  dis¬ 
crimination  between  the  children  and  the  slaves  shall  be  made  in  the  presence  of  all 
creatures. 


278 


THE  HIST  OK  Y  OF  THE  LIFE 


V - 

[part  I. 

sign  of  putting  him  to  death.  This  will  not  appear  impossible  to 
those  who  know  the  temper  of  the  mob,  and  the  strange  revolutions 
that  a  single  word,  when  misunderstood,  may  bring  about  amongst 
them  in  an  instant.  However,  the  first  of  these  two  explanations  is 
the  most  natural  and  the  most  likely.  Whatever  it  was,  Jesus 
continued  to  speak  thus  :  («)  “  I  know  that  you  are  the  children  of 
Abraham  ;  but  you  seek  to  kill  me,  because  my  word  hath  no  place 
in  you.  I  speak  that  which  I  have  seen  with  my  Father  ;  and  you 
do  the  things  which  you  have  seen  with  your  father.” 

He  gives  them  to  understand  that,  besides  Abraham,  who  was 
their  father  according  to  the  flesh,  and  who  was  also  his,  there  was, 
on  either  side,  another  father,  whose  spirit  they  imbibed,  and  whose 
works  they  copied.  God,  who  is  the  Father  of  Jesus  Christ  by  na¬ 
ture,  was  also  his  Father  in  the  sense  we  have  just  mentioned.  It 
is  easy  to  guess  whose  children  these  perverse  men  were  by  imita¬ 
tion  and  resemblance.  But,  as  they  were  then  thinking  of  Abra¬ 
ham  only,  “  they  answered  him,  and  said  [a  second  time']  :  Abraham 
is  our  father.  If  you  be  the  children  of  Abraham,  saith  Jesus  to 
them,  do  [therefore]  the  works  of  Abraham.  But  now  you  seek  to 
kill  me,  a  man  who  have  spoken  the  truth  to  you,  which  I  have 
heard  of  God.  This  Abraham  did  not.  You  do  the  works  of  your 
father.” 

Then  they  at  last  understood  that  the  question  was  not  of  carnal 
filiation,  but  of  that  which  is  according  to  the  Spirit.  As  they  were 
more  disposed  to  glory  in  the  latter  than  the  former,  “  they  said, 
therefore,  to  him  [ arrogantly ]:  We  are  not  born  of  fornication;  we 
have  one  father,  even  God.” 

The  word  fornication  is  so  often  employed  in  Scripture  to  signify 
idolatry,  that,  apparently,  they  wished  to  repudiate  the  charge  of 
being  idolaters,  since  they  allege  this  as  a  proof  that  God  alone  is 
their  father.  But  the  belief  in  one  God  is  not  sufficient  to  establish 
this.  The  Jews  of  the  present  time — the  impious  whom  we  name 
Deists — nay,  the  demons  themselves,  acknowledge  only  one  God,  and, 
notwithstanding  that  acknowledgment,  they  are  not  his  children. 
No  one  can  ever  be  such  except  by  adding  love  to  knowledge,  and 


(a)  St.  John,  viii.  37-59. 


to  the  faith  of  one  God  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  his  son  and  envoy. 
True  faith,  faith  which  justifies,  and  gives  children  to  God,  rests 
entirely  on  this  double  foundation,  as  Jesus  Christ  elsewhere  said, 
and  as  he  is  going  to  declare  to  them  from  this  very  hour.  “  He, 
therefore,  said  to  them  :  If  God  were  your  father,  you  would,  indeed, 
love  me  ;  for  from  God  I  proceeded  and  came.  For  I  came  not  of 
myself,  but  he  sent  me.  Why  [therefore]  do  you  not  know  my  speech  ? 
Because  you  cannot  hear  my  word.” 

Jesus  Christ  had  given  them,  in  point  of  fact,  all  the  proofs  which 
could  be  required  by  reasonable  minds.  Every  vestige  of  reason 
was  taken  away  from  their  incredulity,  leaving  it  none  other  but  the 
furious  and  envenomed  hatred  wherewith  they  regarded  him.  It 
alone  stoppeth  the  ears  of  these  deaf  asps,  so  that  they  will  not  hear 
the  sweet  accent  of  his  voice  which  charmeth  wisely  (Psalms,  lvii. 
5,  6)  ;  and  truth  was  odious  to  them  solely  because  they  could  not 
endure  him  who  spoke  it  to  them.  Although  it  be  not  rare  to  find 
among  men  examples  of  the  like  malignity,  it  seems,  nevertheless,  to 
be  more  natural  to  the  devils.  This  it  was  that  the  Saviour  had  en¬ 
deavored  to  make  them  understand  up  to  that  time,  but  with  deli¬ 
cate  caution  ;  yet  at  length  he  speaks  openly,  and  says  to  them,  with¬ 
out  reserve  :  “  You  are  of  your  father,  the  devil  ;  and  the  desires  of 
your  father  you  will  do.  He  was  a  murderer  from  the  beginning  (1)', 
and  he  stood  not  in  the  truth  ;  because  truth  is  not  in  him  (2).  When 


(1)  When  he  persuaded  the  first  man  to  eat  that  fruit,  of  which  it  had  been  said: 
What  day  soever  thou  shalt  eat  of  it,  thou  shalt  die  the  death.  This  blow  was  mortal  to 
all  mankind  ;  and,  by  striking  this  blow,  the  demon  slew  all  men  without  exception.  He 
is,  therefore,  pre-eminently  a  murderer,  and  in  this  sense  the  only  murderer,  inasmuch  as 
other  murderers  only  accelerate  the  inevitable  effect  of  the  blow  which  he  has  struck. 
The  latter,  nevertheless,  are  justly  styled  his  children,  because  they  imitate  his  wicked¬ 
ness,  and  that  they  all  do  the  same  kind  of  mischief  as  far  as  it  is  in  their  power.  But 
this  qualification  was  still  more  applicable  to  the  Jews,  because,  by  seeking  to  murder 
Jesus  Christ,  they  sought,  as  far  as  it  lay  in  their  power,  and  as  Saint  Peter  reproached 
them  for  doing,  to  destroy  the  author  of  life — -he  who,  by  resuscitating  all  men,  would 
fully  repair  the  evil  which  Satan  hath  done.  True  it  is,  that  so  great  a  good  was  to  be 
the  fruit  of  his  death.  But  they  knew  it  not  ;  and  their  malice  would  not  have  been  less 
fatal  to  mankind  than  that  of  Satan,  if,  whilst  they  deprived  the  Saviour  of  life,  they 
could  also  have  stripped  him  of  his  power. 

(2)  He  is  no  longer  inclined  to  state  the  truth,  which  was  a  consequence  of  the  orig¬ 
inal  rectitude  in  which  he  was  created.  He  stood  not  in  the  truth;  therefore  he 


£V 


he  speaketh  a  lie,  he  speaketh  of  his  own,  for  he  is  a  liar,  and  the  fa¬ 
ther  thereof.  But  if  I  say  the  truth,  you  believe  me  not  (3).” 

This  opposition  to  truth  is  the  second  feature  of  resemblance  which 
they  have  to  him  whom  he  has  just  called  their  father.  Murder  is 
the  first,  and  he  had  already  reproached  them  with  it,  when  he  made 
known  to  them  that  he  was  not  ignorant  of  their  design  to  put  him 
to  death.  But  to  complete  the  evidence  of  this  truth,  to  which  they 
opposed  a  diabolical  obstinacy,  “  which  of  you  [said  he]  shall  con¬ 
vince  me  of  sin  ?”  It  was  in  order  to  convince  them  that  he  defied 
them  ;  for  it  is  evident  that  they  had  accused  him  long  before  he  had 
thus  defied  them  to  prove  the  accusation.  But  they  had  accused  him 
without  proof,  and  although  persuaded  in  the  bottom  of  their  hearts 
that  they  accused  him  unjustly.  Wherefore  they  had  nothing  to 


once  had  the  truth.  The  Fathers  availed  themselves  of  this  expression,  to  prove  to  the 
Manicheans  that  the  devil  is  not  essentially,  and  of  his  very  nature,  bad,  since  he  has 
not  always  been  so  ;  and  if  it  be  said  :  When  he  speaketh  a  lie  he  speaketh  of  his  own ,  the 
meaning  is,  of  his  own  depraved  and  vitiated  nature.  He  is  the  father  of  lies,  inasmuch 
as  he  is  the  first  who  hath  lied,  and  who  hath  taught  lying  either  to  men  or  to  the  wick¬ 
ed  angels.  There  is  no  truth  in  him  ;  for  he  either  speaks  falsely,  or,  if  he  sometimes 
happens  to  speak  the  truth,  he  always  does  so  with  intent  to  deceive — a  disposition  which 
comprises  all  the  malice  of  lying.  We  except  some  rare  cases,  wherein  the  omnipotence 
of  God  forces  him  to  tell  useful  truths  ;  but  the  rage  which  then  seizes  upon  him  proves 
his  determined  opposition  to  the  truth,  and  the  implacable  hatred  which  he  entertains 
towards  it. 

(3)  We  read  in  the  Greek:  Because  I  say  the  truth,  you  believe  me  not.  The  si  of 
the  Vulgate  appears  to  have  the  sense  of  because.  This  raises  a  difficulty  here.  It 
would  seem  that  to  disbelieve  any  one  because  he  says  the  truth,  is  tantamount  to  not 
believing  him  because  we  do  believe  him  ;  because,  being  once  persuaded  that  he  says  the 
truth,  we  must  actually  have  believed  him,  which  would  make  a  manifest  contradiction 
in  the  proposition  of  the  Saviour.  Here  is  the  explanation  which  is  given  of  this  difficul¬ 
ty.  Jesus  Christ  had  spoken  of  them  and  of  himself;  he  had  made  them  humiliating 
reproaches,  and  he  had  rendered  glorious  testimony  to  himself.  They  could  not  deny 
the  truth  of  the  first,  for  they  had  proof  thereof  in  then-  own  conscience  ;  but  these  re¬ 
proaches  had  produced  upon  them  the  effect  which  charitable  correction  usually  pro¬ 
duces  upon  distorted  minds,  viz.  :  It  had  rendered  the  admonisher  odious,  and  the  more 
odious  in  proportion  to  the  truth  of  the  reproach.  Thenceforward  they  would  no  longer 
believe  what  he  said  with  reference  to  himself,  and  the  more  advantageous  to  himself  the 
truths  which  he  advanced,  the  less  were  they  inclined  to  believe  him.  Thus  it  is  that 
they  believed  him  not,  because  he  said  the  truth  to  them  ;  that  is  to  say,  that  they  be¬ 
lieved  not  the  truths  which  were  advantageous  to  him,  because  they  were  irritated  at 
what  he  had  told  them  with  reference  to  themselves — truths  which  had  humbled  and 
confounded  them. 


W 


< 


CHAP.  XXXVII.]  OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  281 

answer,  and  the  silence  to  which  they  were  reduced  left  Jesus  Christ 
that  right  which  a  spotless  and  irreproachable  life  gives  to  the  just 
man — that  of  being  believed  upon  his  word. 

He  resumes,  therefore;  and,  availing  himself  of  the  advantage 
which  their  tacit  avowal  gave  him,  he  said  to  them  further  :  “  If  I 
say  the  truth,  you  believe  me  not  ?”  He  himself  answers  his  ques¬ 
tion,  and  his  answer  is  well  calculated  to  make  those  tremble  who 
have  neither  attention  nor  docility  for  the  divine  word  :  “  He  [saith 
he]  that  is  of  God  heareth  the  words  of  God.  Therefore  you  hear 
them  not,  because  you  are  not  [ children ]  of  God.” 

The  word  of  God  is,  therefore,  well  received  by  those  only  who 
listen  to  it  with  that  tender  and  respectful  attention  with  which  vir¬ 
tuous  children  always  hear  the  words  of  their  father.  How  could 
they  bear  with  this  word — they  whose  father  was  the  capital  enemy 
of  God  ?  Wherefore  they  rejected  it  with  disgust  ;  for  they  could 
not  oppose  it  with  any  reason.  He  who  announced  it  was  the  most 
irreproachable  of  all  men,  as  they  themselves  had  just  admitted  by 
their  silence.  His  doctrine  was  all-pure  and  all-holy,  and  it  was 
proved  by  numberless  miracles,  to  which  no  rational  mind  could 
raise  any  objection.  What,  therefore,  could  they  oppose  to  it  but 
outrage,  the  only  resource  of  obstinacy  driven  to  its  last  hold,  and 
the  most  energetic  avowal  of  the  extremity  to  which  reason  has  re¬ 
duced  it  ?  “  They,  therefore,  answered  him  :  Do  we  not  say  well,  that 
thou  art  a  Samaritan,  and  hast  a  devil  ?  Jesus  answered  :  I  have 
not  a  devil  (4),  but  I  honor  my  Father  ;  and  you,  you  have  dishon¬ 
ored  me.  But  I,  I  seek  not  my  own  glory  ;  there  is  one  that  seek- 
eth  and  judgeth.” 

After  this  grave  and  modest  reply,  the  Lamb  of  God,  so  cruelly 
outraged,  condescended,  moreover,  to  announce  to  this  furious  peo- 


(4)  Jesus  Christ  formally  denies  the  charge  of  being  a  demoniac.  As  to  the  reproach 
of  his  being  a  Samaritan,  we  may  say  that  he  replies  and  does  not  reply  to  it.  This  term 
was  both  the  name  of  a  people  and  the  name  of  a  sect.  He  seems  to  meet  in  his  reply 
the  reproach  attached  to  it  as  a  sectarian  designation,  saying:  I  honor  my  Father,  which 
the  Samaritans  did  not  do.  Inasmuch  as  the  term  was  the  name  of  a  people,  he  could 
not  consider  it  a  reproach — he  who  was  shortly  to  unite  all  people  under  the  same  law, 
and  make  but  one  people  of  Jew,  Samaritan,  and  Gentile.  Besides,  generally  speaking, 
the  ground  of  just  reproaches  is  not  the  nation,  but  the  morals  ;  and  in  every  nation,  he 
that  feareth  God  and  worketh  justice  is  acceptable  to  him. — (Acts,  x.  35.) 


282 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  I. 


pie  truths  more  agreeable  than  those  which  they  had  before  forced 
him  to  speak  to  them.  One  of  these  was  to  make  them  feel  the  in¬ 
finite  difference  which  there  was  between  him  and  the  arch-murder¬ 
er,  by  whom  they  accused  him  of  being  possessed.  He  declared  it 
to  them  in  these  terms  :  “  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  if  any  man 
keep  my  word,  he  shall  not  see  death  forever  (5).” 

When  hearts  are  once  perverted,  they  turn  every  thing  into  poi¬ 
son.  This  magnificent  promise  only  irritated  them  the  more  ;  and, 
because  they  did  not  comprehend  its  mysterious  meaning,  they  treat¬ 
ed  it  as  absurd  or  blasphemous.  “How  we  know  [say  they ]  that 
thou  hast  a  devil.  Abraham  is  dead,  and  the  prophets  ;  and  thou 
say  est  :  If  any  man  keep  my  word,  he  shall  not  taste  death  forever. 
Art  thou  greater  than  our  father  Abraham,  who  is  dead  ?  And  the 
prophets  are  dead:  whom  dost  thou  make  thyself?” 

He  is  about  to  make  himself  what  he  really  is — that  is  to  say,  the 
Eternal  One.  But  he  first  recalls  to  their  minds  the  proofs  of  his 
mission  ;  and,  repeating  what  he  had  said  upon  another  occasion, 
that,  if  he  bore  testimony  to  himself,  his  testimony  would  not  be 
legitimate,  but  that  there  was.  another  who  bore  testimony  unto  him, 
“  he  answered  [still  in  the  same  sense~\  :  If  I  glorify  myself,  my  glory 
is  nothing.  It  is  my  Father  that  glorifieth  me,  of  whom  you  say, 
that  he  is  your  God.  And  you  have  not  known  him  (6),  but  I 
know  him  ;  and  if  I  say  that  I  know  him  not,  I  shall  be  like  to  you, 
a  liar.  But  I  do  know  him,  and  do  keep  his  word.” 


(5)  He  shall  be  preserved  from  eternal  death.  This  is  the  common  interpretation. 
Thus  these  words,  He  shall  not  see  death  forever,  signify  :  He  shall  receive,  by  the  res¬ 
urrection,  a  life  which  shall  never  again  be  followed  by  death.  Other  interpreters  un¬ 
derstand  the  expression  as  referring  to  the  life  of  grace — that  life,  eternal  in  its  nature, 
as  we  have  said  elsewhere,  and  which  can  never  be  lost  except  through  the  fault  of  him 
who  has  received  it.  If  we  add,  that  it  is  this  life  which  confers  the  right  to  that  im¬ 
mortal  life  which  shall  come  after  the  resurrection,  we  have  both  explanations  condensed 
into  one. 

(6)  They  had  a  speculative  knowledge  of  God  ;  but  they  did  not  know  him,  or  rather 
they  denied  him  in  practice.  For,  not  to  execute  his  will  is  denying  his  authority  and 
his  rights,  and  taking  part  with  those  who  profess  that  they  know  God,  hut  in  their  works 
they  deny  him  (Titus,  i.  16).  There  was,  therefore,  one  sense  in  which  they  could  not 
say  with  truth  that  they  knew  God  ;  furthermore,  it  is  in  this  sense  that  Saint  John  hath 
said  (1  Ep.  ii.  4)  :  He  who  saith  that  he  knoweth  him,  and  keepeth  not  his  command¬ 
ments,  is  a  liar,  and  the  truth  is  not  in  him. 


CHAP.  XXXVII.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


283 


Then,  returning  to  Abraham,  whom  they  regarded  as  the  first  of 
human  beings,  he  declares  in  these  words  his  infinite  superiority 
over  him  :  “  Abraham,  your  father,  rejoiced  that  he  might  see  my 
day;  he  saw  it  (7),  and  was  glad.  The  Jews  said  to  him:  Thou  art 
not  yet  fifty  years  old,  and  hast  thou  seen  Abraham  (8)  ?  Jesus 
said  to  them  :  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  before  Abraham  was  made, 
I  am.”  They  caught  a  glimpse  through  these  few  words  of  the  equal¬ 
ity  with  God  which  Jesus  Christ  attributed  to  himself;  and,  as  if 
he  had  blasphemed,  “  they  took  up  stones,  therefore,  to  cast  at  him  ; 
but  Jesus  hid  himself  (9),  and  went  out  of  the  temple.” 

Although  his  words  then  produced  such  strange  effects,  we  ought 
not  to  be  surprised  that  he  should  have  uttered  them.  Thenceforth 
they  were  not  useless  to  all,  since  we  have  already  seen  that  several 
believed  in  him  ;  but,  moreover,  Jesus  knew  that  what  he  said  would 
subsequently  be  written,  and  that  these  same  expressions,  which  ex¬ 
cited  against  him  the  fury  of  his  fellow-citizens,  should  one  day  in¬ 
sure  to  him  the  homage  of  all  nations. 

But  if  obstinate  minds  never  find  it  difficult  to  elude  the  force  of 
truth,  and  to  resist  all  arguments,  there  are  yet  proofs  so  certain 
and  so  palpable,  that  we  must  either  yield  to  them,  or  acknowledge 
that  we  do  not  wish  to  be  convinced.  It  seems  that  Jesus  Christ, 
before  quitting  Jerusalem,  wished  to  give  its  inhabitants  a  proof  of 
this.  Here  is  the  recital  thereof,  or  rather  the  picture,  drawn  in 
such  natural  and  lively  colors,  that  we  have  not  sought  to  add  any 
thing  to  it,  being  persuaded  that  any  thing  which  might  be  added, 
for  the  purpose  of  shedding  light  upon  it,  would  only  mar  its 
beauty. 


(7)  Whether  during  his  life,  by  a  prophetic  light  which  made  him  acquainted,  by  an¬ 
ticipation,  with  the  mystery  of  the  incarnation  ;  or  whether  in  Limbo,  by  the  revelation 
thereof  made  at  the  moment  when  the  word  became  incarnate. 

(8)  Jesus  Christ,  according  to  the  common  opinion,  had  not  yet  completed  his  thirtieth 
year.  Those  who  prolong  the  farthest  the  years  of  his  mortal  life  agree  that  he  had  not 
completed  forty  years.  We  do  not  know  for  certain  the  reason  which  made  the  Jews 
speak  as  if  he  had  approached  his  fiftieth  year. 

(9)  He  rendered  himself  invisible,  or  else  he  mingled  in  the  crowd  in  such  a  way  as 
not  to  be  perceptible  to  these  infuriated  men. 


\l 


'?L 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

THE  MAN  BORN  BLIND. - JESUS  IS  THE  GOOD  SHEPHERD. 

(a)  “  Jesus  passing  by,  saw  a  man  who  was  blind  from  bis  birth  ; 
and  his  disciples  asked  him  :  Rabbi,  who  hath  sinned,  this  man  or 
his  parents,  that  he  should  be  born  blind  (1)  ?  Neither  hath  this 
man  sinned,  nor  his  parents  (2)  ;  but  that  the  works  of  God  should 

(a)  St.  John,  ix.  1—41. 


(1)  Temporal  evils  may  be  the  punishment  of  the  sins  of  parents.  I  am  the  Lord  thy 
God,  mighty,  jealous,  visiting  the  iniquities  of  the  fathers  upon  the  children  unto  the  third 
and  fourth  generation  (Exodus,  xx.  5).  Wherefore,  it  is  not  surprising  that  the  disciples 
should  inquire  whether  the  blindness  inherent  in  this  man  from  his  mother’s  womb,  was 
not  a  punishment  entailed  upon  him  by  the  sins  of  his  parents  ;  but  we  are  ignorant  of 
what  was  passing  in  their  minds  when  they  inquired  whether  his  own  sins  were  not  the 
cause  of  his  blindness.  Did  they  believe  in  the  pre-existence  of  souls,  and  could  this 
platonic  notion  have  been  conveyed  to  the  Jews  of  Judea  by  those  who  were  called 
hellenists — that  is  to  say,  who  resided  among  the  Greeks  ?  Or  else  did  they  think  that 
God  punished  by  anticipation  the  sins  which  he  foresaw  would  be  committed  at  a  subse¬ 
quent  period  ?  Or  finally,  could  their  question  have  had  the  following  meaning  which 
several  interpreters  attach  to  it,  viz.  :  this  individual  not  having  deserved  his  blindness 
by  any  personal  sin,  inasmuch  as  no  man  sins  before  he  is  born,  is  it  then  the  sin  of  his 
parents  which  is  the  cause  of  his  blindness  ?  We  may  choose  for  ourselves  amongst 
these  several  conjectures  which  divide  the  learned.  Two  things  are  certain  :  one,  that 
the  disciples  did  not  attribute  to  original  sin  the  disgrace  of  this  poor  man  ;  could  they 
think  that  all  men  should  be  born  blind,  or  deprived  of  some  of  their  senses  ?  The 
other  certainty  is,  that  they  were  persuaded  there  was  no  affliction  in  this  life  which  was 
not  the  punishment  of  some  sin  ;  in  which  latter  case  they  were  deceived,  as  we  see  by 
the  answer  of  the  Saviour. 

(2)  They  had  sinned,  the  blind  man,  his  father,  and  his  mother  ;  but  none  of  their  sins 
was  the  cause  of  this  blindness.  This  is  the  signification  of  the  Saviour’s  answer,  whence 
it  manifestly  follows  that  all  the  pains  of  this  life  are  not  caused  by  sin,  and  that  there 
are  some  afflictions  which  are  not  punishments.  Such  were  those  of  the  Mother  of  God 
— that  Mother  who  was  conceived  without  sin,  and  preserved  from  all  actual  sin  without 
exception,  and  who,  nevertheless,  was  transpierced  with  a  sword  of  sorrow.  Nor  need 
we  cite  so  great  an  example  ;  for  the  pains  of  baptized  children  before  they  could  have 
committed  any  sin,  are  also  an  illustration  of  this  truth.  These  pains  are,  indeed,  the 
consequences  of  original  sin  ;  but  they  are  not  its  chastisement  :  they  do  not  punish  it, 
and  they  punish  nothing  in  them,  because  there  is  no  longer  any  thing  to  punish  in  them  ; 


vîüT  'J  Vit]  ^  Uufjf  j  |  ovvf  HffiVI'ÿ 


OH  AP.  XXXVIII.]  OF  OUE  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  285 

be  made  manifest  in  him  (3).  I  must  work  the  works  of  him  that 
sent  me  (4)  whilst  it  is  day  :  the  night  cometh  when  no  man  can 
work.  As  long  as  I  am  in  the  world,  I  am  the  light  of  the  world. 
When  he  had  said  these  things,  he  spat  on  the  ground,  and  made 
clay  of  the  spittle,  and  spread  the  clay  upon  his  eyes  (5),  and 
said  to  him  :  Go,  wash  in  the  pool  of  Siloë  (which  is  interpreted, 
Sent)  (6).  The  blind  man  went,  therefore,  and  washed,  and  he 


for  there  is  no  longer  any  matter  requiring  punishment,  if  there  be  nothing  more  to  be 
expiated.  Now,  it  is  the  common  belief  of  the  Church,  that,  in  little  children  who 
die  after  baptism,  there  is  no  further  impediment  to  retard  their  entry  into  heaven.  Thus 
the  Council  of  Trent  has  expressed  itself  :  wherefore,  it  teaches  that  there  is  in  them  no 
stain  of  sin  to  be  wiped  away.  Whence  it  further  ensues  that,  supposing  there  was  not 
any  original  sin,  these  pains  might  still  exist,  inasmuch  as  we  find  them  endured  by  those 
to  whom  this  sin  is  entirely  remitted,  both  as  to  the  fault  and  the  penalty  thereof. 

(3)  Jesus  Christ  informs  us  that,  independent  of  sin,  the  manifestation  of  the  works  of 
God  is  one  of  the  causes  of  the  evils  of  this  life.  The  trial  of  the  just  is  another  cause 
of  them  :  Because  you  were  agreeable  to  God,  said  the  angel  to  Tobias,  it  was  necessary 
that  you  should  be  proved  by  temptation  ;  that  is  to  say,  by  affliction.  We  cannot  see  to 
what  end  the  sufferings  of  little  children  may  tend.  But  to  whom  have  all  the  divine 
secrets  been  revealed?  Who  knows  whether  God  doth  not  thereupon  account  with 
them  ;  and  whether,  by  a  purely  gratuitous  mercy,  he  doth  not  glorify  those  most  in 
whom  he  finds,  more  than  in  others,  the  image  of  the  sufferings  of  his  beloved  Son  ? 
This  conjecture  is  not  entirely  without  foundation.  The  Church  seems  to  recognize  in 
the  children  massacred  for  the  cause  of  religion,  a  sanctity  superior  to  that  of  other  chil¬ 
dren  ;  yet  the  will  of  the  first  has  no  more  part  in  their  martyrdom,  than  the  will  of  the 
second  has  in  their  sufferings. 

(4)  Jesus  Christ  has  never  ceased  to  act.  He  only  speaks  here  of  those  works  which 
he  had  to  perform  during  his  visible  sojourn  here  on  earth.  The  subsequent  words  :  The 
night  cometh  when  no  man  can  work,  comprise  a  general  maxim  which  is  more  for  us 
than  for  him.  What  he  adds,  that  he  is  the  light  of  the  world,  refers  to  the  action  that 
he  is  going  to  perform  ;  and  this  action,  which  is  the  re-establishment  of  corporal  sight, 
is  the  figure  of  the  spiritual  light  wherewith  he  is  come  to  enlighten  souls. 

(5)  It  would  seem  that  this  was  more  calculated  to  deprive  of  sight,  than  to  restore 
it.  Jesus  Christ  wished  to  show  that  all  means  are  equal  to  him,  and  that  none  was 
necessary  to  him.  Spittle  is  employed  to  make  known  the  wondrous  properties  of  his 
adorable  body.  By  mixing  it  with  the  earth,  he  discovers  to  us  the  hand  of  the  Creator, 
who,  after  having  formed  man  from  the  slime  of  the  earth,  makes  the  same  matter 
which  had  served  for  the  composition  of  his  work,  subservient  to  its  cure.  He  sends 
the  blind  man  to  the  bath  of  Siloë,  to  test  his  faith  and  his  obedience.  Both  one  and 
the  other  appeared  with  admirable  lustre  ;  for  he  did  not  reason  as  Naaman  had  done, 
when  the  prophet  Eliseus  sent  him  to  bathe  in  the  Jordan.  He  received  the  order,  and 
executed  it  forthwith,  without  advancing  a  single  word  of  opposition. 

(6)  In  the  application  of  clay  to  the  eyes.  Saint  Augustine  recognizes  the  unction  of 
the  catechumens  ;  and  in  the  bath,  baptism  and  its  miraculous  effects.  All  here  is  mys- 


,$4 

.y 


\ 


av 


fjL 


'f/im: 


280 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part 


came  seeing.  The  neighbors  therefore,  and  they  who  had  seen  him 
before  that  he  was  a  beggar,  said  :  Is  not  this  he  that  sat  and  beg¬ 
ged  ?  Some  said,  This  is  he  ;  but  others,  No,  but  he  is  like  him. 
But  he  said  :  I  am  he.  They  said  therefore  to  him  :  How  were  thy 
eyes  opened  ?  He  answered  :  That  man  that  is  called  Jesus,  made 
clay,  and  anointed  my  eyes,  and  said  to  me  :  Go  to  the  pool  of  Siloë, 
and  wash.  And  I  went,  I  washed,  and  I  see.  They  said  to  him  : 
Where  is  he  ?  He  saith  :  I  know  not.  They  then  bring  him  that 
had  been  blind  to  the  Pharisees.  Now  it  was  the  Sabbath  when 
Jesus  made  the  clay,  and  opened  his  eyes.  Again,  therefore,  the 
Pharisees  asked  him  how  he  had  received  his  sight,  but  he  said  to 
them  :  He  put  clay  upon  my  eyes,  and  I  washed,  and  I  see.  Some, 
therefore,  of  the  Pharisees  said  :  This  man  is  not  of  God,  who  keep 
eth  not  the  Sabbath.  But  others  said  :  How  can  a  man  that  is  a 
sinner  do  such  miracles  ?  And  there  was  a  division  amongst  them. 
They  say,  therefore,  to  the  blind  man  again  :  What  sayest  thou  ot 
him  that  hath  opened  thy  eyes  ?  He  said  :  He  is  a  prophet.  The 
Jews  then  did  not  believe  concerning  him,  that  he  had  been  blind, 
and  had  received  his  sight,  until  they  called  the  parents  of  him  that 
received  his  sight,  and  asked  them,  saying  :  Is  this  your  son,  who 
you  say  was  born  blind  ?  How  then  doth  he  now  see  ?  His  parents 
answered  them,  and  said  :  We  know  that  this  is  our  son,  and  that 
he  was  born  blind  ;  but  how  he  now  seeth,  we  know  not  ;  or  who 
hath  opened  his  eyes,  we  know  not.  Ask  himself  :  he  is  of  age,  let 
him  speak  for  himself.  These  things  his  parents  said,  because  they 
feared  the  Jews.  For  the  Jews  had  already  agreed  amongst  them¬ 
selves,  that  if  any  man  should  confess  Jesus  to  be  Christ,  he  should 
be  put  out  of  the  synagogue  ;  therefore  did  his  parents  say  :  He  is 
of  age,  ask  him. 

“  The  Jews,  therefore,  called  the  man  again  that  had  been  born 
blind,  and  said  to  him  :  Give  glory  to  God,  we  know  that  this  man 
is  a  sinner.  If  he  be  a  sinner  [said  lie  to  them ],  I  know  not  ;  one 
thing  I  know,  that  whereas  I  was  blind,  now  I  see.  They  said  then 


terious,  even  the  very  name  of  the  fountain.  He  informs  us  that  the  only  true  baptism, 
that  baptism  of  which  the  other  baptisms  could  have  been  only  figurative,  is  the  baptism 
of  the  Ambassador  by  pre- eminence,  Jesus  Christ. 


7111.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  287 

to  him  :  What  did  he  to  thee  ?  How  did  he  open  thy  eyes  ?  He 
answered  them  :  I  have  told  you  already,  and  you  have  heard  ;  why 
would  you  hear  it  again  ?  Will  you  also  become  his  disciples  ? 
They  reviled  him,  therefore,  and  said  :  Be  thou  his  disciple  ;  but  we 
are  the  disciples  of  Moses.  We  know  that  God  spoke  to  Moses  ; 
but  as  to  this  man,  we  know  not  from  whence  he  is.  The  man  an¬ 
swered  to  them  :  Why,  herein  is  a  wonderful  thing,  that  you  know 
not  from  whence  he  is,  and  he  hath  opened  my  eyes.  Now  we  know 
that  God  doth  not  hear  sinners  (7)  ;  but  if  a  man  be  a  server  of 
God,  and  doth  his  will,  him  he  heareth.  From  the  beginning  of 
the  world,  it  hath  not  been  heard,  that  any  man  hath  opened  the 
eyes  of  one  born  blind.  Unless  this  man  were  of  God,  he  could  not 
do  any  thing.  They  answered  and  said  to  him  :  Thou  wast  wholly 
born  in  sins,  and  dost  thou  teach  us  ?  And  they  cast  him  out.  Je¬ 
sus  heard  that  they  had  cast  him  out,  and  when  he  had  found  him, 
he  said  to  him  :  Host  thou  believe  in  the  Son  of  God  ?  He  an¬ 
swered  :  Who  is  he,  Lord,  that  I  may  believe  in  him  ?  Thou  hast 
seen  him,  Jesus  said  to  him  ;  and  it  is  he  that  tAketh  to  thee.  I 
believe,  Lord,  said  he  then  :  and,  falling  down,  he  adored  him.” 

The  faith  of  this  man,  compared  with  the  incredulity  of  the  others, 
gave  occasion  to  the  Saviour  to  announce  two  prodigies,  the  first  of 
which  was  to  be  the  fruit  of  his  mission,  and  the  second  a  conse¬ 
quence  thereof.  “  For  judgment  (8),  said  he,  I  am  come  into  this 


(7)  God  may  listen  to  sinners,  even  when  they  ask  for  miracles.  Many  will  say  to 
me  in  that  day  :  Lord,  Lord,  have  not  we  prophesied  in  thy  name,  and  cast  out  devils  in 
thy  name,  and  done  many  miracles  in  thy  name  ?  And  then  will  L profess  unto  them  : 
I  never  knew  you  ;  depart  from  me,  you  that  work  iniquity.  The  proposition  of  the 
blind  man  was  not,  therefore,  utterly  without  its  exception  ;  yet  its  truth  was  sufficiently 
general  to  make  it  proverbial.  And,  if  we  like  to  confine  it  to  miracles,  we  may  say  that, 
when  the  blind  man  spoke,  it  was  true  to  its  full  extent,  inasmuch  as  we  do  not  find  a 
single  miracle  in  the  Old  Testament  which  had  ever  been  wrought  by  an  individual  that 
was  not  recognized  to  be  a  just  and  holy  man.  Those  miracles  which  God  has  since 
wrought,  through  the  ministry  of  vicious  men,  besides  being  very  rare,  proved  satisfac¬ 
torily  the  sanctity  of  the  doctrine  which  they  preached,  and  not  that  of  the  preachers 
themselves. 

Generally  speaking,  when  miracles  are  wrought  in  confirmation  of  the  faith,  they  con¬ 
stitute  a  strong  presumption  of  the  holiness  of  him  who  operates  them,  but  they  are  not 
an  infallible  proof  of  this  fact. 

(8)  We  also  designate  as  the  judgments  of  God  certain  arrangements  of  his  providence. 


W  II 
■  -G*_  V«J  A  ^ 

^  An 


f 


fk  C- 


# 


'H'/* 


288 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  I. 


world  ;  that  they  who  see  not,  may  see  ;  and  they  who  see,  may  be¬ 
come  blind  (9).”  These  words  alluded  to  the  miracle  which  he 
had  just  wrought.  But  the  vision  and  the  blindness  which  they 
expressed  must  be  understood  in  a  spiritual  sense.  In  point  of  fact, 
they  were  taken  in  this  sense  :  for  “  some  of  the  Pharisees  who  were 
with  him  heard,  and  they  said  unto  him  :  Are  we  also  blind  ?  If 
you  were  blind,  Jesus  said  to  them,  you  should  not  have  sin  ;  but 
now  you  say:  We  see.  Your  sin  remaineth,”  without  excuse. 

This  sin  is  the  sin  of  incredulity, .  excusable  in  those-  who  have 
none  of  the  knowledge  necessary  in  order  to  believe,  but  inexcusa¬ 
ble  when  a  person  hath  sufficient  light  to  arrive  at  the  fulness  of 
faith,  supposing  that  he  wished  to  avail  himself  of  his  information. 
Such  were  the  Pharisees,  who  had  in  the  Scriptures  that  which 
should  have  led  them  to  the  knowledge  of  the  true  Messiah,  if  they 
had  sought  it  with  an  upright  heart.  And  to  declare  as  they  did, 

the  secret  of  which  has  not  been  revealed  to  us.  These  are  the  judgments  of  which  we 
usually  say  that  we  must  adore  without  seeking  to  understand  them.  Saint  Paid  spoke 
of  them,  when  he  said  that  the  judgments  of  God  are  incomprehensible,  and  that  his  wags 
are  impenetrable. — Romans,  ii. 

(9)  This  does  not  mean  to  convey  that  their  blindness  was  one  of  the  objects  of  the 
coming  of  Jesus  Christ,  but,  as  has  been  already  stated,  this  blindness  was  the  result 
thereof.  This  is  the  entire  signification  of  the  particle  that  ( afin  que),  which,  according 
to  the  usage  of  holy  writ,  frequently  conveys  nothing  further  than  the  fact  of  one  thing 
having  occasioned  another,  or  merely  preceded  it.  If  the  imperfect  light  of  the  law  was 
a  means  of  arriving  at  the  knowledge  of  the  Gospel,  we  may  also  say  that,  in  one  sense, 
it  was  an  obstacle  thereto.  We  fancy  that  we  see  all,  when  we  have  really  seen  but  the 
half;  and  because  what  we  have  is  good,  we  reject  what  is  better,  and  what  would  really 
make  us  perfect,  falsely  believing  it  calculated  to  destroy  that  good  which  we  possess;  This 
is  what  occurred  to  the  Pharisees  ;  and  the  partial  light  which  they  possessed  rendered 
them  blind.  By  a  contrary  process,  the  absurdities  of  paganism  were  no  slight  aid  to 
the  conversion  of  the  Gentiles  ;  for  they  were  immersed  in  such  palpable  errors,  that 
they  could  not  be  imbued  with  the  notion  of  having  attained  the  truth,  or  having  had  a 
glimpse  of  the  light  in  the  midst  of  such  profound  darkness.  Hence  it  happened,  that 
when  the  light  of  the  Gospel  appeared,  these  benighted  pagans  being  thoroughly  con¬ 
vinced  of  their  blindness,  opened  their  eyes,  and  were  fully  enlightened. 

The  Mahometan  must  always  experience  more  difficulty  in  his  conversion  than  the 
idolater,  and  the  Jew  than  the  Mahometan,  because  the  Mahometan  acknowledges  one 
God,  and  the  Jew  also  acknowledges  a  revelation. 

Incredulity  seems  to  be  the  natural  fruit  of  light  mingled  with  darkness,  and  of  imper¬ 
fect  knowledge  ;  and  perhaps  the  reason  why  the  times  we  live  in  are  so  fertile  in  in¬ 
credulity,  is,  because  they  exceed  all  former  times  in  the  number  of  half-enlightened 
minds. 


1 


'III 


7 

A 


N 


il  #=>! , 
!  V# 

m,  A 


CHAP.  XXXVIII.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 

that  they  had  that  knowledge,  was  equivalent  to  a  confession  that 
they  did  not  sin  through  ignorance,  and  that  if  they  saw  not,  it  was 
because  they  did  not  wish  to  see. 

All  agree  that  what  follows  was  pronounced  by  Jesus  Christ  im¬ 
mediately  after  the  preceding  ;  yet  we  do  not  see  distinctly  the  con¬ 
nection  between  the  one  and  the  other.  Amongst  the  various  ways 
of  explaining  the  matter,  this  appears  the  most  satisfactory.  The 
Saviour  had  just  received  the  man  born  blind,  whom  the  Pharisees 
had  driven  from  the  synagogue.  The  latter  had  no  doubt  but  that, 
by  this  species  of  excommunication,  they  had  cut  him  off  from  the 
society  of  the  children  of  God.  The  contrary  was  precisely  the 
case.  Admitted  by  Jesus  Christ,  he  had  entered,  because  Jesus 
Christ  is  the  only  gate  leading  thereto.  The  Pharisees,  who  refused 
to  enter  by  this  one  gate  of  the  sheepfold  of  the  Lord,  could,  there¬ 
fore,  no  longer  form  a  part  thereof  ;  this  is  an  evident  conclusion 
Much  less  could  they  be  the  shepherds  thereof,  although  they  arro¬ 
gated  to  themselves  that  title  and  its  functions.  This  is  the  point 
on  which  the  Saviour  insists  ;  and  it  was  of  extreme  importance  at 
the  moment  when  he  spoke.  Many  of  the  Jews,  attracted  by  the 
lustre  of  his  miracles,  and  checked,  at  the  same  time,  by  the  author¬ 
ity  of  their  ancient  masters,  knew  not  to  whom  they  should  give 
the  preference,  and  it  was  necessary  to  inform  them.  He  said,  then, 
in  that  affirmative  tone  which  he  took  when  he  wished  to  rivet  at¬ 
tention  :  (a)  “  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  he  that  entereth  not  by 
the  door  into  the  sheepfold,  but  climbeth  up  another  way,  the  same 
is  a  thief  and  a  robber.  But  he  that  entereth  in  by  the  door,  is  the 
shepherd  of  the  sheep.  To  him  the  porter  openeth,  and  the  sheep 
hear  his  voice.  He  calleth  his  own  sheep  by  name,  and  leadeth  them 
out  ;  and  when  he  hath  led  out  his  own  sheep,  he  goeth  before 
them,  and  the  sheep  follow  him,  because  they  know  his  voice.  But 
a  stranger  they  follow  not,  but  fly  from  him,  because  they  know  not 
the  voice  of  strangers. 

“  This  proverb  Jesus  spoke  to  them  ;  but  they  understood  not 
what  he  spoke  to  them.”  Not  that  his  words  were  ambiguous,  but 
that  the  application  was  not  equally  clear,  especially  to  those  who 


(at)  St.  John,  x.  1-19. 
19 


."i". 


vWl  •]  ',U';V  |  "'J  wg, 


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ïs  V 


iibw 


290 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  1. 


sought  to  construe  it  for  themselves  in  a  had  sense.  “  He,  therefore, 
said  to  them  again  :  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  I  am  the  door  of  the 
sheep.  All  others,  as  many  as  have  come,  are  thieves  and  robbers, 
and  the  sheep  heard  them  not.  I  am  the  door.  By  me,  if  any  man 
enter  in,  he  shall  be  saved.  He  shall  go  in,  and  go  out,  and  shall 
find  pastures.  The  thief  cometh  not  but  for  to  steal,  to  kill,  and  to 
destroy.  I  am  come  that  they  may  have  life,  and  may  have  it  more 
abundantly.” 

These  last  words  lead  naturally  to  another  figure,  under  which 
the  Saviour  is  also  going  to  represent  himself.  This  one,  more  ten¬ 
der  than  the  first,  is  perhaps  the  most  affecting  image  that  he  him¬ 
self  could  have  given  us  of  his  charity  towards  men.  He  continues, 
therefore,  thus  :  “  I  am  the  good  shepherd.  The  good  shepherd  giv- 
eth  his  life  for  his  sheep.  But  the  hireling  and  he  that  is  not  the 
shepherd,  whose  own  the  sheep  are  not,  seeth  the  wolf  coming,  and 
leaveth  the  sheep  and  flieth.  The  wolf  catcheth,  and  scattereth  the 
sheep.  And  the  hireling  flieth,  because  he  is  a  hireling,  and  he  hath 
no  care  for  the  sheep.  I  am  the  good  shepherd  :  I  know  mine,  and 
mine  know  me,  as  the  Father  knoweth  me,  and  I  know  the  Father  ; 
and  I  lay  down  my  life  for  my  sheep.  Other  sheep  I  have  that  are 
not  of  this  fold  :  them  also  I  must  bring,  and  they  shall  hear  my 
voice,  and  there  shall  be  one  fold,  and  one  shepherd.” 

Did  any  one  ever  see  a  more  tender  charity,  or  a  more  generous 
love  ?  But,  instead  of  the  admiration  and  the  gratitude  which  are 
due  to  them,  who  knows  but  that  these  grovelling  souls  only  found 
simplicity  and  folly  in  that  heroic  disinterestedness  which  goes  to 
the  length  of  sacrificing  his  life  for  others?  Yet  it  might  so  happen 
that  his  death,  which  was  to  be  a  violent  one,  might  not  appear  to  be 
voluntary,  and  that  the  world  might  not  be  thoroughly  persuaded 
that  he  had  given  for  his  sheep  a  life  which  should  be  taken  from 
him  by  force.  To  anticipate  and  prevent  these  errors,  he  declares 
two  things  :  one,  that  in  dying,  he  shall  accomplish  the  wishes  of  his 
Father,  ever  dictated  by  infinite  wisdom  ;  the  other,  that  he  is  per¬ 
fect  master  of  his  own  life,  and  is  able  to  resume  it  after  having 
given  it  up  ;  which  proves  the  perfect  liberty  of  his  sacrifice,  and 
shows  forth,  in  the  most  favorable  light,  the  immense  bounty  of  the 
Father,  who  delivers  his  only  Son  ;  and  that  of  the  Son,  who  deliv- 


OF  O'UR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


ers  liimself  for  unfortunate  creatures,  from  whom  he  had  nothing  to 
expect,  and  to  whom  he  owed  nothing  hut  chastisement.  He  con¬ 
cludes,  therefore,  by  these  words  :  “  Therefore  doth  the  Father  love 
me,  because  I  lay  down  my  life  that  I  may  take  it  again.  No  man 
taketh  it  away  from  me  ;  but  I  lay  it  down  of  myself.  I  have  pow¬ 
er  to  lay  it  down,  and  I  have  power  to  take  it  up  again.  This  com¬ 
mandment  have  I  received  of  my  Father. 

“A  dissension  arose  again  among  the  Jews  for  these  words.  Many 
of  them  said  :  He  hath  a  devil,  and  is  mad  :  why  hear  ye  him  ? 
Others  said  :  These  are  not  the  words  of  one  who  hath  a  devil. 
Can  a  devil  open  the  eyes  of  the  blind  ?” 


END  OF  TART  L 


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■  .  .  '  v 


:  .  • 


PART  II. 


FROM  THE  MISSION  OF  THE  SEVENTY-TWO  DISCIPLES  UNTIL  THE  AS¬ 
CENSION  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

ELECTION,  MISSION,  AND  INSTRUCTION  OF  THE  SEVENTY-TWO  DISCIPLES. - THEIR  RE¬ 
TURN. - NAMES  WRITTEN  IN  HEAVEN. — -HAPPY  THE  EYES  THAT  HAVE  SEEN  JESUS 

CHRIST  ! - HIS  YOKE  IS  SWEET,  AND  HIS  BURDEN  IS  LIGHT. - LOVE  OF  GOD  AND  OF 

OUR  NEIGHBOR. - THE  GOOD  SAMARITAN. - MARTHA  AND  MARY. 

It  is  commonly  thought  that  Jesus  then  departed  from  Jerusalem 
to  return  into  Galilee.  Before  his  departure,  or  after  his  arrival — 
for  we  find  nothing  decisive  on  the  subject,  nor  whether  the  new 
mission  which  he  set  on  foot  at  that  time  was  for  Judea  or  for  Gali¬ 
lee- — however  the  matter  may  be,  it  is  written  that  (a)  “  after  these 
things  the  Lord  appointed  also  other  seventy-two,  and  he  sent  them 
two  and  two  before  his  face  into  every  city  and  place  whither  he 
was  to  come  (1)  ;  and  he  said  to  them,”  as  he  said  to  the  other  apos¬ 
tles  when  he  sent  them  to  exercise  the  same  ministry  :  “  The  harvest 
indeed  is  great,  but  the  laborers  are  few.  Pray  ye,  therefore,  the 
Lord  of  the  harvest,  that  he  send  laborers  into  the  harvest.  Go  [ he 
further  addedh\  ;  behold  I  send  you  as  lambs  among  the  wolves.  Car¬ 
ry  neither  purse,  nor  scrip,  nor  shoes,  and  salute  no  man  by  the 
way  (2).  Into  whatsoever  house  you  enter,  first  say  :  Peace  be  to 

(a)  St.  Luke,  x.  1—12. 


(1)  He  intended  shortly  to  follow  them  in  person.  At  present,  also,  he  follows  them, 
but  by  his  grace.  For  in  the  ordinary  conduct  of  God,  preaching,  as  Saint  Gregory  says, 
goes  in  advance,  and  the  Lord  comes  to  dwell  in  our  souls  after  the  hallowed  word  hath 
prepared  the  way.  Thus  all  preachers  may  be  called  the  precursors  of  Jesus  Christ. 

(2)  This  discourse  of  the  Saviour  is  merely  the  repetition  of  the  first  part  of  that  which 
he  made  to  the  apostles,  page  180,  and  seq.,  chapter  xxiii.,  Part  I.,  to  which  we  refer 
for  the  illustrations.  However,  there  is  some  slight  difference.  These  words,  for  in¬ 
stance:  Salute  no  man  by  the  way,  are  only  found  in  this  passage.  They  merely  inter¬ 
dict  those  civilities  which  might  cause  considerable  delay  ;  but  not  a  passing  salute,  with- 


[part  n. 

this  house  ;  and  if  the  son  of  peace  be  there,  your  peace  shall  rest 
upon  him  ;  but  if  not,  it  shall  return  to  you.  In  the  same  house  re¬ 
main,  eating  and  drinking  such  things  as  they  have  :  for  the  laborer 
is  worthy  of  his  hire.  Remove  not  from  house  to  house  ;  and  into 
what  city  soever  you  enter,  and  they  receive  you,  eat  such  things  as 
are  set  before  you  (3).  Heal  the  sick  that  are  therein,  and  say  to 
them  :  The  kingdom  of  God  is  come  nigh  unto  you.  But  into  what¬ 
soever  city  you  enter,  and  they  receive  you  not,  going  forth  into  the 
streets  thereof,  say  :  Even  the  very  dust  of  your  city  (4)  that  eleav- 
eth  to  us,  we  wipe  off  against  you.  Yet  know  this  [you  must  yet 
say  when  quitting  them ],  know  that  the  kingdom  of  God  is  at  hand. 
I  say  to  you,  it  shall  be  more  tolerable  at  that  day  for  Sodom  than 
for  that  city. 

(a)  “  Then  began  he  to  upbraid  the  cities  wherein  were  done  the 
most  of  his  miracles,  for  that  they  had  not  done  penance.  Woe  to 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xi.  20-23. 


out  stopping  ;  as  if  we  were  to  say  :  If  you  meet  any  of  your  acquaintance,  do  not  tarrj 
to  pay  long  compliments  to  him. 

(3)  One  of  our  brilliant  writers,  whom  religion  shall  never  reckon  amongst  its  panegyr¬ 
ists,  has  asserted  that  Christianity  is  replete  with  good  sense.  His  assertion  was  correct, 
had  he  not  given  it  as  a  great  discovery  of  his  own.  Applying  the  assertion  to  the  pas¬ 
sage  before  us,  nothing  could  be  more  rational  than  this  order  issued  to  the  disciples  : 
Eat  such  things  as  are  set  before  you.  If  the  repast  be  good,  partake  of  it  with  thanks¬ 
giving  :  if  it  be  not  good,  with  resignation.  Bad  example  would  be  the  result  of  an  apos¬ 
tle  appearing  too  fastidious  about  his  food.  But  supposing  he  restricts  himself  within  the 
limits  of  sobriety,  he  would  display  too  great  scrupulosity,  were  he  to  decline  the  viands 
which  are  served  up  to  him,  on  the  ground  of  their  being  too  delicate.  The  apostleship  is 
like  warfare,  wherein  an  individual  sometimes  fares  highly — at  other  times  is  reduced  to 
the  most  frugal  fare.  We  must  know  how,  like  Saint  Paul,  to  avail  ourselves  of  abundance 
when  it  is  offered  to  us,  and  to  endure  want  when  it  becomes  necessary.  One  day  re¬ 
pairs  the  other,  and  enables  us  to  retain  the  strength  which  is  necessary  in  order  to  en¬ 
dure  the  painful  toils  of  the  ministry.  There  is  also  this  additional  reason — that  were 
we  to  abstain  from  touching  the  viands  laid  before  us,  we  would  grieve  the  charitable 
hosts,  who  deem  it  a  religious  duty  to  treat  in  their  very  best  style  those  who  exhaust 
themselves  preaching  the  Gospel.  I  question  whether  this  alone  was  not  a  sufficient 
reason  to  prevent  Jesus  from  fasting  at  the  table  of  Martha  and  Mary. 

(4)  Elsewhere,  Part  I.,  page  181,  note  3,  this  dust  is  shaken  off  the  feet  in  testimony 
against  the  inhabitants.  Here  the  act  is  a  sign  of  detestation.  By  shaking  off  the  dust, 
the  disciples  declare  that  they  wish  to  carry  off  nothing  from  that  accursed  city,  lest  the 
malediction  which  it  hath  drawn  upon  itself  should  remain  in  the  very  dust  which 
they  might  carry  off  with  them,  and  pursue  them  even  beyond  the  accursed  boundaries. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


tliee,  Corazin  !  Woe  to  thee,  Betlisaida  !  for,  if  in  Tyre  and  §idon  (5) 
had  been  wrought  the  miracles  that  have  been  wrought  in  you,  they 
had  long  ago  done  penance  in  sackcloth  and  ashes.  But  I  say  unto 
you,  it  shall  be  more  tolerable  for  Tyre  and  Sidon  in  the  day  of  judg¬ 
ment  than  for  you.  (a)  And  thou,  Capharnaum,  shalt  thou  be  ex¬ 
alted  up  to  heaven  ?  Thou  shalt  go  down  even  unto  hell.  For  if  in 
Sodom  had  been  wrought  the  miracles  that  have  been  wrought  in 
thee,  perhaps  it  had  remained  unto  this  day.”  The  reason  for  this 
difference  of  treatment  is  found  in  the  following  words  which  the  Sa¬ 
viour  addressed  to  his  disciples  :  (Ij)  “  He  [ saith  he  to  them ]  that  hear- 
eth  you  heareth  me  ;  and  he  that  despiseth  you  despiseth  me  ;  and 
he  that  despiseth  me  despiseth  him  that  sent  me” — words  which 
teach  us  that  to  despise  Glod  in  the  person  of  his  ambassadors  is  the 
greatest  of  all  crimes,  since  it  is  that  which  of  all  shall  be  the  most 
rigorously  punished. 

(c)  u  How,  the  seventy-two  returned  with  joy  [at  the  success  of  their 
mission].  Lord  [they  say],  the  devils  also  are  subject  to  us  in  thy 
name.  Jesus  said  to  them  :  I  saw  Satan  like  lightning  falling  from 
heaven.”  Interpreters  are  not  agreed  as  to  the  meaning  of  this  mys¬ 
terious  expression.  Can  it  mean  that  when  the  disciples  cast  out  the 
demons  by  virtue  of  the  name  of  Jesus,  the  Saviour  saw  the  chief  of 
the  infernal  legions  falling  from  the  upper  region  of  the  air,  whence 


(a)  St.  Luke,  x.  15  ;  St.  Mat¬ 
thew,  xi.  23. 


(6)  St.  Luke,  x.  16. 

(c)  St.  Luke,  x.  17-24. 


(5)  Wherefore  hath  not  Jesus  Christ  conferred  upon  those  who  would  have  profited 
by  them  those  abundant  graces  which  he  lavished  upon  those  who  have  abused  them  ? 
This  is  one  of  those  judgments  of  God,  the  depth  of  which  we  must  adore  without  en¬ 
deavoring  to  penetrate.  This  much,  however,  we  are  bound  to  believe:  1st.  That  the 
inhabitants  of  Tyre  and  of  Sidon  were  not  predestined,  since  God  had  not  conferred  upon 
them  the  graces  which  would  have  certainly  saved  them.  2d.  Although  they  had  not 
received  those  graces,  the  effect  of  which  is  certain,  yet  they  shall  be  justly  condemned, 
inasmuch  as  they  have  received  the  succors  which  were  necessary  and  sufficient,  in  order 
to  enable  them  to  abstain  from  those  crimes  which  shall  justly  be  the  cause  of  their  con¬ 
demnation.  3d.  Those  who  have  received  superabundant  grace  shall  be  judged  with 
more  rigor  than  those  who  have  merely  received  enough  ;  the  hell  of  the  Christian 
shall,  therefore,  be  more  rigorous  than  that  of  the  idolater  ;  and,  generally  speaking, 
the  difference  shall  depend  less  upon  the  crimes  committed,  than  upon  the  graces  which 
have  been  spurned  or  rejected  ;  inasmuch  as  greater  crimes,  such  as  were  those  of  Sodom, 
with  lesser  graces,  incur  less  severe  punishment  than  lesser  crimes  with  greater  graces. 


- 


M 

M  ^ 

A?  % 

i 


5^ 


.m 


I'/ 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  II. 


he  exercised  his  tyranny  over  mankind?  or  may  he  not  have  alluded 
at  that  moment  to  the  first  fall  of  Lucifer,  when,  in  punishment  of  his 
revolt,  that  proud  spirit  was  hurled  from  the  height  of  heaven  to  the 
bottom  of  the  abyss  ?  If  the  first  of  these  two  meanings  appears  the 
most  natural,  the  second  is  not  unlikely  ;  for  although  the  disciples 
acknowledged  that  they  had  done  nothing,  except  in  the  name  of 
their  Master,  to  whom  they  referred  all  the  glory  of  their  success, 
they  might,  nevertheless,  feel  a  secret  complacency.  Whilst  ac¬ 
knowledging  that  we  are  merely  the  instruments  of  God,  we  may 
still  pride  ourselves  on  being  preferred  to  the  rest  of  human  beings 
to  serve  as  instruments  for  great  things.  Thus,  in  order  to  repress 
the  pride  which  was  rising  up  in  his  disciples,  or  merely  to  anticipate 
its  growth,  the  example  of  Satan  could  not  be  more  seasonably  in¬ 
troduced.  The  sequel  is  in  perfect  keeping  with  this  explanation. 
“  Behold  [ continues  the  Saviour ],  I  have  given  you  power  to  tread 
upon  serpents  and  scorpions,  and  upon  all  the  power  of  the  enemy  (6), 
and  nothing  shall  hurt  you  ;  but  yet  rejoice  not  in  this,  that  spirits 
are  subject  unto  you;  but  rejoice  (7)  in  this,  that  your  names  are 
written  in  heaven  (8).” 


(6)  The  serpents  and  the  scorpions  are  called  the  power  of  the  enemy,  inasmuch  as 
every  thing  which  is  noxious  in  nature  is  instrumental  to  the  demon  for  the  purpose  of 
injuring  men. 

(7)  Rejoice  in  the  solid  rather  than  in  the  showy — in  the  durable  rather  than  the  fleet¬ 
ing — in  what  renders  us  agreeable  to  God  rather  than  in  that  which  makes  us  appear 
great  before  men.  The  lowest  degree  of  virtue  is  more  valuable  than  the  power  of  rais¬ 
ing  the  dead. 

(8)  Names  may  be  written  in  heaven,  either  by  predestination  or  by  actual  justice. 
When  written  in  the  first  manner,  they  remain  there  forever,  because  the  absolute  de¬ 
crees  of  God  are  immutable.  When  written  in  the  second  way,  the  names  may  be 
effaced,  because  man  may  lose  the  justice  which  gave  him  a  right  to  the  kingdom  of 
heaven.  Now,  in  reference  to  which  of  these  two  methods  of  recording  names  in  heaven 
did  Jesus  Christ  say  to  the  disciples  that  their  names  are  written  in  heaven?  This  is  a 
matter  of  which  we  know  nothing  ;  and  the  Saviour  not  having  explained  himself  further, 
we  should  be  rash  if  we  were  to  venture  to  pronounce  affirmatively  for  either  of  these 
constructions.  The  most  probable  is,  that  he  only  informs  them  that  their  names  are 
written  in  heaven  by  the  title  of  justice.  Had  he  declared  to  them  that  they  were  pre¬ 
destined,  this  favor,  one  of  the  greatest  which  God  can  confer  in  this  world,  would  have 
been  conferred  upon  the  disciples,  and  refused  to  the  apostles— a  state  of  things  which 
cannot  be  conceived.  It  is  quité  true  that  the  latter  were  confirmed  in  grace,  and  that 
their  predestination  was  certain  ;  but  they  themselves  had  no  certainty  as  to  the  fact, 


'a  a  <a  a  o  o  a  « 


CHAP.  XXXIX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


297 


The  best  of  all  masters  could  not  be  insensible  to  the  progress 
wliich  bis  beloved  disciples  were  making  in  the  knowledge  of  the 
things  of  heaven.  “  In  that  same  hour  he  rejoiced  in  the  Holy  Grhost, 
and  said  :  I  confess  to  thee,  O  Father,  Lord  of  heaven  and  earth,  be¬ 
cause  thou  hast  hidden  these  things  from  the  wise  and  prudent,  and 
hast  revealed  them  to  little  ones  (9).  Yea,  Father  \thou  hast  done 
6“o],  for  so  it  hath  seemed  good  in  thy  sight  (10).” 

Jesus  spoke  thus  in  order  that  his  disciples,  who  received  this  rev¬ 
elation  immediately  from  him,  might  not  be  ignorant  that  it  came 
from  his  Father,  who  was  for  this  reason  the  final  term  of  their  grat¬ 
itude.  But  this  truth  ought  not  to  conceal  another,  viz.,  that  the 
Son,  as  well  as  the  Father,  has  this  revelation  at  his  disposal,  and 
that  in  communicating  it  always  in  accordance  with  the  views  and 
desires  of  the  Father,  the  Son  does,  nevertheless,  so  communicate 
with  equal  independence,  since  he  only  imparts  it  to  those  whom  he 
pleases  to  enlighten.  Such  are  the  great  truths  comprised  in  these 


and  they  always  believed  that  they  might  sin  and  be  lost.  We  have  a  proof  of  this  in 
Saint  Paul.  We  can  have  no  reason  for  doubting  that  he  also  must  have  received  this 
precious  assurance,  if  such  had  been  given  to  the  other  apostles.  And  yet  he  said  :  But 
1  chastise  my  body,  and  bring  it  into  subjection,  lest  'perhaps,  when  I  have  preached  to 
others,  I  myself  should  become  a  cast-away.  Could  a  man  assured  of  his  predestination 
have  used  such  language  as  that  ? 

He  that  shall  overcome,  said  Jesus  Christ  in  the  Apocalypse,  iii.  5,  I  will  not  blot  out 
his  name  out  of  the  book  6f  life.  Doth  not  this  mode  of  expression  seem  to  say  that 
names  written  in  the  book  of  life  may  still  be  effaced,  and  does  it  not  confirm  the  expla¬ 
nation  which  we  have  stated  to  be  the  most  probable  ' 

(9)  Saint  Chrysostom  judiciously  remarks,  that  Jesus»,  hrist  doth  not  bless  his  Father, 
because  those  things  are  hidden  from  the  wise,  but  because  they  are  revealed  to  the  sim¬ 
ple.  The  expression  is  tantamount  to  this  :  I  bless  thee,  my  Father,  for  having  revealed 
to  the  simple  these  mysteries  of  which  thou  hast  left  the  wise  in  ignorance.  To  hide  has 
no  more  extensive  signification  here.  In  this  sense,  these  mysteries  have  been  hidden 
from  the  wise,  who  have  not  sought  to  discover  them,  and  revealed  to  the  simple,  who 
have  only  sought  them  because  God  conferred  upon  them  the  desire  of  obtaining  the 
revelation  thereof.  Justice  is  exhibited  towards  the  first  class — pure  mercy  is  displayed 
in  reference  to  the  second  class.  To  the  righteous  a  light  is  risen  up  in  darkness.  Those 
who  are  not  righteous  have  not  descried  the  light.  It  is  apparent  that,  in  reference  to 
both  classes,  the  Lord  is  mercif  ul,  and  compassionate,  and  just. — Psalm  cxi. 

(10)  God  owes  it  to  himself  to  love  all  his  works.  Thou  lovest  all  things  that  are,  and 
/latest  none  of  the  things  which  thou  hast  made. — Book  of  Wisdom,  xi.  25.  But  he  owes 
to  no  one  the  favors  and  the  graces  of  his  own  choice,  of  which  we  should  seek  no  other 
cause  than  his  good  pleasure. 


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298 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  II, 


brief  expressions  :  “All  things  are  delivered  unto  me  by  my  Father  ; 
and  no  one  knoweth  who  the  Son  is,  but  the  Father  ;  and  who  the 
Father  is,  but  the  Son  ;  and  to  whom  the  Son  will  reveal  him.” 

“  Then  turning  to  his  disciples,  he  said,”  as  he  had  before  said  to 
the  apostles  when  he  explained  to  them  the  mysteries  of  the  king¬ 
dom  of  God  :  “  Blessed  are  the  eyes  that  see  the  things  which  you 
see  !  for  I  say  to  you,  that  many  prophets  and  kings  have  desired  to 
see  the  things  that  you  see,  and  have  not  seen  them  ;  and  to  hear 
the  things  that  you  hear,  and  have  not  heard  them.” 

Afterwards,  addressing  himself  to  the  people  who  thronged  in 
crowds  to  listen  to  him,  (a)  “  Come  [said  this  charitable  Saviour^ 
come  to  me,  all  you  that  labor,  and  are  burdened,  and  I  will  refresh 
you.  Take  up  my  yoke  upon  you,  and  learn  of  me,  because  I  am 
meek,  and  humble  of  heart  (11),  and  you  shall  find  rest  to  your 
souls  ;  for  my  yoke  is  sweet,  and  my  burden  is  light.” 

About  that  time  (it  appears  likely  that  this  fact  took  place  m  a 
synagogue):  “A  certain  lawyer  stood  up  tempting  Jesus,  saying: 
Master,  what  must  I  do  to  possess  eternal  life  ?  Jesus  said  to  him  : 
What  is  written  in  the  law?  ^ How  readest  thou?  He  answering, 
said:  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  thy  whole  heart,  and  with 
thy  whole  soul,  and  with  all  thy  strength,  and  with  all  thy  mind  (12), 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xi.  28-30. 


(11)  And  you  shall  find  that  T  un  not  a  hard  and  haughty  master,  as  earthly  masters 
usually  are,  but  that  I  am  a  Piaster  full  of  meekness  and  affability.  Such  is  the  literal 
meaning  of  these  words.  But  it  is,  moreover,  so  evident  that  Jesus  Christ  teaches  us, 
by  his  example,  to  he  meek  and  humble  of  heart,  and  experience  has  so  well  taught  that 
in  these  virtues  alone  can  true  peace  be  found,  that  it  is  not  surprising  if  this  text  is  usu¬ 
ally  made  use  of  to  express  both  these  truths. 

(12)  To  love  God  with  all  one’s  heart,  with  all  one’s  soul,  with  all  one’s  strength,  and 
with  one’s  whole  mind,  is  tantamount  to  giving  to  God  all  one’s  affections,  sensibilities, 
thoughts,  and  works  ;  it  is,  in  a  word,  perfectly  loving  God.  This  perfection  is  not  at¬ 
tainable  in  this  life,  wherein  the  gold  of  charity  is  never  without  alloy,  and  in  heaven 
alone  hath  this  precept  its  full  accomplishment.  However,  as  regards  perfection,  it  is  an 
obligation  in  this  life  to  tend  incessantly  thereunto,  and  to  labor  in  augmenting  our  love, 
until  it  engrosses  all  our  mind,  replenishes  our  whole  heart,  and  exhausts  all  our  strength. 
We  should  infinitely  love  a  being  infinitely  amiable.  God  alone  can  thus  acquit  himself 
towards  himself.  Yet  the  creature,  whilst  incapable  of  infinite  love,  should  at  least  love 
God  without  any  other  limits  than  those  which  God  hath  given  to  his  capacity  for  lov- 


CHAP.  XXXIX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


299 


and  thy  neighbor  as  thyself  (13).  Thou  hast  answered  right,  said 
Jesus  to  him  :  this  do,  and  thou  shalt  live.” 

By  giving  himself  the  answer  to  his  own  question,  the  lawyer 
showed  clearly  enough  that  he  had  not  put  the  question  with  the 
design  of  obtaining  information.  When  we  wish  to  learn  a  thing, 
we  seek  not  to  be  informed  of  what  we  already  know.  He  had, 
therefore,  some  other  intention,  which  could  not  have  been  a  good 
one  :  the  bystanders  had  at  least  a  right  to  suspect  him  of  some  evil 
purpose  Whereupon,  “  willing  to  justify  himself,”  he  put  another 
question  still  more  difficult  to  be  resolved,  especially  at  that  time, 
when  the  duties  of  charity  were  not  so  clearly  known  as  they  have 
been  since  the  promulgation  of  the  Gospel.  “  He  said  [therefore]  to 
Jesus  :  And  who  is  my  neighbor  ?  Jesus  answering,  said:  A  certain 
man  went  down  from  Jerusalem  to  Jericho,  and  fell  among  robbers, 
who  stripped  him,  and  having  wounded  him,  went  away,  leaving  him 
half  dead.  It  chanced  that  a  certain  priest  went  down  the  same 
way,  and  seeing  him,  passed  by  ;  in  like  manner  also  a  Levite,  when 
he  was  near  the  place  and  saw  him,  passed  by  ;  but  a  certain  Samar- 


ing  ;  this  is  the  meaning  of  that  expression  of  Saint  Bernard,  which  comprises  a  very  ex¬ 
act  proposition  :  The  measure  of  loving  God  is  to  love  him  immeasurably . 

To  think  that  we  love  God  as  much  as  he  deserves  to  be  loved,  exhibits  our  utter  ig¬ 
norance  of  him  ;  and  to  think  that  we  love  him  as  much  as  we  might  love  him,  displays 
a  want  of  self-knowledge. 

(13)  And  not  as  much  as  ourselves  ;  for  we  have  a  right  to  the  preference,  and,  in  cer¬ 
tain  circumstances,  we  are  bound  to  give  that  preference  to  ourselves.  For  instance,  we 
are  bound  to  prefer  our  own  salvation  to  the  salvation  of  any  other  person,  and  even  to 
the  salvation  of  the  whole  world.  But  we  are  obliged  to  sacrifice  our  own  life,  if  neces¬ 
sary,  for  the  eternal  salvation  of  one  single  soul.  Those  who  inquire  whether  we  should 
sacrifice  our  own  perfection  for  the  salvation  of  our  neighbor,  forget  that  to  labor  for  the 
salvation  of  one’s  neighbor  is  a  more  perfect  work  than  all  those  we  might  execute  in  lieu 
of  this  performance.  With  regard  to  corporal  emoluments,  whilst  we  are  entitled  by 
right  to  prefer  ourselves  to  others,  we  are  not  bound  so  to  act.  On  the  contrary,  it  is  a 
highly  perfect  charity  to  prefer  others  to  ourselves  ;  and  the  right  of  preferring  others 
to  ourselves  only  arises  when  the  same  wants  press  concurrently  on  both  parties.  Thus, 
I  am  entitled  by  right  not  to  yield  up  to  another  what  is  absolutely  necessary  for  my 
own  life  ;  but  I  am  obliged  to  sacrifice  my  superfluity  for  the  wants  of  another,  my  com¬ 
forts  for  his  necessities  ;  and  to  convey  this  in  the  language  of  Scripture,  I  can  keep  for 
myself  the  morsel  of  bread  necessary  for  my  sustenance,  and  the  only  tunic  I  have  to 
cover  myself  ;  but  if  I  have  an  entire  loaf,  I  should  divide  it  with  him  who  is  hungry  ; 
and  if  I  have  two  tunics,  I  should  give  one  to  him  who  has  none. 


300 


THE  HISTORY  OF  TIIE  LIFE 


[part  n. 

itan  being  on  his  journey,  came  near  him,  and  seeing  him,  was  moved 
with  compassion.  Going  up  to  him,  he  bound  his  wounds,  pouring 
in  oil  and  wine  ;  and  setting  him  upon  his  own  beast,  brought  him 
to  an  inn,  and  took  care  of  him.  The  next  day  he  took  out  two 
pence,  and  gave  to  the  host,  and  said  :  Take  care  of  him,  and  what¬ 
soever  thou  shalt  spend  over  and  above,  I  at  my  return  will  repay 
thee.  Which  of  these  three,  in  thy  opinion,  was  neighbor  (14)  to 
him  that  fell  among  the  robbers  ?  But  he  said  :  He  that  showed 
mercy  to  him.  Whereupon  Jesus  said  to  him  :  Go,  and  do  thou  in 
like  manner.” 

Jesus  then  made  some  evangelical  excursions.  “It  came  to  pass, 
as  they  went,  that  he  entered  into  a  town,  and  a  certain  woman 
named  Martha  received  him  into  her  house.  She  had  a  sister  called 
Mary,  who,  sitting  also  at  the  Lord’s  feet,  heard  his  word.”  At  the 
same  time  that  she  nourished  her  piety,  she  fulfilled  a  duty  of  civili¬ 
ty.  It  was  only  reasonable  that  whilst  they  were  waiting  for  the 
repast,  some  inmate  of  the  house  should  remain  with  a  guest  so 
distinguished.  “  But  Martha  was  busy  about  much  serving  ;  who 
stood  and  said  :  Lord,  hast  thou  no  care  that  my  sister  hath  left  me 
alone  to  serve  ?  Speak  to  her,  therefore,  that  she  help  me.  Martha, 


(14)  That  is  to  say,  who  treated  him  as  a  neighbor;  for  this  was  the  point  in  question. 
The  word  neighbor  is  a  relative  term  :  if  I  be  your  neighbor,  you  are  my  neighbor.  We 
may,  therefore,  say,  I  am  your  neighbor,  in  order  to  signify,  I  regard  you  as  my  neigh¬ 
bor.  It  must  have  been  so  understood  by  the  Jews,  because  the  doctor  of  the  law,  a 
man  belonging  to  a  cavilling  profession,  does  not  here  object  to  these  terms.  This 
statement  teaches  us  three  things  :  1st,  that  the  quality  of  neighbor  extends  to  all 
men  without  exception,  since,  despite  of  national  antipathy  and  opposition  in  religion,  the 
Samaritan  is  neighbor  to  the  Jew,  and  the  Jew  to  the  Samaritan  :  2d,  that  there  is  no 
real  charity  in  regard  to  our  neighbor,  except  what  is  proved  by  actions  :  3d,  that  the 
simple,  when  their  dispositions  are  good,  know  their  duties  better  than  the  learned,  since 
it  is  a  Samaritan  who  here  gives  a  lesson  to  Jews,  and  a  layman  to  priests  and  doctors. 

These  truths,  which  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  our  Saviour  wished  to  teach  the  doc¬ 
tor  by  the  example  of  the  Samaritan,  gives  us  to  understand,  in  perhaps  the  clearest  man¬ 
ner,  that  this  is  a  real  statement,  and  not  simply  a  parable.  Parables  may  serve  to  de¬ 
velop  a  truth,  and  to  render  it  more  sensible,  but  it  is  only  a  real  fact,  and  not  a  suppo¬ 
sition,  that  can  be  set  forth  by  way  of  example.  You  cannot  prove  to  a  Christian  that 
he  can  learn  from  a  Mahometan  charity  towards  one’s  neighbor,  by  pretending  that  the 
Mahometan  had  exercised  it  in  a  circumstance  wherein  a  great  number  of  Christians  do 
not  exercise  it.  But  if  this  Mahometan  has  exercised  it  in  point  of  fact,  his  example  is 
proof,  and  no  further  reply  can  be  made. 


Martha,  the  Lord  answering,  said  to  her,  thou  art  careful  and  art 
troubled  about  many  things.  But  one  thing  is  necessary  (15). 
Mary  hath  chosen  the  best  part,  which  shall  not  be  taken  away  from 
her  (16).”  By  this  short  answer  he  apologized  for  those  who  give 
to  the  repose  of  contemplation  all  the  time  which  is  not  engrossed 
by  duty  ;  and  he  vindicated  them  beforehand  from  the  impious  rail¬ 
leries  which  they  have  to  encounter  from  libertines,  and  the  indecent 
sarcasms  often  launched  against  them  by  impious  cavillers. 


(15)  Several  interpreters  understand  this  expression  as  referring  to  a  single  sort  of  food, 
whence  they  conclude  that  the  Saviour  here  reproved  Martha’s  superfluous  care  in  pre¬ 
paring  several  dishes.  This  sense,  besides  conveying  a  moral,  appears  to  flow  naturally 
enough  from  the  text.  However,  as  it  is  stated  that  Jesus  Christ  travelled  with  his  dis¬ 
ciples — and  we  cannot  believe  but  that  the  two  sisters  invited  them  with  their  Master — 
a  single  dish,  supposing  even  that  it  was  sufficient  in  quantity,  could  not  with  decency  be 
presented  before  so  numerous  a  company  ;  and  this  construction,  so  natural  in  itself,  is 
already  met  by  this  first  difficulty.  Another  more  embarrassing  one  is,  that  it  appears, 
by  the  sequel  of  the  discourse,  that  the  Saviour  here  opposes  occupation  to  occupation — 
that  of  Mary  to  that  of  Martha.  Mary,  saith  he,  hath  chosen  the  best  part,  which  is  equiv¬ 
alent  to  saying  that  that  of  Martha  is  not  so  good.  What,  then,  else  can  the  one  thing 
necessary  signify,  but  the  affair  of  salvation  in  which  Mary  was  directly  occupied,  whilst 
Martha,  whose  occupation  was  not  counter  to  it,  labored  only  indirectly  thereunto  ?  for 
the  direct  object  of  her  labor  was  bodily  refreshment,  which  cannot  be  the  only  thing 
necessary,  but  which  may  bear  a  reference  to  it,  and  which  actually  did  bear  a  reference 
to  it  in  the  circumstance  wherein  Martha  found  herself  placed.  The  part  which  she  had 
chosen  was,  therefore,  good;  but  that  of  Mary,  who  was  solely  occupied  with  Jesus 
Christ  and  his  speech,  was  best. 

Contemplation  is  better  than  action,  which  is  not  obligatory  ;  but  if  the  action  were 
obligatory,  contemplation  substituted  in  its  stead  would  be  but  an  illusion. 

The  union  of  both  constitutes  the  perfection  of  this  life,  in  which  prayer  is  necessary, 
and  labor  indispensable. 

(16)  Action,  which  presupposes  wants  and  miseries,  shall  pass  away  with  this  life, 
which  is  replete  with  them.  Contemplation  shall  remain,  or  rather,  shall  be  more  per¬ 
fect,  when,  instead  of  that  feeble  ray  of  the  eternal  splendor  which  it  merely  catches  a 
glimpse  of  here  below,  it  shall  see  that  light  in  its  source,  and  the  divine  essence  in  itself. 


rvWT  'j  ynij "'iiuf  ,JW«|'  j 


THE  LORD  8  PRAYER,  ACCORDING  TO  SAINT  LUKE. - PERSEVERANCE  IN  PRAYER. - 

GOD  GIVES  WHAT  IS  NECESSARY. - THE  PURE  EYE. - THE  PHARISEES  CONDEMNED. 

We  shall  give  the  following  facts  in  the  order  in  which  they  are 
placed  by  one  of  the  evangelists.  It  is  impossible  to  assign  them 
precise  dates  as  to  time  and  place.  Had  we  a  knowledge  of  these 
matters,  our  curiosity  might  be  more  gratified  ;  but  would  we  be 
more  edified  thereby,  or  receive  more  salutary  instruction  ?  The 
reader  will  also  meet  with  some  discourses  of  the  Saviour  which 
seem  to  be  only  a  repetition  of  other  discourses  which  we  have  al¬ 
ready  noted.  So  they  are  in  point  of  fact,  not  because  one  evangel¬ 
ist  states  over  again  what  another  evangelist  had  already  stated 
(those  statements  which  are  repeated  in  this  manner  are  only  once 
given  in  this  work),  but  because  the  Saviour  himself  pronounced 
them  more  than  once,  and  in  different  circumstances.  Moreover,  as 
it  scarcely  ever  happens  that  they  are  exactly  alike,  it  will  not  be 
considered  irksome  to  read  over  again  what  Jesus  Christ  has  not 
deemed  it  useless  to  repeat. 

(a)  “  It  came  to  pass  that  as  he  was  in  a  certain  place  praying, 
when  he  ceased,  one  of  his  disciples  said  to  him  :  Lord,  teach  us  to 
pray,  as  John  also  taught  his  disciples.  He  said  to  them:  When 
you  pray,  say  :  Father,  hallowed  be  thy  name,  thy  kingdom  come  ; 
give  us  this  day  our  daily  bread  ;  forgive  us  our  sins,  for  we  also  for¬ 
give  every  one  that  is  indebted  to  us,  and  lead  us  not  into  tempta¬ 
tion.” 

This  was  a  good  opportunity  to  make  better  known  to  the  disci¬ 
ples  the  utility  and  efficacy  of  prayer.  Wherefore  “  J esus  then  said 
to  them  [ making  use  of  figures  and  sensible  comparisons ,  according 
to  his  usual  custom ]  :  Which  of  you  shall  have  a  friend,  and  shall  go 
to  him  at  midnight,  and  shall  say  to  him  :  Friend,  lend  me  three 
loaves,  because  a  friend  of  mine  is  come  off  his  journey  to  me,  and 
I  have  not  what  to  set  before  him  ;  and  he  from  within  should  an- 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xi.  1-13. 


V 


O  ao  3  3  0  0  o  • 


^ri 

Iwl 

Id] 

\\.l  !// 

O _  '// 


w 


OJF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


303 


CHAP.  XL.] 

swer  and  say  :  Trouble  me  not,  the  door  is  now  shut,  and  my  chil¬ 
dren  are  with  me  in  bed  ;  I  cannot  rise  and  give  thee.  Yet  if  he 
shall  continue  knocking,  I  say  to  you  :  Although  he  will  not  rise  and 
give  him,  because  he  is  a  friend  ;  yet  because  of  his  importunity  he 
will  rise,  and  give  him  as  many  as  he  needeth.  And  I  say  unto 
you  :  Ask,  and  it  shall  be  given  to  you.  Seek,  and  you  shall  find. 
Knock,  and  it  shall  be  opened  to  you.  For  every  one  that  asketh, 
receiveth  ;  and  he  that  seeketh,  findeth  ;  and  to  him  that  knocketh, 
it  shall  be  opened.” 

Thus,  provided  that  perseverance  be  joined  to  fervor,  it  is  certain, 
we  should  even  say  that  it  is  of  faith,  that  the  prayer  will  be  heard, 
even  when  it  does  not  appear  to  be  so.  For,  and  this  it  is  which 
renders  this  faith  doubtful  and  vacillating,  it  frequently  happens 
that  prayer  has  the  qualities  we  have  just  spoken  of,  and  yet  we  do 
not  see  it  followed  by  any  effect.  Thereupon  doubt  arises,  and  con¬ 
fidence  grows  weak.  The  reason  is,  that  we  do  not  consider  how 
we  often  ask  for  that  which,  in  point  of  fact,  would  be  injurious  to 
us.  We  are  ignorant  of  the  real  nature  of  what  we  ask,  and  this  is 
the  reason  why  we  ask  it.  God  knows  exactly  what  the  thing  is, 
and,  consequently,  he  refuses  it  to  us.  Shall  we  call  this  rigor  or  ob¬ 
duracy  on  his  part  ?  But  his  goodness  does  not  stop  here.  In  place 
of  the  apparent  good  and  real  evil  which  we  ask  for,  he  gives  us  that 
which  is  really  salutary,  what  we  should  have  asked  for  by  name, 
and  in  preference  to  every  thing  else,  if  we  knew  its  properties  as  he 
does,  or  if  we  had  foreseen  its  consequences.  Thus  it  is  that  he  real¬ 
ly  grants  while  appearing  to  refuse,  and  such  is  the  sense  concealed 
under  these  words  which  the  Saviour  adds  :  “  Which  of  you,  if  you 
ask  his  father  for  bread,  will  he  give  him  a  stone  ?  or  a  fish,  will  he 
for  a  fish  give  him  a  serpent  ?  Or  if  he  shall  ask  an  egg,  will  he  give 
him  a  scorpion  ?  If  you,  then,  being  evil,  know  how  to  give  good 
gifts  to  your  children,  how  much  more  will  your  Father  from  heav¬ 
en  give  the  good  Spirit  to  them  that  ask  him.” 

The  following  maxims  had  been  already  pronounced  in  the  pres¬ 
ence  of  the  apostles,  but  it  is  highly  probable  that  the  greater  part 
of  the  disciples  had  not  heard  them.  Jesus  then  repeats  them,  and 
says  :  (a)  “  No  man  lighteth  a  candle,  and  putteth  it  in  a  hidden 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xi.  33-54. 


304 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


.[part  H. 

place,  nor  under  a  bushel  ;  but  upon  a  candlestick,  that  they  that 
come  in  may  see  the  light  (1).  The  light  of  thy  body  is  thy  eye. 
If  thy  eye  be  single,  thy  whole  body  will  be  lightsome  ;  but  if  it  be 
evil,  thy  body  also  will  be  darksome.  Take  heed,  therefore,  that 
the  light  which  is  in  thee  be  not  darkness.  If,  then,  thy  whole  body 
be  lightsome,  having  no  part  of  darkness,  the  whole  shall  be  light¬ 
some,  and  as  a  bright  lamp  shall  enlighten  thee. 

“  As  Jesus  was  speaking,  a  certain  Pharisee  prayed  him  that  he 
would  dine  with  him.  Jesus  going  in,  sat  down  to  eat.  And  the 
Pharisee  began  to  say,  thinking  within  himself,  why  Jesus  was  not 
washed  before  dinner.  The  Lord  \who  saw  his  thoughts ]  said  to 
him”  and  to  the  others  of  his  sect,  several  of  whom  had  been  invited 
to  this  repast  :  “  Now-,  you  Pharisees  make  clean  the  outside  of  the 
cup  and  of  the  platter;  but  your  inside  is  full  of  rapine  and  in¬ 
iquity.” 

Here  man  is  compared  to  a  vase,  of  which  the  body  is  the  outside, 
and  the  soul  is  the  inside.  Now  the  Pharisees,  who  were  very  ex¬ 
act  in  washing  the  body,  but  gave  themselves  little  trouble  in  puri¬ 
fying  the  soul,  were  like  unto  him  who  should  take  pains  to  clean 
the  outside  of  a  vase,  whilst  he  left  the  inside  full  of  filth.  A  ser¬ 
vant  who  did  so  would  be  deemed  a  fool  ;  wherefore  the  Saviour 
does  not  spare  them,  and,  profiting  by  this  occasion,  tells  them  to 
their  faces  what  they  but  too  well  deserved  to  hear.  “Ye  fools 
[said  he  to  them ],  did  not  he  that  made  that  which  is  without,  make 
also  that  which  is  within  ?  But  yet  [ added  he ,  for  he  wished  merely 
to  humble  them ,  and  not  to  drive  them  to  despair]  that  which  remain- 
eth  give  alms;  and  behold  all  things  are  clean  unto  you  (2).” 

To  neglect  alms-giving  which  is  of  precept,  in  order  to  attach 
themselves  superstitiously  to  usages  which  God  never  prescribed, 


.  (1)  Part  I.,  page  120. 

(2)  That  is  to  say,  your  conscience  shall  be  purified:  thenceforth  all  shall  be  pure  be¬ 
fore  God,  who  knows  no  other  purity  or  impurity  than  that  of  the  conscience.  Alms-giving 
doth  not  directly  and  of  itself  purify  it  ;  this  purification  can  only  be  the  effect  of  pen¬ 
ance  ;  but  penance  is  conferred  upon  alms-giving,  which  we  thus  find  to  be  the  first  cause 
of  the  sinner’s  justification.  It  ie  in  this  sense  that  we  should  understand  the  texts  of 
Scripture  which  promise  to  alms-giving  the  remission  of  sins.  These  promises  are  so 
formal  that  we  venture  to  give  assurance  that,  of  those  who  give  abundant  alms,  very 
few,  if  any,  are  reprobates.  This,  however,  is  only  our  own  idea. 


CHAP.  XL.J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


and  which  were  merely  founded  on  human  traditions,  was  one  of 
the  illusions  of  the  Pharisees.  Another  was,  to  think  themselves 
just,  because  they  scrupulously  observed  the  smallest  precepts,  whilst 
they  failed  in  the  fundamental  duties  of  religion  and  morality  ;  this 
is  what  Jesus  Christ  anathematizes  in  these  words:  “Woe  to  you, 
Pharisees,  because  you  tithe  mint  and  rue,  and  every  herb,  and  pass 
over  judgment  and  the  charity  of  God.  Now,  these  things  you  ought 
to  have  done,  and  not  to  leave  the  other  undone  (3).”  Then  he 
strikes  at  their  pride,  and  unmasks  their  hypocrisy:  “Woe  to  you, 
Pharisees  [ said  lie  again ],  because  you  love  the  uppermost  seats  in 
the  synagogues,  and  salutations  in  the  market-place  (4).  Woe  to 
you  !  because  you  are  as  sepulchres  that  appear  not  (5),  and  men 
that  walk  over  are  not  aware.” 


(3)  Here  is  one  of  those  oracles  which  comprise  more  meaning  than  entire  volumes 
can  contain.  By  regulating  the  order  of  duties,  he  insures  the  observation  of  all.  To 
fail  in  the  principal  duties,  whilst  we  scrupulously  observe  the  minor  ones,  if  not  the  ef¬ 
fect  of  a  detestable  hypocrisy,  is  at  least  the  grossest  of  illusions.  The  contrary  illusion 
which  induces  us  to  spurn  trifling  duties,  and  only  value  those  which  appear  important  ; 
this  illusion,  I  say,  though  less  glaring,  is  not  the  less  dangerous  ;  and  inasmuch  as  it  is 
more  common,  it  is  found  to  be  still  more  pernicious.  We  may  fail  in  slight  duties,  and 
we  often  do  fail  from  surprise,  from  inattention,  or  from  weakness.  But  to  fail  therein 
from  an  impression  that  God  does  not  require  them,  is  to  contradict  his  word.  Yet  to 
believe  that  he  does  require  them,  and  still  to  deem  them  insignificant,  is  equivalent  to  re¬ 
garding  himself  insignificant.  To  say  that  we  degrade  ourselves  by  accomplishing  them, 
is  elevating  ourselves  as  high  as  God,  or  lowering  him  to  our  own  level  ;  it  is  at  least  rank¬ 
ing  him  below  every  thing  which  we  respect  in  the  world  ;  for  do  we  blush  to  render  the 
slightest  services  to  the  great  ones  of  the  earth  ?  To  insult  those  who  do  fulfil  them  is 
outraging  the  saints,  and  in  their  person  Him  whom  they  serve  with  that  perfect  fidelity 
which  we  make  the  cause  of  our  unjust  contempt.  To  esteem  ourselves  more  than  them, 
because  we  do  not  stop,  as  it  is  said,  at  these  trifles,  is  endeavoring  to  extract  glory  from 
the  baseness  of  our  own  motives.  For  to  obey  God  merely  upon  important  occasions, 
and  when,  robed  in  thunder,  he  threatens  disobedience  with  eternal  chastisements,  is  act¬ 
ing  merely  from  the  motive  of  servile  fear.  But  to  obey  him  when  we  might  disobey 
him  without  crime,  to  execute  his  will  when  he  appears  to  entreat  rather  than  to  com¬ 
mand,  is  acting  from  love  ;  for  what  other  motive  can  sustain  obedience,  when  there  is 
neither  paradise  to  lose  nor  hell  to  dread?  Yet  this  is  precisely  what  is  termed  little¬ 
ness  of  mind,  whilst  the  individual  with  low  and  grovelling  virtues  (if  even  this  be  not  too 
much  to  say)  is  pleased  to  consider  himself  enlightened  and  strong-minded. 

(4)  Could  we  believe,  if  we  did  not  hear  it  from  the  mouth  of  him  who  is  truth  itself, 
that  the  immoderate  desire  for  distinctions  and  pre-eminence  is  sufficient  to  deserve  this 
dreadful  malediction  ? 

(5)  Covered  sepulchres,  concealed  vices  ;  whitened  sepulchres,  vices  embellished  with 
the  colors  of  virtue. 

20 


l 

Vffi if 


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§  A 

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Mi 

^  ^ 


s 


306 


THE  HISTORY  OP  THE  LIFE 


[part  II. 


Besides  the  Pharisees,  there  were  several  doctors  of  the  law  at 
this  entertainment.  Jesus  had  not  addressed  them  ;  but  their  mor¬ 
als  were  so  like  those  of  the  Pharisees,  that  they  thought  they  rec¬ 
ognized  themselves  in  the  picture  which  the  Saviour  had  drawn  of 
the  latter.  “  One  of  [these]  lawyers  answering,  saith  to  him  :  Mas¬ 
ter,  in  saying  these  things,  thou  reproachest  us  also.”  It  would  have 
been  better  for  him  to  say  that  he  had  dealt  out  justice  to  them. 
But  he  was  not  mistaken  in  applying  to  himself  and  his  profession 
what  he  had  just  heard.  Here  is  what  Jesus  added  to  it,  address¬ 
ing  his  speech  directly  to  him.  “He  said  [to  him ,  therefore ]:  Woe 
to  you,  lawyers,  also,  because  you  load  men  with  burdens  which  they 
cannot  bear,  and  you  yourselves  touch  not  the  packs  with  one  of 
your  fingers  (6).  Woe  to  you  who  build  the  monuments  of  the 
prophets  ;  and  your  fathers  killed  them.  Truly  you  bear  witness 
that  you  consent  to  the  doings  of  your  fathers  ;  for  they  in  deed  kill¬ 
ed  them,  and  you  build  their  sepulchres.” 

In  reality,  the  paying  of  these  honors  was  a  recognition  that  those 
whom  their  fathers  put  to  death  were  truly  prophets,  and  then  to 
put  to  death  those  who  had  the  same  credentials  of  prophecy,  was 
furnishing  against  themselves,  by  these  honors,  an  unanswerable 
proof  that  they  were  murderers  of  prophets  ;  for  what  could  they 
reply  to  this  :  Those  whom  you  have  massacred  were  as  just  as  those 
to  whom  you  have  built  sepulchres  ? 

If  they  had  not  as  yet  done  so,  they  were  going  forthwith  to  do 
so,  as  Jesus  Christ  had  foretold;  for  it  is  of  himself,  that  is  to  say, 
of  the  Eternal  Wisdom,  that  he  speaks  when  he  adds  this  prediction, 


(6)  It  is  asserted  with  reason  that  the  saints  are  severe  upon  themselves,  and  indulgent 
with  regard  to  others.  Those  who  are  indidgent  to  themselves  and  to  others,  are  good 
souls,  soft  characters  if  you  like,  and  too  easy.  He  who  is  at  the  same  time  severe  to¬ 
wards  himself  and  towards  others,  may  indeed  be  of  a  harsh  character  ;  hut  inasmuch 
as  he  does  not  spare  himself  more  than  he  spares  others,  he  thereby  evinces  that  he  acts 
from  conviction,  and  that  he  has  an  upright  heart.  But  those  who  are  indulgent  towards 
themselves  and  severe  towards  others  are  necessarily  false  and  wicked  persons.  They 
cannot  believe  that  the  severity  they  exercise  towards  others  is  an  obligation,  since  they 
do  not  exercise  it  towards  themselves,  nor  that  their  indulgence  of  themselves  is  permis¬ 
sible,  since  they  do  not  extend  it  to  others.  Wherefore,  and  therein  consists  their  wick¬ 
edness,  their  indulgence  springs  from  corruption  and  their  severity  from  cruelty.  And 
they  are  both  false  and  hypocritical,  inasmuch  as  they  endeavor  to  persuade  the  world 
that  they  practice  towards  themselves  the  severity  which  they  display  towards  others. 


CHAP.  XL.  J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


307 


which  he  again  repeats  at  the  approach  of  his  passion  :  “  For  this 
cause  also,  the  wisdom  of  God  said  :  I  will  send  to  them  prophets 
and  apostles,  and  some  of  them  they  will  kill  and  persecute,  that  the 
blood  of  all  the  prophets  (7)  which  was  shed  from  the  foundation  of 
the  •  world  may  be  required  of  this  generation,  from  the  blood  of 
Abel  unto  the  blood  of  Zacharias,  who  was  slain  between  the  altar 
and  the  temple.  Yes,  I  say  to  you,  it  shall  be  required  of  this  gen¬ 
eration.” 

He  had  yet  another  reproach  to  make  to  these  false  doctors,  and, 
in  their  person,  to  those  who,  commissioned  to  show  the  right  road 
to  the  people,  abuse  their  confidence  in  order  to  lead  them  astray. 
He  concludes,  therefore,  thus:  u  Woe  to  you,  lawyers  !  for  you  have 
taken  away  the  key  of  knowledge  (8)  ;  you  yourselves  have  not  en¬ 
tered  in,  and  those  that  were  entering  in  you  have  hindered. 

“  As  he  was  saying  these  things  to  them,  the  Pharisees  and  the 
lawyers  began  vehemently  to  urge  him,  and  to  oppress  his  mouth 
about  many  things,  lying  in  wait  for  him;  and  seeking  to  catch  some¬ 
thing  from  his  mouth,  that  they  might  accuse  him  (9).”  It  is  true 
that  he  did  not  spare  them,  and  we  may  be  surprised  that  the  meek- 


(7)  The  murder  of  all  the  prophets  was  a  national  crime,  for  which  God  might  justly 
impose  all  the  temporal  penalty  upon  the  generation  that  crowned  the  enormity  by  the 
murder  of  the  greatest  number  of  prophets,  and,  moreover,  by  that  of  the  Lord  of  proph¬ 
ets.  We  do  not  so  clearly  see  how  the  murder  of  Abel  could  be  imputed  to  the  Jews, 
Cain  never  having  been  numbered  amongst  that  people.  It  is  said  that  they  showed 
themselves  to  be  his  children  by  imitation,  in  the  same  sense  that  they  are  called  by  the 
Saviour  the  children  of  the  devil.  Whatever  weight  there  may  be  in  this  reason,  it  is 
certain  that,  as  they  imitated  him  in  his  crime,  they  also  resembled  him  in  their  pun¬ 
ishment.  Their  banishment  over  all  the  earth,  and  the  character  of  reprobation  which 
they  carry  engraven  on  their  forehead,  are  such  visible  features  of  resemblance,  that  we 
cannot  doubt  but  that  God,  by  the  chastisement  of  the  fratricide,  purposed  to  exhibit 
the  chastisement  which  he  had  in  store  for  the  deicides. 

(8)  The  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures,  which  Scriptures  they  were  commissioned  to 
explain  to  the  people.  They  were  unwilling  to  recognize  in  these  the  Messiah,  and  also 
hindered  the  people  from  recognizing  him  therein.  Woe  to  the  people  who  were  se¬ 
duced  !  but  woe  a  thousand  times  to  the  authors  of  the  seduction  !  Guilty  of  the  se¬ 
duction  of  a  whole  people,  they  shall  bear  the  penalty  of  a  whole  people. 

(9)  It  is  not  stated  whether  they  then  found  what  they  sought.  On  other  occasions 
they  found  it  either  by  malicious  interpretation  of  the  Saviour’s  words,  or  by  making  him 
say  what  he  never  uttered.  He  who  wishes  to  find  a  crime  can  always  contrive  to  find 
it  in  one  way  or  another. 


>o  a 


"USD  p  '"'i  '  W  "  ”'vl  J  |  '0\7  W/f 


M  gté 
:V 


Vr 


|fU' 


\*E 


SL 


808 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 


est  of  men,  he  who  always  appeared  most  indulgent  with  regard  to 
sinners,  should  have  inveighed  against  them  with  so  much  force,  and 
have  treated  them  so  severely.  There  were  several  reasons  for  this 
conduct  ;  the  principal  of  which  is,  that  these  sinners  believed  them¬ 
selves  just.  For  inasmuch  as  they  deemed  themselves  just,  they  had 
nothing  but  contempt  and  harshness  for  sinners  ;  and  on  that  account 
alone  they  deserved  to  be  treated  as  they  treated  others.  But,  more¬ 
over,  because  they  deemed  themselves  just,  they  ought  not  to  have 
been  treated  in  any  other  manner  ;  and  this  was  the  only  tone  capa¬ 
ble  of  correcting  them.  Nothing  remains  to  be  said  to  him  who  ac¬ 
knowledges  himself  a  sinner,  and  who  knows  the  enormity  of  his 
sin  ;  or,  if  he  is  spoken  to,  it  is  only  to  present  to  him  the  mercy 
which  so  lovingly  invites  him  back.  But  to  the  sinner  who  deems 
himself  just,  above  all,  if  he  make  his  justice  to  consist  in  iniquity  it¬ 
self,  it  is  necessary,  no  matter  at  what  price,  to  make  known  to  him 
the  falsehood  of  his  justice,  and  his  grievous  sin.  We  must  tear  away 
the  bondage  wherewith  he  blindfolds  himself.  We  must  sift  his  per¬ 
verse  heart,  pluck  out  of  it  the  vices  which  his  hypocrisy  secretes 
there,  paint  them  in  their  natural  colors,  and  set  before  his  very  eyes 
this  hideous  portrait,  so  different  from  that  which  he  had  formed  to 
himself.  The  enterprise  is  hazardous.  We  know  what  it  has  cost 
the  Saviour  and  several  of  his  intrepid  ministers  who  have  been  in 
this  respect  imitators  of  his  zeal.  But  still  it  is  necessary  ;  and,  cost 
what  it  may,  we  must  venture  to  unmask  these  hypocrites,  or  other¬ 
wise  despair  of  their  conversion. 

Their  mischievous  doctrine  was  also  what  authorized  the  Saviour 
to  denounce  them  before  the  people.  The  wolf  should  be  made 
known  when  he  appears  under  the  skin  of  the  sheep  or  in  the  shep¬ 
herd’s  dress.  To  fail  in  this  duty  from  a  mistaken  scruple,  would 
rather  be  cruelty  with  regard  to  the  public  than  charity  towards  the 
particular  individual.  It  was  on  this  account  that  (a)  “  when  great 
multitudes  stood  about  him,  so  that  they  trod  one  upon  the  other, 
he  began  to  say  to  his  disciples  :  Beware  ye  of  the  leaven  of  the 
Pharisees,  which  is  hypocrisy.  There  is  nothing  covered  that  shall 
not  be  revealed,  nor  hidden  that  shall  not  be  known  ;  for  whatso¬ 
ever  things  you  have  spoken  in  darkness  shall  be  published  in  the 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xii.  1-3. 


t* 


\ 


CHAP.  XLI.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


309 


light,  and  that  which  you  have  spoken  in  the  ear  in  the  chambers 
shall  be  preached  on  the  house-tops.” 

So  it  is  that  the  hope  of  the  hypocrite  shall  perish.  He  seeks  to 
dazzle  the  eyes;  and  to  gain  the  esteem  of  men  by  an  outward  show' 
of  virtue  ;  and  a  day  shall  come  when  his  works  of  iniquity,  drawn 
from  the  darkness  wherein  he  vainly  hoped  to  bury  them,  shall  de¬ 
liver  him  over  to  the  contempt  and  the  execration  of  all  creatures  ; 
for  these  words  must  be  understood  in  this  sense.  Elsewhere  they 
signify  the  shining  publicity  which  was  soon  to  be  given  to  that  doc¬ 
trine  which  the  Saviour  then  proposed  to  his  disciples  in  silence  and 
seclusion. 

What  follows  is  the  repetition  of  those  instructions  which  he  wish¬ 
ed  his  disciples  to  have  more  especially  present  to  their  minds. 


CHAPTER  XLI. 

INSTRUCTION  TO  THE  DISCIPLES. - GOD  ALONE  IS  TO  BE  FEARED. - JESUS  REFUSES  TO 

BE  THE  ARBITER  BETWEEN  TWO  BROTHERS. - THE  RICH  MISER  CONDEMNED. - WE 

ARE  NOT  TO  BE  ANXIOUS  FOR  THE  MORROW. - THE  GOOD  AND  BAD  SERVANTS. 

(a)  “  I  sat  to  you,  my  friends,  be  not  afraid  of  them  who  kill  (1) 
the  body  (2),  and,  after  that,  have  no  more  that  they  can  do  ;  but 
I  will  show  you  whom  you  shall  fear.  Fear  ye  him  who,  after  he 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xii.  4-48. 


(1)  Not  to  fear  those  who  have  no  power  except  over  the  body,  is  on  the  Saviour’s 
part  the  advice  of  a  friend. 

If  authority  be  associated  with  this  power,  fear  not  the  power,  but  fear,  that  is  to  say, 
recognize  and  respect  always,  authority,  although  you  should  not  yield  to  it  when  you 
cannot  do  so  without  crime.  We  mean  by  authority  the  right  of  commanding,  and  by 
pow«r  the  greater  strength.  See  as  to  the  same  text,  note  10,  page  184,  of  Part  I. 

(2)  We  must  not  fear  to  lose  the  life  of  the  body,  if  we  are  not  to  fear  those  who  take 
away  that  life.  We  necessarily  fear  those  who  do  the  evil  when  we  fear  the  harm  which 
they  can  do. 

For  the  same  reason,  we  must  say  :  Fear  hell  ;  for  if  this  fear  were  not  to  exist,  Jesus 
Christ  must  have  here  said  without  any  reason:  Fear  him  who  can  cast  into  hell. 


.nl 


310 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


'[PART  II. 


hath  killed,  hath  power  to  cast  into  hell.  Yea,  I  say  to  you,  fear 
him.  Are  not  five  sparrows  sold  for  two  farthings  ?  and  not  one  of 
them  is  forgotten  before  God.  Yea,  the  very  hairs  of  your  head  are 
numbered.  Fear  not,  therefore  ;  you  are  of  more  value  than  many 
sparrows.  And  I  say  to  you  :  Whosoever  shall  confess  me  before 
men,  him  shall  the  Son  of  man  also  confess  before  the  angels  of 
God  (3).  Whosoever  speaketh  a  word  against  the  Son  of  man,  it 
shall  be  forgiven  him  ;  but  to  him  who  shall  blaspheme  against  the 
Holy  Ghost,  it  shall  not  be  forgiven  (4).  When  they  shall  bring 
you  into  the  synagogues,  and  to  magistrates  and  powers,  be  not  so¬ 
licitous  how  or  what  you  shall  answer  ;  for  the  Holy  Ghost  shall 
teach  you  in  the  same  hour  what  you  must  say  (5).” 

Whilst  Jesus  was  speaking  in  this  manner,  “  one  of  the  multitude,” 
who  thought  that  no  one  would  dare  to  resist  the  authority  of  so 
great  a  prophet,  “  said  to  him  :  Master,  speak  to  my  brother,  that 
he  divide  the  inheritance  with  me.”  The  King  of  kings  and  the 
Lord  of  lords,  to  whom  all  power  had  been  given  in  heaven  and  on 
earth,  and  whom  the  Father  has  established  sovereign  judge  of  the 
living  and  the  dead,  had  other  work  to  do  than  deciding  such  ques¬ 
tions  as  these.  Such  was  not  the  object  of  his  mission,  and  he  wish¬ 
ed  to  teach  his  ministers  not  to  allow  themselves  to  be  too  much  dis¬ 
tracted  by  affairs  of  this  sort,  with  which  they  should  only  interfere 
when  charity  obliges  them  to  do  so.  Wherefore  “  he  said  to  him  • 
Man,  who  hath  appointed  me  judge  or  divider  over  you  ?”  This 
man’s  right,  to  judge  of  it  by  the  way  in  which  he  advanced  his 
claim,  was  legitimate  ;  but  his  actuating  motive  was  an  excessive  at¬ 
tachment  to  the  goods  of  the  earth.  The  Saviour,  to  whom  his  dis¬ 
position  could  not  be  unknown,  profits  by  this  occasion  to  instruct 
him  upon  these  two  points,  highly  suitable  to  make  him  feel  how 
worthy  of  contempt  riches  are  :  one  is  their  utter  uselessness  as  to 
life,  which  they  do  not  render  either  longer  or  happier  ;  the  other  is 
the  uncertainty  of  their  possession,  of  which  death  can  deprive  ns  in 
a  moment.  This  moral  applies  to  all  men,  and  the  disciples  them¬ 
selves  still  required  that  it  should  be  preached  to  them  also.  “Je¬ 
sus  [ therefore  addressing  Ms  speech  to  the  whole  throng  assembled 


(3)  Part  I.,  p.  184 


(4)  See  note  6,  p.  159,,  of  Part  I.  (5)  Part  I.,  p.  182. 


CHAP.  XLI.]  OF  OUK  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  311 

there ]  said  to  them  :  Take  heed,  and  beware  of  all  covetousness  ;  for 
a  man’s  life  does  not  consist  in  the  abundance  of  things  which  he  pos¬ 
sesses.  And  he  spoke  a  similitude  to  them,  saying  :  The  land  of  a 
certain  rich  man  brought  forth  plenty  of  fruits,  and  he  thought  with¬ 
in  himself,  saying  :  What  shall  I  do  (6)  ?  because  I  have  no  room 
where  to  bestow  my  fruits  (7).  And  he  said  :  This  will  I  do  :  I  will 
pull  down  my  barns  (8),  and  will  build  greater  ;  and  into  them  will 
I  gather  all  things  that  are  grown  to  me,  and  my  goods  ;  and  I  will 
say  to  my  soul  :  Soul,  thou  hast  much  goods  laid  up  for  many  years  ; 
take  thy  rest,  eat,  drink,  make  good  cheer  (9).  But  God  said  to 
him:  Thou  fool,  this  night  do  they  require  thy  soul  of  thee  (10); 
and  whose  shall  those  things  be  which  thou  hast  provided  (11)  ?  So 
is  he  that  layeth  up  treasure  for  himself  (12),  and  is  not  rich  towards 
God.” 

We  may  say,  perhaps,  that  he  might  have  to  live  for  a  long  time; 
and,  in  this  supposition,  that  what  is  treated  as  folly,  on  account  of 
the  unexpected  event  of  his  death,  might  be  regarded  as  a  wise  fore¬ 
sight.  No,  even  that  cannot  excuse  him,  because,  in  his  foresight, 
there  was  an  excess  which  rendered  it  as  foolish  as  it  was  criminal. 


(6)  The  steward,  whose  bad  conduct  reduced  him  to  indigence,  likewise  said  :  What 
shall  I  do  ?  Excessive  opulence  and  extreme  misery  express  their  embarrassment  in  the 
same  terms. 

(7)  Because  he  has  too  much  grain,  he  has  not  sufficient  barns.  Abundance  produces 
a  sort  of  indigence.  If  he  had  had  less  wealth,  he  would  have  had  fewer  wants. 

(8)  To  throw  down  his  barns  and  construct  new  ones — what  embarrassment  and  trou¬ 
ble  !  We  only  toil  in  order  to  become  rich  :  do  we  enrich  ourselves  only  to  toil  further  ? 

(9)  This  language,  so  usual  amongst  men,  contains  nothing  which  would  surprise  us, 
if  it  were  that  of  an  ox,  who  is  only  in  the  world  in  order  to  graze  and  ruminate. 

(10)  Death  deceived  him,  as  still  it  doth  deceive  so  many  other  rich  men,  whom  it  car¬ 
ries  off  at  the  moment  when  they  hope  for  enjoyment.  But  if  death  had  not  deceived 
him,  he  would  have  deceived  himself.  Instead  of  tranquilly  enjoying  his  abundance,  lie 
would  have  made  fresh  accumulations,  and  constructed  granaries  still  more  spacious. 
Accumulated  treasures  have  never  cured  any  one  of  the  lust  of  gain. 

(11)  Very  often  ihey  are  provided  for  a  prodigal,  who  is  reckoned  a  fool,  whilst  the 
rich  man  above  mentioned  is  regarded  as  a  wise  man.  Nevertheless,  the  folly  of  the 
spendthrift  might  be  termed  wisdom,  when  compared  with  that  of  the  amasser  of  riches. 

(12)  Because  he  amassed  for  himself,  he  finds  out  that  he  has  not  amassed  for  him¬ 
self:  others,  not  himself,  enjoy  his  treasures.  He  would  have  enjoyed  them  if  he  had 
cast  them  into  the  bosom  of  the  poor.  By  keeping  all,  all  is  lost  :  by  giving  all,  all  is 
saved. 


312 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  * 


[part  II. 


It  is  quite  fair  to  take  precautions  to  a  certain  extent  for  a  futurity 
which  may  or  may  not  occur.  But,  for  the  few  years  of  life  which 
remain  to  us,  to  amass  as  if  we  were  to  live  for  centuries — to  accu¬ 
mulate  harvest  on  harvest,  as  if  the  earth,  condemned  to  eternal  ster¬ 
ility,  were  never  to  produce  any  more  ;  but,  at  the  same  time  that 
the  mind  dwells  upon  a  long  life,  to  forget  the  possibility  of  death 
being  near — to  dream,  if  we  may  venture  so  to  speak,  that  we  shall 
never  die,  because  we  have  made  provision  for  not  dying  of  hunger 
— this  is  the  point  of  view  in  which  this  man  was  a  fool,  in  common 
with  many  other  rich  misers  who  resemble  him.  There  is,  there¬ 
fore,  a  measure  of  foresight,  which  is  not  unreasonable,  because  it  is 
moderate,  and  which  is  not  criminal  when  we  join  to  it  a  much  greater 
confidence  in  Divine  Providence  than  in  all  our  own  exertions.  But 
a  much  more  excellent  disposition  is,  to  renounce  the  precautions 
against  future  need,  and  to  repose  alone  upon  the  creator  and  pre¬ 
server  of  all  things.  The  apostles  were  called  to  this  perfection,  and 
they  were  to  form  thereto  a  small  number  of  chosen  souls,  who  have 
imitated  them  in  this  point  in  every  succeeding  age,  but,  above  all, 
during  those  splendid  days  of  the  Church’s  infancy,  when  the  faith¬ 
ful  brought  to  their  feet  the  price  of  their  inheritance,  reserving  no 
other  fund  to  themselves  than  that  of  Providence. 

This  was  that  sublime  morality  which  the  Saviour  taught  to  the 
world  “  when  he  said  to  his  disciples  :  Therefore  I  say  to  you,  be  not 
solicitous  for  your  life  (13),  what  you  shall  eat;  nor  for  your  body, 
what  you  shall  put  on.  The  life  is  more  than  the  meat,  and  the 
body  is  more  than  the  raiment.”  Believe,  then,  that  God,  who  has 
given  life  to  the  body,  will  give  what  is  necessary  for  the  preserva¬ 
tion  of  both  one  and  the  other.  “  Consider  the  ravens  :  for  they  sow 
not  ;  neither  do  they  reap  ;  neither  have  they  store-house  nor  barn  ; 
and  God  feedeth  them.  How  much  are  you  more  valuable  than 
they  ?  And  which  of  you,  by  taking  thought,  can  add  to  his  stat¬ 
ure  one  cubit  ?  If,  then,  ye  be  not  able  to  do  so  much  as  the  least 
thing,  why  are  you  solicitous  for  the  rest  ?  Consider  the  lilies  how 
they  grow  :  they  labor  not  ;  neither  do  they  spin  ;  but  I  say  to  you, 
not  even  Solomon  in  all  his  glory  was  clothed  like  one  of  these. 


CHAP.  XLI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


313 


Now,  if  God  clothe  in  this  manner  the  grass  that  is  to-day  in  the 
field,  and  to-morrow  is  cast  into  the  oven,  how  much  more  you,  O 
ye  of  little  faith  ?  Therefore  seek  not  you  what  yon  shall  eat  nor 
what  you  shall  drink  ;  be  not  lifted  up  on  high  ;  for  all  these  things 
do  the  nations  of  the  world  (14)  seek,  and  your  Father  knoweth  that 
you  have  need  of  these  things.  But  seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of 
God  and  his  justice,  and  all  these  things  shall  be  added  unto  you.” 

It  is,  therefore,  this  eternal  kingdom  which  was  henceforward  to  be 
the  only  object  of  their  search.  What  can  they  renounce  which  is 
equivalent  to  this  ?  And  shall  God,  who  gives  them  so  great  a  gift, 
refuse  to  them  a  morsel  of  bread  ?  Such  is  the  indemnity  for  their 
sacrifices,  and  the  pledge  of  their  confidence,  which  the  Saviour  pro¬ 
poses  in  these  tender  words:  “Fear  not,  little  flock;  for  it  hath 
pleased  y  ouï  Father  to  give  you  a  kingdom.  Sell  what  you  possess, 
and  give  alms  (15).  Make  to  yourselves  bags  which  grow  not  old; 
a  treasure  in  heaven  which  faileth  not  :  where  no  thief  approacheth 
nor  moth  corrupteth.  For  where  your  treasure  is,  there  will  your 
heart  be  also.” 

The  prodigious  wealth  of  the  rich  miser  had  given  occasion  for  the 
lessons  which  Jesus  Christ  had  just  given  to  his  disciples.  His  sud¬ 
den  and  unforeseen  death  constitutes  the  subject  of  the  following 
moral  :  “  Let  your  loins  be  girt,  and  lamps  burning  in  your  hands, 
and  you  yourselves  like  to  men  who  wait  for  their  Lord,  when  he 
shall  return  from  the  wedding,  that  when  he  cometh  and  knocketh, 
they  may  open  to  him  immediately  (16).  Blessed  are  those  servants 


(14)  In  other  words,  people  of  the  world,  those  who  are  called  worldlings,  because  by- 
forgetting  the  future,  they  occupy  themselves  exclusively  with  the  present.  Or,  if  we 
wish  to  construe  it  as  indicating  the  Gentiles,  we  may  say  that  this  excessive  disquietude 
about  the  wants  of  life  is  a  species  of  paganism  :  if  it  be  not  an  utter  ignorance  of  God, 
it  is  at  least  a  misconception  of  his  providence. 

(15)  This  was  a  counsel  of  perfection.  Some  believe  it  to  have  been  a  precept  enjoin¬ 
ed  upon  the  apostles. 

(16)  The  drift  of  this  parable  is  to  show  that  the  day  of  the  Lord,  that  is  to  say,  the 
day  of  death,  and  of  the  judgment  which  follows  it,  being  always  uncertain,  the  only 
way  to  avoid  being  taken  by  surprise,  is  to  be  always  prepared  for  it.  Summing  up  the 
general  sense,  the  fathers  and  interpreters  explain  in  divers  ways  the  different  parts. 
According  to  the  majority,  the  loins  girt  signify  continence.  By  the  lamps  in  the  hands 
are  understood  good  works  and  the  light  of  good  example.  Watching  for  the  master  is 
the  desire  to  see  Jesus  Christ.  The  saints  sigh  for  his  coming— at  least  the  just  do  not 


7 


vUTJ  ][  |  VI  1W 


’.w 

MS 


1 


314 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[FART  II. 


whom  the  Lord,  when  he  cometh}  shall  find  watching  !  Amen,  I 
say  to  you,  that  he  will  gird  himself,  and  make  them  sit  down  to 
meat,  and,  passing,  will  minister  unto  them  (17).  And  if  he  shall 
come  in  the  second  watch,  or  come  in  the  third  watch  (18),  and  find 
them  so,  blessed  are  those  servants.  But  this  know  ye,  that  if  the 
householder  did  know  at  what  hour  the  thief  would  come,  he  would 
surely  watch,  and  would  not  suffer  his  house  to  be  broken  open.  Be 
you,  then,  also  ready  ;  for  at  what  hour  you  think  not,  the  Son  of 
man  will  come.” 

“  \Then\  Peter  said  to  him  :  Lord,  dost  thou  speak  this  parable  to 
us,  or  likewise  to  all  ?”  The  parable  was  applicable  to  all,  but  the 
inquiry  from  Peter  caused  it  to  apply  to  him  personally,  and  at  the 
same  time  to  all  the  pastors  of  the  Church,  under  the  figure  of  the 
superintendent  who  is  charged  with  the  entire  house.  “  Who  think- 
est  thou,  the  Lord  said,  is  the  faithful  and  wise  steward,  whom  his 
lord  setteth  over  his  family,  to  give  them  their  measure  of  wheat  in 


fear  it.  This  is  tantamount  to  that  expression  of  Saint  Paul  (Titus,  ii.)  :  We  should  live 
soberly,  and  justly,  and  godly  in  this  world,  looking  for  the  blessed  hope  and  coming  of 
the  glory  of  the  great  God  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

(1 7)  The  masters  of  the  earth  do  not  act  so.  Jesus  Christ  doth  not  do  so  with  this 
parade  of  servitude  which  is  exhibited  here  merely  to  give  propriety  to  the  parable  ;  but 
he  does  so  really,  not  only  by  serving  personally,  but,  if  we  may  venture  to  use  the  ex¬ 
pression,  by  serving  out  himself,  that  is  to  say,  by  giving  himself  entirely  to  his  elect,  in 
order  to  satiate  all  the  desires  of  our  heart  in  the  possession  of  him. 

(18)  As  to  the  division  of  the  night  into  watches,  see  note  10,  page  193,  of  Part  I. 
Here  the  four  watches  represent  the  four  ages  of  life.  Jesus  Christ  only  speaks  express¬ 
ly  of  the  second  and  the  third,  which  correspond  with  youth  and  manhood,  the  two  ages 
wherein  we  think  least  of  death,  and  are  least  apprehensive  of  its  approach.  He  says 
nothing  of  infancy,  which  is  incapable  of  preparation,  and  where  innocence  forms  a  sub¬ 
stitute  for  all  care,  nor  of  old  age,  which  cannot  be  ignorant  that  death  draws  near,  un¬ 
less  age  has  utterly  lapsed  into  insanity  :  in  this  case  it  is  like  second  infancy,  at  least  as 
to  preparation,  and  would  to  God  it  resembled  it  in  its  innocence. 

When  a  man  is  attacked  by  a  dangerous  illness,  we  give  him  notice  to  regulate  his 
conscience.  We  do  not  give  him  notice  when,  without  sickness,  reason  begins  to  fail. 
The  faculty  is  soon  utterly  lost,  and  were  an  individual  to  survive  it  several  years,  the 
lot  of  the  soul  is  not  the  less  decided  ;  it  shall  be  eternally  what  it  was  at  the  moment 
when  delirium  set  in. 

Of  all  surprises,  there  is  none  in  which  it  is  so  difficult  to  warn  the  individual  as  in 
the  case  of  him  u  ho  has  no  fear  for  himself  ;  for  we  may  readily  say  to  a  sick  man  that 
he  is  very  ill  ;  but  we  cannot  venture  to  tell  a  man  in  good  health  that  he  has  lost  his 
senses. 


A 


<30930  «  «  a  • 


CIIAP.  XLII.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


due  season  ?  Blessed  is  that  servant  whom  when  his  lord  shall  come 
he  shall  find  so  doing  !  Verily,  I  say  to  you,  he  will  set  him  over 
all  that  he  possesseth.  But  if  that  servant  shall  say  in  his  heart  : 
My  lord  is  long  a  coming,  and  shall  begin  to  strike  the  men-servants 
and  maid-servants,  and  to  eat,  and  to  drink,  and  be  drunk,  the  lord 
of  that  servant  will  come  in  the  day  that  he  hopeth  not,  and  at  the 
hour  that  he  knoweth  not,  and  shall  separate  him,  and  [ although  he 
he  only  guilty  of  misconduct !]  shall  appoint  him  his  portion  with  [the 
servants  who  are ]  unbelievers.” 

This  treatment  is  as  just  as  it  is  severe.  The  chief  servant,  he  who 
has  the  ear  of  his  master,  knows  his  wishes  better  than  the  others, 
who  only  receive  their  instructions  through  him  ;  and  the  abuse  of 
a  higher  confidence  renders  the  delinquent  deserving  of  higher  châs- 
tisement.  The  allusion  to  the  pastors  is  always  very  distinct,  and 
we  may  recognize  it  in  these  words  by  which  the  Saviour  concludes 
this  discourse  :  “  That  servant  who  knew  the  will  of  his  lord,  and  pre¬ 
pared  not  himself ,  and  did  not  according  to  his  will,  shall  be  beaten 
with  many  stripes.  But  he  that  knew  not,  and  did  things  worthy 
of  stripes,  shall  be  beaten  with  few  stripes  (19).  And  unto  whom¬ 
soever  much  is  given,  of  him  much  shall  be  required  ;  and  to  whom 
they  have  committed  much,  of  him  they  will  demand  the  more.” 


CHAPTER  XLII. 

NECESSITY  OF  PENANCE. - THE  BARKEN  FIG-TREE. - THE  INFIRM  WOMAN  CURED  ON 

THE  SABBATH-DAY. - SMALL  NUMBER  OF  THE  ELECT. - THE  PROPHET  SHOULD  NOT 

PERISH  OUTSIDE  OF  JERUSALEM. 

Taking  example  from  one  of  the  evangelists,  we  shall  place  here 
the  following  truths,  though  they  have  no  connection  with  the  pre¬ 
ceding  subject.  We  can  hardly  connect  even  these  together,  and  it 


(19)  The  chastisement  shall  be  proportioned  to  the  degree  of  light  and  of  knowledge. 
For  to  know,  or  not  to  have  known,  merely  signifies  here,  as  elsewhere,  to  have  had 
more  or  less  knowledge. 


'A 


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a  a  a  a  o  o 


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m — V'-q  — \ — r  -w  Tift? 


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is  very  probable  that  tliey  are  detached  passages  which  the  sacred 
historians  report  without  marking  either  time  or  circumstance  ;  we 
present  them  just  as  the  Saviour  gave  them  utterance. 

(a)  “  I  am  come  to  cast  fire  on  the  earth  (1),  and  what  will  I  but 
that  it  be  kindled  ?  And  I  have  a  baptism,  wherewith  I  am  to  be 
baptized  (2)  ;  and  how  am  I  straitened  until  it  be  accomplished  ? 
Think  ye  that  I  am  come  to  give  peace  on  earth  ?  I  tell  you  no, 
but  separation  (3).  For  there  shall  be  from  henceforth  five  in  one 
house  divided  ;  three  against  two,  and  two  against  three.  The  fa¬ 
ther  shall  be  divided  against  the  son,  and  the  son  against  the  father  ; 
the  mother  against  the  daughter,  and  the  daughter  against  the  moth 
er  ;  the  mother-in-law  against  her  daughter-in-law,  and  the  daughter- 
in-law  against  her  mother-in-law.” 

( b )  “  There  were  present  at  that  very  time  some  that  told  him  of 
the  Galileans,  whose  blood  Pilate  had  mingled  with  their  sacrifices. 
And  he  answering,  said  to  them  :  Think  you  that  these  Galileans 
were  sinners  above  all  the  men  of  Galilee,  because  they  suffered  such 
things  ?  No,  I  say  to  you  ;  but  unless  you  shall  do  penance,  you 
shall  all  likewise  perish.  Or  those  eighteen  upon  whom  the  tower 
fell  in  Silôë,  and  slew  them  :  think  you  that  they  also  were  debtors 
above  all  the  men  that  dwelt  in  Jerusalem  ?  No,  I  say  to  you  ;  but 
except  you  do  penance,  you  shall  all  likewise  perish.” 

We  see  that  the  Jews  were  not  reclaimed  from  their  old  prejudice, 
viz.,  that  the  misfortunes  of  life  were  always  the  punishment  of  crime, 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xii.  49-53. 


(6)  St.  Luke,  xiii.  1-8 


(1)  Some  assert  that  this  fire  is  that  of  division.  We  see  in  what  sense  they  thus  un¬ 
derstood  it,  and  this  sense  is  not  a  wrong  one.  The  majority  prefer  to  explain  it  with 
reference  to  the  fire  of  charity  which  the  Holy  Ghost  infuses  into  all  hearts.  We 
ought  to  conform  ourselves  to  this  interpretation,  not  only  because  it  is  the  most  com¬ 
mon,  but,  moreover,  because  it  is  that  of  the  Church,  which  says  (Mass  of  Saturday  in 
j Pentecost-week)  :  Let  us  pray,  0  Lord,  that  the  Holy  Ghost  would  inflame  us  with  the 
fire  which  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  brought  upon  earth,  and  which  he  wished  to  see  fully 
enkindled. 

(2)  By  this  baptism  all  interpret  the  passion.  Jesus  Christ  is  pressed,  not  by  fear,  as 
some  explain  it,  but  by  the  desire  of  seeing  the  passion  accomplished.  It  was  to  have 
preceded  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  is  the  divine  fire  that  the  Saviour  desired 
so  earnestly  to  see  kindled  upon  earth.  This  it  was  which  made  him  desire  this  bap¬ 
tism  with  so  much  ardor.  We  are  thus  enabled  to  connect  this  text  with  the  preceding. 

(3)  See  note  11,  page  185,  Part  I.,  chapter  xxiii. 


Wi  ij"  vriij  '■'mif  |  i  WJ  'iiHvpt 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


317 


OHAP.  XLII.] 

and  that  the  most  unfortunate  were  the  most  guilty.  It  is  true  that 
those  just  spokeu  of  were  guilty  ;  but  they  were  uot  more  so  than 
those  who  deemed  themselves  better  because  a  similar  disaster  had 
not  fallen  upon  them.  The  justice  of  God  had  exercised  its  lights 
over  the  first  class  ;  his  patience  waited  for  the  second.  But  this 
patience  had  a  limited  period,  after  which  justice  should  overtake 
them  as  it  had  already  overtaken  the  other  offenders,  and  engulf 
them  in  similar  ruin.  This  is  what  the  Saviour  forewarned  them 
of  ;  yet  it  should  not  be  understood  to  convey  that  all  those  whom 
he  then  addressed  should  perish  by  the  sword  or  be  crushed  under 
ruins.  These  guilty  men  thus  surprised  by  death  before  they  had 
done  penance,  together  with  the  loss  of  temporal  life,  had  incurred 
eternal  death,  and  the  same  stroke  which  had  separated  their  soul 
from  their  body  had  hurled  them  forever  into  hell.  Behold  the  aw¬ 
ful  chastisement  which  Jesus  Christ  denounces  against  all  who  imi 
tate  them  in  their  impenitence,  and  that  by  which  they  shall  resem 
ble  them.  But  a  more  comprehensive  meaning  was  concealed  under 
these  words,  you  shall  all  likewise  perish.  Whilst  Jesus  Christ  ap¬ 
peared  to  address  them  only  to  those  who  were  present,  he  address¬ 
ed  them  to  the  entire  nation,  foretelling  its  approaching  ruin,  and 
the  tragical  death  of  those  millions  of  men  and  women  who  should 
perish  not  only  by  the  sword  and  by  the  falling  of  houses,  but  also 
by  the  assemblage  of  all  united  scourges,  fire,  pest,  and  famine.  Woe, 
inevitably  impending  over  them  !  if  they  did  not  struggle  to  avert 
it  by  a  prompt  and  sincere  repentance,  as  the  Saviour  gives  them  to 
understand  by  the  following  words  ;  for,  pursuing  his  discourse,  he 
spoke  to  them  this  parable. 

“  A  certain  man  had  a  fig-tree  planted  in  his  vineyard,  and  he 
came  seeking  fruit  on  it,  and  he  found  none.  And  he  said  to  the 
dresser  of  the  vineyard  (4)  :  Behold,  for  these  three  years  I  come 


(4)  This  dresser  of  the  vineyard  gives  an  idea  of  an  excellent  laborer  in  the  vineyard 
of  the  Lord.  Three  years  of  sterility  have  not  exhausted  his  patience.  The  tree  is  not 
his  own  ;  it  belongs  to  his  master  :  however,  he  appears  to  take  more  interest  in  its  pres¬ 
ervation  than  the  master  whose  property  it  is.  He  prays  as  if  he  entreated  a  favor  for 
himself.  He  promises  an  increase  of  his  assiduous  care,  as  if  he  were  to  blame,  and  that 
the  sterility  of  this  unhappy  tree  could  be  imputed  to  deficiency  of  cultivation  ;  in  which 
ne  exhibits  as  much  humility  as  zeal.  He  obtains  the  delay  which  he  requests.  The 


seeking  fruit  on  this  fig-tree,  and  I  find  none.  Cut  it  down,  there¬ 
fore  ;  why  cumbereth  it  [uselessly]  the  ground  ?  He  answering,  said 
to  him  :  Lord,  let  it  alone  this  year  also,  until  I  dig  about  it  and 
dung  it  ;  and  if  happily  it  bear  fruit— but  if  not,  then  after  that  thou 
shalt  cut  it  down.” 

We  may  easily  see  that  Judea  is  this  fig-tree  ;  the  three  years  are 
those  of  our  Saviour’s  preaching,  which  should  have  made  it  pro¬ 
duce  fruit  in  abundance.  This  tree,  still  remaining  barren,  despite 
of  such  excellent  cultivation,  thenceforth  well  deserved  to  be  cut 
down  and  cast  into  the  fire.  It  is  allowed  one  year  more,  viz.,  the 
time  of  the  preaching  of  the  apostles.  After  the  expiration  of  that 
time  the  measure  shall  be  completed — the  trunk  shall  be  cut  asun¬ 
der,  the  roots  uptorn  ;  and  its  branches,  scattered  over  the  face  of 
the  earth,  shall  announce  to  all  men  its  crime  and  its  misfortunes. 

Such,  then,  is  the  literal  sense  of  this  parable,  which  is  also  ap¬ 
plied  to  the  hardened  sinner  for  whom  God  waits  patiently  during 
a  number  of  days  which  are  reckoned.  Sometimes,  softened  by  the 
prayers  of  his  servants,  he  prolongs  this  term  ;  but  if  man  doth  not 
profit  more  from  this  last  delay  than  he  hath  profited  from  the  oth¬ 
ers,  then  outraged  patience  is  turned  into  wrath  ;  justice  has  no  check, 
and  the  blow  which  it  strikes  is  the  more  terrible  in  proportion  to 
the  length  of  time  during  which  it  has  been  suspended.  Thus  the 
conduct  of  God  towards  an  entire  people  is  the  figure  of  that  which 
he  evinces  towards  a  single  man,  as  his  treatment  of  a  single  man  is 
sometimes  the  figure  of  that  which  he  displays  with  regard  to  an  en¬ 
tire  people.  Although  there  may  be  variations,  yet  the  tenor  is  al¬ 
ways  the  same  ;  and  it  is  very  rational  and  proper  for  those  who 
are  commissioned  to  expound  to  the  people  the  divine  Scriptures,  to 
apply  to  individuals  several  matters  which,  in  the  direct  and  literal 
meaning,  regard  the  Jewish  or  any  other  nation. 

In  the  mean  time,  Jesus  continued  to  effect  by  his  preaching  and 
by  his  miracles  the  salvation  of  bodies  and  of  souls,  (a)  “  He  was 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xiii.  10-17. 


master  who  grants  it  desired  it  more  than  he — nay,  the  master  was  waiting  for  it  to  be 
asked  from  him,  and  he  only  complains  when  there  is  no  one  to  place  a  barrier  between 
him  and  the  earth,  or  take  part  with  the  guilty  to  stay  his  justice. — Ezech.  xxii.  30. 


s>\' 


an/. 


vWi  pVnij  '"mij  | 


CHAP.  XLII.J  OF  OUE  LOKD  JESUS  CHEIST.  319 

teaching  in  their  synagogue  on  the  Sabbath,  and  behold,  there  was 
a  woman  who  had  a  spirit  of  infirmity  eighteen  years  (5).”  We  are 
not  aware  whether  she  went  there  to  pray  for  her  cure,  or  simply  to 
assist  at  public  instruction.  However  that  might  be,  “  whom  when 
Jesus  saw  [sensible  image  of  anticipating  grace  /]  he  called  her  unto 
him,  and  said  to  her  :  Woman,  thou  art  delivered  from  thy  infirmi¬ 
ty.  And  he  laid  his  hands  upon  her,  and  immediately  she  was  made 
straight,  and  glorified  God.  The  ruler  of  the  synagogue  being  an¬ 
gry  that  Jesus  had  healed  on  the  Sabbath,  said  to  the  multitude  : 
Six  days  there  are  wherein  you  ought  to  work.  In  them,  therefore, 
come,  and  be  healed  ;  and  not  on  the  Sabbath-day.” 

This  apparent  zeal  was  the  veil  wherewith  he  covered  his  low  jeal¬ 
ousy;  and  the  species  of  delicacy  with  which  he  appeared  to  treat 
the  Saviour,  to  whom  he  did  not  venture  to  address  his  speech,  orig¬ 
inated  not  so  much  in  the  respect  which  he  entertained  for  him,  as 
in  the  fear  of  being  confounded  by  some  one  of  his  answers.  How¬ 
ever,  he  did  not  escape  this  embarrassment,  neither  he  himself  nor 
those  of  his  assistants  who  held  the  same  notions.  Jesus  answered 
them  all  in  the  person  of  him  who  had  addressed  to  others  the  per¬ 
sonal  reproach  which  he  levelled  against  the  Saviour.  “Ye  hypo¬ 
crites  (6),  the  Lord  answering,  said  to  him  :  Doth  not  every  one  of 
you  on  the  Sabbath-day  loose  his  ox  or  his  ass  from  the  manger,  and 
lead  them  to  water  ?  And  ought  not  this  daughter  of  Abraham, 
whom  Satan  hath  bound,  lo  !  these  eighteen  years,  be  loosed  from  this 
bond  on  the  Sabbath-day  ?  And  when  he  said  these  things,  all  his 


(5)  This  spirit  was  Satan,  as  the  Saviour  afterwards  said.  We  see  by  this  that  there 
are  infirmities  which  have  no  natural  cause,  and  of  which  the  devil  is  alone  the  author. 
We  have  a  further  proof  of  this  in  Job,  whose  example  proves  at  the  same  time,  1st. 
That  the  demon  may  hurt  bodies,  without  its  being  requisite  for  sorcerers  to  interpose, 
as  those  seem  to  believe  who  assert  that  the  illness  of  the  woman  who  was  bowed  togeth¬ 
er  was  the  effect  of  sorcery  :  2d.  That  the  demon  who  has  this  power  can  only  exercise 
it  when  God  permits  him  to  do  so,  upon  whom  God  permits,  and  as  long  as  God  permits 
him  to  do  so.  Wherefore  God  alone  is  to  be  dreaded. 

(6)  The  envious  individual  never  saith  that  he  is  envious  ;  he  fears  nothing  so  much  as 
that  it  should  appear  so.  However,  there  must  needs  be  some  apparent  motive  for  what 
envy  makes  him  say  and  do  :  religion,  equity,  nay,  even  charity,  furnish  him  with  all  the 
motives  he  may  want  to  parade  ;  this  constitutes  his  hypocrisy.  A  man  can  be  a  hypo¬ 
crite  without  being  envious  ;  but  he  cannot  be  envious  without  being  a  hypocrite. 


320  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIEE  [PART  n. 

adversaries  were  asliamed;  and  all  the  people  rejoiced  for  all  the 
things  that  were  gloriously  done  by  him.” 

(a)  \At  that  time ]  “Jesus  went  through  the  cities  and  towns  teach¬ 
ing,  and  making  his  journey  to  Jerusalem.  A  certain  man  said  to 
him  :  Lord,  are  they  few  that  are  saved  ?”  This  question  may  have 
originated  in  curiosity.  Jesus,  who  never  sought  to  gratify  this 
feeling,  takes  occasion  therefrom,  according  to  his  custom,  to  edify 
and  instruct.  He  avoids,  therefore,  the  individual  who  had  just  in¬ 
terrogated  him,  and,  addressing  himself  to  those  who  were  listening 
to  him,  “  he  said  to  them  :  Strive  to  enter  by  the  narrow  gate  ;  for 
many,  I  say  to  you,  shall  seek  to  enter,  and  shall  not  be  able  (7). 
But  when  the  master  of  the  house  shall  be  gone  in,  and  shall  shut 
to  the  door,  you  shall  begin  to  stand  without,  and  knock  at  the  door, 
saying  :  Lord,  open  to  us  ;  and  he  answering,  shall  say  to  you  :  I 
know  you  not  wrhence  you  are.  Then  you  shall  begin  to  say:  We 
have  eaten  and  drunk  in  thy  presence,  and  thou  hast  taught  in  our 
streets.  And  he  shall  say  to  you  :  I  know  you  not  whence  you  are  : 
depart  from  me,  all  ye  workers  of  iniquity  (8).  There  shall  be  weep¬ 
ing  and  gnashing  of  teeth,  when  you  shall  see  Abraham,  and  Isaac, 
and  Jacob,  and  all  the  prophets  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  you 
yourselves  thrust  out.  There  shall  come  from  the  east  and  the  west, 
and  the  north  and  the  south  ;  and  shall  sit  down  in  the  kingdom  of 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xiii.  22-30. 


(7)  Into  the  kingdom  of  God  when  consummated,  which  is  heaven.  But  they  cannot 
do  so,  because  they  did  not  wish  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  when  commenced,  which  is 
the  Church.  The  difference  of  one  and  the  other  is  that  between  the  vestibule  and  the 
interior  of  the  palace. 

(8)  This  blot  shall  not  be  effaced  by  the  advantage  of  having  lived  with  Jesus  Christ, 
of,  having  drank  and  eaten  with  him  ;  it  shall  not  be  effaced  by  kindred,  and  if  it  could 
be  discernible  in  his  mother,  it  would  not  be  effaced  by  her  maternity.  In  the  eyes  of 
God  the  works  of  justice  or  iniquity  decide  alone  whether  favor  or  disgrace  be  due. 
Without  regard  to  persons,  or  to  any  thing  which  the  world  values  or  despises,  he  crowns 
virtue  alone,  and  reproves  only  vice.  I  recognize  God  by  this  feature  ;  and  one  of  the 
most  divine  characteristics  of  the  Christian  religion  is,  that  intrepid  tone  with  which  it 
ventures  to  say  to  the  masters  of  the  world  :  If  thou  dost  the  works  of  iniquity,  thou 
shalt  be  eternally  tormented  in  the  depth  of  the  abyss,  whilst  the  lowest  of  your  slaves, 
if  he  die  in  justice,  shall  reign  above  the  stars. 


en  AP.  XLII.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  391 

jod.  And  behold,  they  are  last  that  shall  be  first,  and  they  are 
first  that  shall  be  last  (9).” 

This  answer  was  addressed  personally  to  the  J ews.  It  informs 
them  that  the  number  of  those  who  will  be  saved  shall  be  very  great, 
since  it  shall  comprise  individuals  from  all  parts  of  the  earth  ;  but 
the  number  amongst  their  own  nation  shall  be  very  small,  because 
what  is  here  termed  the  narrow  gate  is  for  them,  the  evangelical 
law,  which  few  of  them  would  embrace.  What  should  render  this 
gate  still  narrower  was  the  small  number  even  of  those  who  should 
enter.  Hence  it  followed  that  those  who  would  not  enter  should 
constitute  the  majority.  The  latter,  more  powerful  in  point  of  num¬ 
bers,  and  more  so  by  their  assurance,  would  turn  against  the  first, 
and,  by  their  fury  in  persecuting  them,  render  it  more  difficult  for 
them  to  enter  that  gate,  already  so  hard  to  gain.  But  at  last  the 
moment  should  arrive  when,  although  they  might  desire  to  enter  the 
heavenly  kingdom  from  which  they  should  have  thus  excluded  them¬ 
selves,  they  find  it  closed  against  them.  Thereupon  the  weeping 
and  gnashing  of  teeth,  when  they  shall  behold  this  small  number  of 
their  brethren,  the  former  objects  of  their  contempt  and  their  ha¬ 
tred,  in  the  company  of  patriarchs  and  prophets,  enjoying  that  inef¬ 
fable  happiness,  the  privation  of  which  is  not  less  bitter  than  its  en¬ 
joyment  is  delightful.  But  what  shall  redouble  their  rage  is,  to  see 
that  there  were  places  for  all,  and  that  theirs  shall  be  filled  by  those 
who  formerly  were  strangers  to  the  alliance,  but  who  shall  have  been 
admitted  in  the  place  of  the  disinherited  children.  For  they  were 
to  throng  thither  from  the  four  corners  of  the  earth  ;  and  behold  the 
sense  in  which  Jesus  Christ  declares  that  the  number  of  the  elect 
taken  by  itself  shall  be  very  great,  although  amongst  the  Jews  it 
should  be  very  small  when  compared  with  the  bulk  of  the  nation. 

You  may  here  inquire,  with  reference  to  this  subject,  whether 
amongst  the  faithful  themselves  the  number  of  the  elect  shall  be  the 
majority  or  minority  ?  An  idle  query  from  the  lips  of  the  greater 
number  who  moot  the  question,  since  each  one  must  be  judged  ac- 


(9)  Until  then  the  Jews  had  been  preferred  to  the  Gentiles — the  Gentiles  shall  shortly 
he  preferred  to  the  Jews.  These  who  were  the  first  shall  be  the  last,  which  does  not 
mean  that  they  shall  have  the  last  places  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  but  that  they  shall  be 
utterly  excluded  from  it. 


21 


S 

Èi 


y/fim' 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


cording  to  his  works,  and  no  one  shall  be  saved  barely  because 
there  shall  be  a  great  number  of  elect,  as  no  one  shall  be  condemn¬ 
ed,  precisely  because  there  shall  be  a  great  number  of  reprobates. 
Wherefore  let  us  not  mind  others,  but  let  each  one  think  of  himself  ; 
being  persuaded  that  if  he  preserve  his  innocence,  or  if  he  recover  it 
by  sincere  repentance,  should  but  one  be  saved,  that  individual  shall 
be  himself  ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  he  shall  be  reprobate,  were  there 
but  one  reprobate  alone,  if,  after  having  sinned,  he  dieth  in  his  im¬ 
penitence. 

(a)  “  The  same  day  there  came  some  of  the  Pharisees,  saying  to 
Jesus  :  Depart  and  get  thee  hence,  for  Herod  hath  a  mind  to  kill 
thee.”  The  intimation  was  true,  although  given  out  of  envy,  and 
not  from  charity.  Perhaps  it  was  Herod  himself  who  caused  it  to 
be  given.  It  would  be  difficult  to  divine  the  reason  for  this  warn¬ 
ing  ;  however,  the  thing  is  not  improbable,  inasmuch  as  the  Saviour 
conveys  back  to  this  prince  his  reply  through  the  medium  of  those 
who  came  to  speak  to  him.  “  Go,  he  said  to  them,  and  tell  that 
fox  (10)  :  Behold,  I  cast  out  devils,  and  do  cures  to-day  and  to-mor¬ 
row,  and  the  third  day  I  am  consummated.  Nevertheless,  I  must 
walk  to-day,  and  to-morrow,  and  the  day  following  (11),  because  it 
cannot  be  that  a  prophet  perish  out  of  Jerusalem  (12).” 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xiii.  31-35. 


(10)  Thus  styled  by  Jesus  Christ,  and  perhaps  he  generally  went  by  the  denomination 
on  account  of  his  cunning.  Besides  being  naturally  cunning,  his  situation  might  further 
contribute  to  render  him  such.  He  was  obliged  to  please  the  Romans,  by  whom  alone 
he  held  his  sway,  and  he  did  not  wish  to  displease  his  subjects,  who  could  not  endure 
the  Romans.  What  cunning  must  be  necessary  to  reconcile  such  antagonistic  elements, 
when  an  individual  has  not  sufficient  probity  to  effect  this  purpose  by  righteous  conduct 
— the  only  means  most  suitable  to  secure  a  successful  issue,  and  the  only  means  by 
whjch  any  one  can  permanently  succeed  ! 

(11)  These  three  days  signify  the  short  time  which  Jesus  Christ  had  to  remain  upon 
earth.  This  answer  is  full  of  magnanimity  ;  it  is  as  if  he  said  :  I  act  as  I  wish  :  I  dread 
no  one,  and  I  shall  not  die  except  at  the  time  and  in  the  place  which  I  have  myself  ap¬ 
pointed. 

The  just  man  can  say  with  the  same  intrepidity  :  I  do  what  God  wishes  me  to  do — I 
fear  him  alone,  and  I  shall  not  die  except  at  the  time  and  in  the  place  chosen  by  him. 

(12)  That  is  to  say,  it  is  not  suitable  that  a  prophet  should  suffer  death  out  of  Jerusa¬ 
lem.  The  reason  given  by  some  is,  because  the  judgment  of  a  prophet  was  reserved  to 
the  great  Sanhedrim.  Others  think  that  Jesus  Christ  spoke  thus  because  the  majority 


-V 


CIIAP, 


XL1I.] 


OF  OUR  LOUD  JESUS  CHRIST, 


323 


His  heart  is  moved  when  pronouncing  the  name  of  this  unfortu¬ 
nate  city,  and  he  cannot  refrain  from  addressing  to  it  this  reproach 
which  compassion  draws  forth  from  the  depth  of  his  paternal  bosom. 
“  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  that  ldllest  the  prophets,  and  stonest  them 
that  are  sent  to  thee,  how  often  would  I  have  gathered  thy  children 
as  the  bird  doth  her  brood  under  her  wings,  and  thou  wouldst 
not  (13)?  Behold,  your  house  shall  be  left  to  you  desolate.  And 
I  say  to  you,  that  you  shall  not  see  me  till  the  time  come,  when  you 
shall  say  :  Blessed  is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.” 

Children  pronounced  this  benediction  when  he  made  his  triumphal 
entry  into  Jerusalem.  However,  this  is  not  what  the  Saviour  had 
here  in  view.  He  intended  to  go  again  to  Jerusalem  for  the  feast 
of  the  dedication  before  the  last  journey,  when  this  acclamation  was 
to  be  uttered  ;  and  after  it  was  spoken,  he  again  said  to  the  Jews  • 
“  You  shall  not  see  me  till  the  time  come,  when  you  shall  say  :  Bless¬ 
ed  is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.”  An  evident  mark 
that  this  first  acclamation  was  not  that  of  which  he  then  spoke.  A 
deeper  meaning  was  concealed  beneath  these  words  :  -  they  announced 
the  conversion  of  the  Jews,  who,  reclaimed  from  their  prejudices, 
should  turn  at  length  towards  him,  and  hasten  by  their  ardent  invo¬ 
cations  the  second  coming  of  the  Messiah,  whom  their  fathers  had 
rejected.  Jesus  Christ  said  that  before  this  period  they  should  see 
him  no  more,  because  he  had  only  a  few  days  further  to  pass  amongst 
them  ;  after  which  these  wilfully  blinded  people,  who  disowned  him 
in  person,  should  obstinately  deny  him,  even  until  the  consummation 
of  ages,  notwithstanding  the  establishment  of  his  Church  and  the  ac¬ 
complishment  of  the  prophecies,  although  these  signs  had  been  more 
than  sufficient  to  make  him  manifest  to  all  the  nations  of  the  earth. 


of  the  prophets  who  were  put  to  death  had  been  deprived  of  life  at  Jerusalem,  whence 
it  might  very  possibly  happen,  as  is  also  thought,  that  what  Jesus  here  says  had  passed 
into  a  proverb. 

(13)  God  would  have  it  so,  and  Jerusalem  would  not:  what  God  would  have,  did  not 
come  to  pass.  Wherefore  there  are,  without  prejudice  to  divine  omnipotence,  wishes  of 
God  that  have  not  their  accomplishment.  Theologians  explain  this  mystery  in  various 
ways  ;  but  whatever  explanation  be  adopted,  Jesus  Christ  has  said  it,  and  we  must  be¬ 
lieve  it. 


fl  II 

m  M 


fro 


'Ml 


% 


'fete# 


CHAPTER  XLIII. 

A  HAN  CURED  OF  THE  DROPSY  ON  THE  SABBATH-DAY. - WE  ARE  ALWAYS  TO  TARE 

THE  LOWEST  PLACE. - TO  INVITE  THE  POOR. - PARABLE  OF  THOSE  WHO  EXCUSE 

THEMSELVES  FROM  COMING  TO  THE  SUPPER. - WE  MUST  PREFER  JESUS  CHRIST 

BEFORE  ALL  THINGS. 

(a)  “  It  came  to  pass,  wlien  Jesus  went  into  tlie  house  of  one  of  the 
chief  of  the  Pharisees  on  the  Sabbath-day  to  eat  bread,  that  they  watch¬ 
ed  him  \_for  the  purpose  of  criticising  his  actions ],  and  behold,  there 
was  a  man  before  him  that  had  the  dropsy.  Jesus  answering,  spoke 
to  the  lawyers  and  Pharisees,  saying  :  Is  it  lawful  to  heal  on  the  Sab¬ 
bath-day  (1)  ?  But  they  held  their  peace.  He  taking  him  that  had 
the  dropsy,  healed  him,  and  sent  him  away.  And  answering  them 
[ their  very  thoughts ],  he  said  :  Which  of  you  shall  have  an  ass  or  an 
ox  fall  into  a  pit,  and  will  not  immediately  draw  him  out  on  the  Sab¬ 
bath-day  ?  And  they  could  not  answer  him  to  these  things.” 

Then,  after  having  been  observed,  Jesus  Christ  observed  them  in 
his  turn  ;  and  not  content  with  having  made  them  feel  that  he  had 
nothing  to  dread  from  their  criticism,  he  further  informed  them  that 
they  had  need  of  his  instructions.  “  Marking  how  they  that  were 
invited  chose  the  first  seats  at  the  table,  he  spoke  a  parable,  saying 
to  them  :  WTen  thou  art  invited  to  a  wedding,  sit  not  down  in  the 
first  place  (2),  lest  perhaps  one  more  honorable  than  thou  be  in- 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xiv. 


(1)  We  have  seen  in  note  2,  page  112,  chapter  xv.,  Part  I.,  that  the  rabbis  were  still 
more  scrupulous  than  the  Pharisees  upon  the  observance  of  the  Sabbath.  With  all  that, 
they  do  not  yet  consider  that  it  is  kept  strictly  enough  ;  some  of  them  are  even  of  opin¬ 
ion  that  it  is  this  desecration  which  retards  the  coming  of  the  Messiah,  who  shall  appear 
directly  when  the  Sabbath  shall  have  been  perfectly  observed  ;  that,  in  short,  he  only 
awaits  this  preliminary. 

Any  practice,  however  holy  it  may  be  in  its  institution,  must  always  be  converted  into 
superstition  and  fanaticism,  when  a  party  would  fain  reduce  all  religion  to  it  alone. 

(2)  The  sages  of  paganism  had  taught  this  lesson  before  Jesus  Christ.  They  were  un¬ 
acquainted  with  humility,  yet  they  enjoined  the  semblance  of  it.  Instinct  tendered  this 
homage  to  it,  and  it  was  honored  nearly  in  the  same  way  as  the  unknown  God,  whose 


tel 


I  «f 


M 


mm 


CHAP.  XLIII.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


325 


vited  ;  and  lie  that  invited  thee  and  him,  come  and  say  to  thee,  Give 
this  man  place  ;  and  then  thou  begin  with  shame  to  take  the  lowest 
place.  But  when  thou  art  invited,  go,  and  sit  down  in  the  lowest 
place  ;  that  when  he  that  invited  thee  cometh,  he  may  say  to  thee  : 
Friend,  go  up  higher.  Then  shalt  thou  have  glory  before  them  that 
sit  at  table  with  thee.  Because  every  one  that  exalteth  himself  shall 
be  humbled  ;  and  he  that  humbleth  himself  shall  be  exalted.” 

The  refinement  of  our  manners  gives  but  little  room  for  the  appli¬ 
cation  of  this  moral,  especially  in  this  particular  instance.  It  very 
rarely  occurs  amongst  us  that  the  least  honorable  of  the  company 
should  go  and  take  the  first  place  at  table  ;  or,  if  he  ventured  to  do 
it,  most  likely  he  would  be  left  to  endure  the  shame  of  remaining 
there  rather  than  be  affronted  by  being  displaced.  However,  these 
presuming  individuals  are  sometimes  displaced  in  other  circumstan¬ 
ces,  which  generally  are  those  wherein  the  degrees  of  rank  are  regu¬ 
lated,  and  perhaps  this  was  the  case  at  the  feasts  of  the  Jews.  Sin¬ 
cere  humility  should  always  be  the  motive  inducing  us  to  station 
ourselves  rather  below  than  above  the  rank  which  is  due  to  us.  To 
do  this  with  the  design  of  being  invited  to  go  up  higher ,  would  be 
merely  substituting  for  that  coarse  pride  which  seizes  upon  the  first 
seat,  the  more  refined  pride  which  desires  to  obtain  it  through  defer¬ 
ence.  Moreover,  we  should  discard  the  notion  that  the  latter  de¬ 
portment  is  that  which  Jesus  Christ  prescribed  to  the  Pharisees.  In¬ 
capable  as  they  were  of  entertaining  sentiments  of  profound  humili¬ 
ty,  he  accommodates  himself  to  their  weakness,  contenting  himself, 
as  a  first  lesson,  with  making  them  remark  the  humiliating  blunders 
of  pride,  which  really  ends  in  shame  by  the  very  course  it  deemed 
conducive  to  glory,  whilst  glory  awaits  the  humility  that  shuns  it. 
We  daily  witness  the  occurrence  of  this  state  of  things  in  the  world, 
when  men,  imitating  on  this  point  the  sentiments  and  the  conduct  of 
God,  resist  the  proud  man  who  would  fain  possess  himself  by  force  of 
their  esteem  and  their  respect,  which  they  thrust  upon  the  humble  man 
who  declines  them.  But  what  men  sometimes  do  in  this  world  is 


altar  was  observed  by  Saint  Paul  at  Athens.  But  must  it  not  be  visible  that  the  sem¬ 
blance  without  the  reality  is  merely  hypocrisy,  and  that  if  it  be  incumbent  upon  us  to 
appear  modest,  we  should  consequently  be  really  humble  ?  This  reasoning  is  extremely 
simple  ;  yet  the  world  has  existed  four  thousand  years  without  drawing  the  inference. 


}  II 


.17* 


ft 

I 


326 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIEE 


[part  IL 


but  a  faint  image  of  what  God  shall  do  in  the  other  world,  where, 
by  an  irrevocable  decree,  the  effect  of  which  shall  be  eternal,  he  shall 
perfectly  accomplish  his  own  saying  :  He  that  humbleth  himself  shall 
be  exalted.  For  the  instruction  which  he  has  just  given  refers  to  this 
fact,  and  this  is  what  renders  the  instruction  so  highly  important. 

It  was  addressed  directly  to  the  guests,  although  it  applied  to  all. 
But  it  seems  that  the  master  of  the  feast  well  deserved  to  have  a 
separate  instruction  to  himself.  The  Saviour  admonishes  him  to 
substitute  charitable  invitations  for  those  which  were  ostentatious 
and  interested.  “  And  he  said  to  him  also  that  had  invited  him  : 
When  thou  makest  a  dinner  or  a  supper,  call  not  thy  friends,  nor 
thy  kinsmen,  nor  thy  neighbors  who  are  rich  (3),  lest  perhaps  they 
also  invite  thee  again,  and  a  recompense  be  made  to  thee  (4).  But 
when  thou  makest  a  feast,  call  the  poor,  the  maimed,  the  lame,  and 
the  blind  (5)  ;  and  thou  shalt  be  blessed,  because  they  have  not 


(3)  Jesus  Christ  does  not  forbid  us  to  invite  our  friends  and  our  kindred  who  are  rich  ; 
the  negative  particle  signifies  in  this  passage,  invite  rather  the  poor,  &c.,  than  those 
among  your  kindred  who  are  rich.  We  do  precisely  the  contrary  ;  for  we  invite  the 
rich  from  the  fact  of  their  being  rich,  and  we  decline  inviting  the  poor  from  the  fact  that 
they  are  poor. 

(4)  Supposing  that  they  were  invited  from  this  motive.  For  we  may  do  so  from  laud¬ 
able  motives,  such  as  are  those  of  observing  certain  indispensable  rules  of  decorum, 
of  making  acknowledgments  of  friendship  or  of  gratitude,  of  fostering  unanimity 
amongst  families  ;  and  God,  who  approves  these  motives,  will  recompense  them.  There¬ 
fore  the  recompense  will  be  according  to  the  motive  ;  if  this  be  virtuous,  the  recompense 
will  be  received  on  the  day  of  resurrection  ;  but  if  we  invite  for  the  purpose  of  being  in¬ 
vited  in  our  turn,  we  shall  be  invited,  and  an  entertainment  shall  be  the  reward  of  an  en¬ 
tertainment.  If  the  motive  be  to  enjoy  the  honor  which  may  result  from  the  fact  of 
having  a  grand  entertainment,  we  shall  have  this  honor,  and  nothing  further  ;  if  the  mo¬ 
tive  be  to  be  amused  by  witty  guests,  perhaps  we  may  have  this  amusement  ;  and  this 
perhaps  I  also  make  use  of  with  reference  to  other  recompenses  of  the  sort  ;  for  what  we 
do  in  order  to  be  cherished,  admired,  amused,  sometimes  ends  in  our  being  envied,  mock¬ 
ed,  and  annoyed. 

(5)  This  is  not  an  injunction  to  make  them  eat  at  his  table  ;  it  is  a  counsel  which  the 
saints  have  followed  to  the  letter.  Those  amongst  them  who  were  the  greatest  in  world¬ 
ly  estimation  have  most  distinguished  themselves  in  this  way.  They  deemed  themselves 
honored  by  eating  with  those  who  represented  before  them  the  King  of  kings  and  the 
Lord  of  lords.  Several  of  them  were  even  so  impressed  with  this  truth,  that,  not  daring 
to  sit  down  at  the  same  table  with  them,  they  served  them  on  bended  knees.  These 
saints  wore  perfectly  convinced  of  what  the  fathers  have  called  the  sacrament  of  the 
poor,  viz.,  they  recognized  Jesus  Christ  under  the  poor  man’s  tattered  garments,  as  faith 
recognizes  him  under  the  sacramental  species.  Behold  perfection  ;  but  the  precept  con- 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CHEIST. 


327 


CIIAP.  XLIH.] 

wherewith  to  make  thee  recompense  ;  for  recompense  shall  be  made 
thee  at  the  resurrection  of  the  just.” 

“  When  one  of  them  who  sat  at  table  with  him  had  heard  these 
things,  he  said  to  him  :  Blessed  is  he  that  shall  eat  bread  in  the  king¬ 
dom  of  God.” 

Undoubtedly  he  might  well  say  so  ;  but  he  might  have  added  : 
Unhappy  are  those  who  shall  be  excluded  from  this  heavenly  ban¬ 
quet  !  and  doubly  unhappy,  inasmuch  as  they  shall  be  excluded  by 
their  own  fault  alone.  For  it  is  not  God  who  has  excluded  them 
from  this  ineffable  delight.  He  had  prepared  it  for  them  ;  he  had 
called  them  by  repeated  invitations.  Fettered  by  ties  of  flesh  and 
blood,  they  have  despised  his  gifts  and  repulsed  his  advances.  They 
shall  be  forever  banished  from  his  table,  and  others  shall  occupy 
their  places;  an  awful  truth  which  Jesus  Christ  had  already  an¬ 
nounced  to  them,  and  which  he  is  going  to  repeat  to  them  again. 
For,  taking  occasion  from  what  this  man  had  just  said,  “he  [in  Ms 
turri\  said  to  him  :  A  certain  man  made  a  great  supper,  and  invited 
many.  At  the  hour  of  supper  he  sent  his  servant  to  them  who  were 
invited,  that  they  should  come,  for  now  all  things  are  ready.  They 
began  all  at  once  to  make  excuse.  The  first  said  to  him  :  I  have 
bought  a  farm,  and  I  must  needs  go  out  and  see  it  ;  I  pray  thee,  hold 
me  excused.  Another  said  :  I  have  bought  five  yoke  of  oxen,  and  I 
go  to  try  them  ;  I  pray  thee,  hold  me  excused.  I  have  married  a 
wife,  said  another,  and  therefore  I  cannot  come.  The  servant  re¬ 
turning,  told  these  things  to  his  master.  Then  the  master  of  the 
house  being  angry,  said  to  his  servant  :  Go  quickly  into  the  streets 
and  lanes  of  the  city,  and  bring  in  hither  the  poor  and  the  feeble, 
and  the  blind  and  the  lame.  And  the  servant  said  :  Lord,  it  is  done 


sists  in  giving  food  to  those  who  are  hungry  ;  and  amongst  the  number  of  those  who  dis¬ 
regard  this  precept,  none  shall  be  more  inexcusable  than  those  who  give  food  to  that 
class  who  do  not  stand  in  need  of  it.  For,  possessed  as  they  are  of  the  means  of  re¬ 
galing  the  rich,  can  they  assert  that  they  have  not  wherewith  to  solace  the  poor  ? 

Jesus  Christ  having  promised  to  make  us  one  day  sit  at  his  table,  hath  he  not  a  right 
to  sit  at  ours  in  the  person  of  the  poor  ?  But  the  poor  man  is  disgusting — clean  him, 
answers  Saint  Chrysostom.  His  clothes  are  soiled  ;  give  him  proper  clothing.  If  your 
delicacy  can  still  hardly  endure  him,  make  him  eat  with  your  domestics,  or  else  send  him 
what  you  have  not  the  courage  to  serve  up  to  him.  It  is  quite  absurd  to  raise  difficul¬ 
ties  in  this  matter  ;  the  saints  find  an  answer  for  them  all. 


328 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


'  [part  n. 

as  tliou  hast  commanded,  and  yet  there  is  room  (6).  The  lord  said 
to  the  servant  :  Go  ont  into  the  highways  and  the  hedges,  and  com¬ 
pel  them  to  come  in  (7 ),  that  my  house  may  be  filled  ;  but  I  say 
unto  you,  that  none  of  those  men  that  were  invited  shall  taste  of  my 
supper.” 

Jesus  was  then  on  his  way  to  Jerusalem.  “There  went  a  great 
multitude  with  him,  and  turning,  he  said  to  them  :  If  any  man 
come  to  me,  and  hate  not  his  father,  and  mother,  and  wife,  and  chil¬ 
dren,  and  brethren,  and  sisters,  yea,  and  his  own  life  also,  he  cannot 
be  my  disciple  (8).” 

It  was  only  to  the  disciples,  properly  speaking,  viz.,  to  the  apos¬ 
tles  and  the  seventy-two,  that  the  Saviour  had  proposed,  at  least  in 
part,  this  truth,  the  practice  of  which,  so  irksome  to  nature,  is,  nev¬ 
ertheless,  indispensable  to  any  one  who  professes  to  belong  to  him. 
The  proposing  it,  as  he  does,  to  the  whole  people,  is  tantamount  to 
making  it  a  general  law  for  all  Christians.  Wherefore  to  all  it  is 
said  that  the  love  of  Jesus  Christ  should  have  the  mastery  over  all 
other  love  without  exception,  for  the  word  to  hate  only  means  here 
this  preference.  It  is  due  to  Jesus  Christ,  who  cannot,  without  der¬ 
ogating  from  Avhat  he  owes  to  himself,  fail  to  exact  it  from  us  ;  for, 
since  he  is  God,  he  should  be  loved  above  all  things  ;  and  were  he 
to  permit  our  love  to  be  wedded  to  any  other  thing  whatsoever  in 
preference  to  himself,  he  would  dishonor  his  own  divinity.  Where¬ 
fore  this  text,  and  others  of  a  similar  nature,  furnish  proofs  of  this, 
but  thence  it  further  follows  that  Jesus  Christ  constitutes  this  prefer- 


(6)  True  zeal  embraces  equally  the  rich  and  the  poor,  and  it  succeeds  much  oftener 
with  the  poor  than  with  the  rich.  We  have  an  example  of  the  first  of  these  truths  in 
the  conduct  of  this  good  servant  and  we  have  a  proof  of  the  second  in  the  different  suc¬ 
cess  he  meets  with. 

(7)  Entreat  them,  press  them  earnestly,  be  urgent  with  them  ;  but  do  not  (strictly 
spéaking)  employ  force.  Force  is  not  in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel;  the 
Gospel  must  be  established  by  persuasion,  as  the  Alcoran  is  by  the  sword.  These  are 
their  distinctive  characters,  and  the  distinction  must  be  kept  up. 

(8)  We  have  already  seen  that  the  vocation  of  the  Jews  and  of  the  Gentiles  to  the 
faith  was  the  direct  object  of  this  parable.  However,  preachers  apply  it  also  to  the  eu¬ 
charistie  banquet  to  which  Jesus  Christ  invites  us  in  so  engaging  a  manner.  This  second 
application  seems  to  harmonize  with  the  intention  of  the  Church,  which  assigns  this  Gos¬ 
pel  to  the  Sunday  within  the  octave  of  the  holy  sacrament,  and  has  inserted  words  in  the 
office  of  the  same  day,  which  refer  entirely  to  this  sacrament. 


à 


ence  a  first  principle,  which  serves  as  the  basis  to  all  Christianity. 
Not  to  prefer  Jesus  Christ  to  all  things,  if  an  individual  content  him¬ 
self  with  really  and  in  fact  refusing  him  this  preference,  is  to  be 
wanting  in  sincere  Christianity  ;  but  if  that  man  go  so  far  as  to  deny 
that  it  is  due  to  him,  he  is  destitute  even  of  speculative  Christianity  ; 
or  if,  notwithstanding,  he  pretend  to  have  this,  he  is  manifestly  in¬ 
consistent,  and  falls  into  palpaple  absurdity,  as  the  Saviour  gives  him 
clearly  to  understand  by  the  two  following  comparisons  :  “For  [add¬ 
ed  he]  which  of  you  having  a  mind  to  build  a  tower,  doth  not  first 
sit  down  and  reckon  the  charges  that  are  necessary,  whether  he  have 
wherewithal  to  finish  it  ;  lest,  after  he  hath  laid  the  foundation,  and 
is  not  able  to  finish  it,  all  that  see  it  begin  to  mock  him,  saying: 
This  man  began  to  build,  and  was  not  able  to  finish  ?  Or  what  king 
about  to  go  to  make  war  against  another  king,  doth  not  first  sit  down 
and  think  whether  he  be  able  with  ten  thousand  to  meet  him  that 
with  twenty  thousand  cometh  against  him?  Or  else,  whilst  the 
other  is  yet  afar  off,  sending  an  embassy,  he  desireth  conditions  of 
peace.  So  likewise  every  one  of  you  that  doth  not  renounce  all  that 
he  possesseth,  cannot  be  my  disciple,”  at  least  in  heart  and  in  affec¬ 
tion,  and  with  a  disposition  to  renounce  it  in  point  of  fact,  whenever 
it  shall  be  requisite  for  my  service,  “  he  cannot  be  my  disciple.” 


V 


v\\J 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 

FEAST  OF  THE  DEDICATION. - JESUS  SPEAKS  OF  HIS  OWN  SHEEP. - HE  AND  HIS  FA¬ 
THER  ARE  ONE. - THE  PARABLE  OF  THE  LOST  SHEEP  AND  THE  LOST  GROAT. - THE 

PRODIGAL  SON. 

(a)  “  It  was  the  feast  of  the  dedication  at  Jerusalem,”  viz.,  of  the 
altar  formerly  profaned  by  Antiochus,  and  consecrated  anew  by  Ju¬ 
das  Machabeus  (Z  Mach.  iv.  59).  This  solemnity  had  been  fixed  for 
the  twenty-fifth  day  of  the  month  which  the  Jews  called  Casleu, 
which  corresponds  to  our  month  of  December.  “  It  was  winter,  and 

(a)  St.  John,  x.  22-33. 


(i^tsaaaAa 


& 


Jesus  walked  in  the  temple  in  Solomon’s  porch.  The  Jews,  there¬ 
fore,  came  round  about  him,  and  said  to  him  :  How  long  dost  thou 
hold  our  souls  in  suspense  ?  If  thou  be  the  Christ,  tell  us  plainly.” 

He  had  already  conveyed  to  them  this  truth  so  often  and  so  clear¬ 
ly  ;  they  were  so  little  solicitous  to  understand  it  aright  ;  they  were 
even  so  resolved  not  to  believe  the  fact,  they  who  had  declared  to 
him  that  they  did  not  regard  as  legitimate  the  testimony  which  he 
rendered  of  himself,  that  it  was  easy  to  see  how  bad  were  their  mo¬ 
tives  in  putting  this  question.  But  the  real  motive  which  inspired  it 
was  hatred  alone,  and  the  desire  of  ruining  him  to  whom  they  ad¬ 
dressed  it.  Prejudiced  as  they  all  were  with  the  notion  of  the  Mes¬ 
siah’s  temporal  kingdom,  the  plain  declaration  that  he  was  the  Mes¬ 
siah  was  tantamount  to  a  hostile  declaration  against  the  Roman  gov¬ 
ernment  ;  and  this  single  statement  I  am  he ,  became  a  crime  against 
the  State.  On  the  other  hand,  not  to  advance  it,  was  authorizing 
the  incredulity  of  the  Jews,  which  appeared  only  to  await  his  an¬ 
nouncement  of  himself  in  order  to  give  in.  Here  human  prudence 
might  have  found  itself  at  fault  ;  but  he  who  is  the  uncreated  wis¬ 
dom  experienced  no  difficulty  in  rending  this  spider’s  web  spun  by 
their  malice.  Whilst  he  declined  saying  what  they  sought  to  hear, 
he  well  knew  how  to  insinuate  what  they  were  bound,  and  yet  re¬ 
fused  to  believe  ;  which  he  accomplished  in  a  manner  so  effective, 
that,  in  default  of  reasons,  they  were  reduced  to  arm  themselves 
with  stones:  thereupon  “Jesus  answered  them:  I  speak  to  you,  and 
you  believe  not.”  If  the  reason  is  because  the  testimony  of  my  words 
appears  to  you  insufficient,  “the  works  that  I  do  in  the  name  of  my 
Father,  they  give  testimony  of  me.”  But  the  cause  of  your  incredu¬ 
lity  is  not  in  me,  nor  in  my  silence  ;  your  incredulity  springs  from 
yourselves  and  from  your  own  wilful  deafness.  “  You  do  not  be¬ 
lieve,  because  you  are  not  of  my  sheep  (1).  My  sheep  hear  my 


ri 


(1)  It  may  be  asked  whether  those  whom  Jesus  Christ  here  calls  his  sheep  consist  of 
all  the  faithful  who  believe  in  his  word,  or  whether  they  are  only  the  elect  properly 
speaking.  Saint  Augustine  takes  the  expression  to  be  confined  to  the  latter,  and  the  se¬ 
quel  gives  much  weight  to  his  explanation.  Jesus  Christ  declares  that  he  shall  give 
eternal  life  to  his  sheep — that  they  shall  never  perish — that  no  one  shall  snatch  them 
from  his  hands  :  all  which  declaration,  taken  to  the  letter,  is  applicable  to  the  elect  alone. 
Those  who  incline  to  the  opinion  that  the  sheep  indicate  all  the  faithful,  generally  ground 


ÇA  . 

I Ci 

v# 


sa'i 


m 

Mu 


sesa 

I'1"'  (C^ 


fll 


CHAP.  XLIY.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


voice  ;  I  know  them,  and  tliey  follow  me.”  Judge  of  wliat  I  am  by 
the  reward  which  I  reserve  for  their  docility.  “  I  give  them  life 
everlasting,  and  they  shall  not  perish  forever.”  The  foreknowledge 
of  the  efforts  which  the  world  and  hell  shall  make  to  snatch  them 
from  him,  induces  him  to  add  :  “No  man  shall  pluck  them  out  of 
my  hand.  That  which  my  Father  hath  given  me  is  greater  than 
all  (2),  and  no  one  can  snatch  them  out  of  the  hand  of  my  Father. 
\_Nbw~\  I  and  the  Father  are  one. 

“  The  Jews  then  took  up  stones  to  stone  him.”  A  certain  proof 
that  the  unity  which  he  here  spoke  of  was  understood  to  be  the  uni¬ 
ty  of  the  divine  nature,  which  he  declared  to  be  common  to  the  Fa- 


their  idea  upon  the  following  reasons.  Jesus  Christ  states  to  the  Jews  that  they  do  not 
believe  him,  because  they  are  not  his  sheep  ;  wherefore  those  who  believe  are  his  sheep, 
conclude  these  interpreters.  The  Saviour  adds  :  My  sheep  hear  my  voice,  I  know  them, 
and  they  follow  me  ;  all  which  sayings  are  applicable  to  the  faithful  who  are  in  the  state 
of  actual  justice,  even  if  they  be  not  predestined.  Moreover,  is  it  credible  that,  amongst 
these  Jews  who  then  were  any  thing  but  belonging  to  the  flock,  there  may  not  have  been 
some  of  those  who  believed  subsequently  during  the  preaching  of  the  apostles,  and  whose 
faith  obtained  salvation  for  them  ?  Here,  then,  we  have  some  elect,  who  were  not  sheep 
of  the  flock,  and,  consequently,  there  may  also  have  been  sheep  who  were  not  of  the  num¬ 
ber  of  the  elect.  As  to  what  the  Saviour  further  saith,  viz.,  that  he  shall  give  eternal 
life  to  his  sheep,  that  they  shall  never  perish,  and  that  no  one  shall  snatch  them  from  his 
hand,  &c.,  this  is  explained  as  referring  to  the  light  of  grace — a  life  immortal  in  itself, 
which  no  created  power  shall  be  ever  capable  of  wresting  from  the  man  who  possesseth 
it,  and  which  shall  preserve  him  from  death  during  all  eternity,  provided,  nevertheless, 
that  he  doth  not  voluntarily  strip  himself  thereof.  See  note  1,  chapter  xxvi.,  Part  I., 
page  201. 

(2)  Literally,  is  greater  than  all.  \Pere  Be  Ligny  translates  into  French,  “  est  audes- 
sus  de  toutes  c/ioses.”]  This  expression  should  not  be  understood  with  reference  to  the 
elect,  although  they  are  the  greatest  and  most  precious  objects  in  the  universe,  and  this 
meaning  is  the  first  which  occurs  to  the  mind.  Such  a  construction  would  not  furnish  a 
reason,  wherefore  they  shall  never  be  wrested  from  Jesus  Christ.  What  renders  it  im¬ 
possible  to  wrest  a  thing  from  the  hand  is  not  the  value  and  excellence  of  the  thing,  but 
the  force  of  the  hand  which  holds  possession.  Jesus  Christ,  therefore,  speaks  of  the  di¬ 
vine  nature  which,  as  God,  he  hath  received  from  his  Father  from  all  eternity,  by  the 
eternal  generation,  and  received  as  man  in  time,  by  the  hypostatic  union.  In  this  expla¬ 
nation  we  are  furnished  with  the  reason  why  no  man  shall  wrest  the  elect  out  of  the 
hands  of  Jesus  Christ.  For  who  could  wrest  them  out  of  the  hands  of  the  Almighty? 
And  we  have  a  further  proof  to  the  same  effect  in  the  following  words  :  No  one  can 
snatch  them  out  of  the  hand  of  my  Father.  For  the  Father  and  Son  being  but  one,  and 
the  power  (signified  by  the  hand)  of  the  one  being  substantially  the  power  of  the  other, 
it  evidently  follows  that  what  cannot  be  wrested  from  the  hand  of  the  Father  can  neither 
be  wrested  from  the  hand  of  the  Son. 


&&  * 


H 


TL 


[PAET  IL 

tlier  and  to  liim,  and  not  that  species  of  moral  unity  which  results 
from  conformity  of  sentiments  and  wishes.  The  Arians  would  fain 
have  understood  this  declaration  merely  in  the  latter  sense.  We  are 
surprised  that  they  should  have  been  followed  in  this  construction 
by  some  Catholic  interpreters,  who  have  preferred  rather  to  copy 
from  such  bad  authors  than  adhere  to  the  common  explanation,  mis¬ 
led  by  that  relish  for  singularity,  which,  when  carried  to  excess,  pro¬ 
duces  heresy,  and,  even  when  restricted  within  certain  limits,  always 
makes  rash  and  dangerous  theologians.  To  return  to  the  Jews  :  Je¬ 
sus  wished  that  they  should  pronounce  flatly  and  by  word  of  mouth 
that  which  was  already  clearly  manifested  by  the  stones  they  clutch¬ 
ed  in  their  hands  ;  and  suspending,  by  his  omnipotence,  the  effects 
of  their  fury,  of  which  he  did  not  yet  wish  to  become  the  victim, 
“  he  answered  them  :  Many  good  works  I  have  showed  you  from  my 
Father;  for  which  of  those  works  do  you  stone  me?  The  Jews  an¬ 
swered  him  :  For  a  good  work  we  stone  thee  not,  but  for  blasphem¬ 
ing  ;  and  because  that  thou,  being  a  man,  makest  thyself  God.” 

(a)  “When  the  Jews  sent  from  Jerusalem  priests  and  Levites  to 
him  [John  the  Baptist],  to  ask  him  :  Who  art  thou  ?  He  confessed, 
and  did  not  deny  ;  and  he  confessed  :  I  am  not  the  Christ.”  If  Je¬ 
sus  Christ  was  not  God,  he  would  have  been  bound  to  confess  in  a 
more  marked  manner,  if  it  were  possible,  and  still  more  explicitly 
than  he,  that  he  was  not  God,  and  that  they  had  misunderstood  the 
meaning  of  his  words.  But  this  he  does  not  do,  and  he  leaves  this 
meaning  still  impressed  on  the  minds  of  his  hearers.  For  he  adds 
nothing  to  what  he  has  said,  much  less  does  he  correct  this  impres¬ 
sion  by  stating  to  them,  as  he  is  going  to  do,  that  the  name  of  God 
belongs  to  him  in  a  much  more  excellent  manner  than  to  all  those 
to  whom  that  name  is  given  in  Scripture,  which  statement  favors 
rather  than  repudiates  the  interpretation  which  they  had  given  to 
his  words,  and,  without  saying  positively  I  am  God,  conveys  the  wish 
that  they  should  believe  it.  What  enormous  prevarication,  if  it  were 
not  true  that  he  was  God  !  And,  lastly,  since  he  does  not  undeceive 
the  Jews  when  they  believe  that  he  makes  himself  pass  for  God,  we 
must  admit  one  of  these  two  consequences,  viz.,  either  he  possesses 
divinity,  or  he  wishes  to  be  the  usurper  thereof.  Those  who  deny 

(a)  St.  John,  i.  19,  20. 


CHAP.  XLIV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


333 


him  the  possession  of  this  divinity,  and  who  acknowledge  at  the  same 
time  that  he  was  incapable  of  falsehood,  cannot  escape  from  this  di¬ 
lemma.  Here,  therefore,  is  what  (a)  “  Jesus  answered  them  :  Is  it 
not  written  in  your  law  (3),  I  said  you  are  gods  (4)  ?  If  he  called 
them  gods  to  whom  the  word  of  God  was  spoken,  and  the  Scripture 
cannot  be  broken,  do  you  say  of  him  whom  the  Father  hath  sancti¬ 
fied  and  sent  into  the  world  :  Thou  blasphemest,  because  I  said,  I  am 
the  Son  of  God  ?  If  I  do  not  the  works  of  my  Father,  believe  me 
not.  But  if  I  do,  though  you  will  not  believe  me,  believe  the  works  ; 
that  you  may  know  and  believe  that  the  Father  is  in  me,  and  I  in 
the  Father.” 

These  latter  words  recalled  those  previously  spoken,  I  and  the  Fa¬ 
ther  are  one ,  and  appeared  with  reason  to  have  the  same  sense.  Al¬ 
though  they  were  justified  by  reasons  wholly  unanswerable,  they  yet 
rekindled  the  fury  which  had  merely  been  suspended.  Respect  for 
the  temple  hindered  them  from  glutting  their  vengeance  on  the  spot 
which  formed  part  of  its  precincts.  “  They  sought,  therefore,  to  take 
Jesus.”  But  whether  he  rendered  himself  invisible,  or  that  he  struck 
them  motionless,  “he  escaped  out  of  their  hands.  And  he  went 
again  beyond  the  Jordan,  into  that  place  where  John  was  baptizing 
first,  and  there  he  abode.”  This  place  was  called  Bethania,  other¬ 
wise  Bethabara.  Jesus  knew  that  his  presence,  joined  to  the  recol¬ 
lection  of  the  testimony  which  John  had  there  rendered  to  him  as 
Son  of  God,  should  there  effect  the  salvation  of  many.  In  point  of 
fact,  as  soon  as  they  became  aware  of  his  arrival,  “  many  resorted  to 

(a)  St.  John,  x.  34. 


(3)  We  read  these  words  in  the  81st  Psalm.  The  term  “  Law”  was  more  particularly 
applicable  to  the  books  of  Moses  ;  but  we  see  by  this  example,  and  by  some  others,  that 
it  was  also  given  to  the  whole  collection  of  the  Old  Testament. 

(4)  God  thus  denominates  the  judges,  because  the  power  of  judging  with  which  they 
are  invested  is  an  emanation  from  divine  authority.  The  sequel  shows  that  they  were 
bad  judges.  However,  they  are  not  the  less  on  that  account  called  judges  ;  their  vices, 
therefore,  are  no  reason  for  refusing  them  the  respect  and  the  sort  of  worship  that  is  due 
them  on  account  of  this  title.  But  it  is  announced  to  them  that  they  shall  die,  and  that 
the  God  of  judges  is  their  judge,  in  order  that  they  may  know  that  their  prevarications 
shall  not  be  unpunished.  The  indocility  of  the  people  and  the  iniquity  of  bad  judges  have 
no  more  potent  corrective  than  these  two  words,  issued  from  the  mouth  of  the  sovereign 
judge:  You  are  gods,  and  you  shall  die  like  the  rest  of  men. 


ik  * 


mmm 


I, 


334 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 

him,  and  they  said:  John  indeed  did  no  sign  (5).  But  all  things 
whatsoever  John  said  of  this  man  were  true.  And  many  believed 
in  him.” 

As  Jesus  communicated  himself  to  all  with  equal  bounty,  (a)  “Now 
the  publicans  and  sinners  drew  near  unto  him  to  hear  him.”  The 
most  perverse  of  all  sinners,  and  at  the  same  time  the  most  incorri¬ 
gible,  inasmuch  as  they  deemed  themselves  saints,  “the  Pharisees 
and  the  Scribes,  murmured  [at  this] ,  saying  :  This  man  receiveth  sin¬ 
ners,  and  eateth  with  them.”  It  was  easy  for  the  Saviour  to  repress 
the  pride  of  these  proud  censors,  and  to  confound  them  by  a  single 
word,  as  he  had  done  in  the  affair  of  the  adulteress.  He  prefer¬ 
red  this  time  to  give  them  the  reason  for  that  compassionate  meek¬ 
ness  which  characterizes  true  justice,  in  the  same  way  as  false  justice 
is  recognized  by  fierce  and  disdainful  intolerance.  Nothing  is  so  ten¬ 
der  as  the  images  which  he  is  going  to  trace  of  his  goodness,  and  it 
is  hardly  conceivable,  when  we  consider  them,  how  men  can  still  be 
tempted  to  despair. 

“  He  spoke  [  therefore ]  to  them  this  parable  [which  he  proposed  in 
the  form  of  interrogation ]  :  "What  man  of  you  that  hath  an  hundred 
sheep,  and  that  he  lose  one  of  them,  doth  not  leave  the  ninety-nine 
in  the  desert,  and  go  after  that  which  was  lost,  until  he  find  it  ?  And 
when  he  hath  found  it,  lay  it  upon  his  shoulders  rejoicing  ;  and  com¬ 
ing  home,  call  together  his  friends  and  neighbors,  saying  to  them  : 
Bejoice  with  me,  because  I  have  found  my  sheep  that  was  lost  ?  I 
say  to  you  (6),  that  even  so  there  shall  be  joy  in  heaven  upon  one 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xv.  1-32. 


(5)  His  mission  was  sufficiently  authorized  by  his  miraculous  birth,  and  by  the  still 
more  miraculous  sanctity  of  his  life.  It  was  further  proved  by  even  the  miracles  of  Je¬ 
sus  Christ.  These  miracles,  by  proving  that  Jesus  was  the  Messiah,  proved  that  he  who 
had  declared  him  to  be  such  before  the  Saviour  had  commenced  to  work  miracles,  was 
truly  a  prophet.  This  is  the  first  reason  why  God  had  not  conferred  upon  John  the  gift 
of  miracles;  he  could  effect  his  mission  without  them.  We  may  add,  that  Jesus  Christ 
wished  to  reserve  to  himself  this  striking  characteristic  of  strength  and  of  power, 
which  evidently  marked  his  superiority  over  John,  and  disabused  the  people  of  the  idea 
which  occasionally  recurred  to  them  of  mistaking  the  servant  for  the  Master. 

The  greatest  of  mankind  never  wrought  miracles  ;  we  are  even  allowed  to  believe  that 
Mary,  the  holiest  of  creatures,  never  wrought  one  during  the  whole  course  of  her  mortal 
life.  Virtue  alone,  not  prodigies,  constitutes  the  saint. 

(6)  See  note  12,  chapter  xxxii.,  page  252,  Part  I. 


1 


CHAP.  XLIV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


sinner  that  doth  penance,  more  than  upon  ninety-nine  just,  who  need 
not  penance.  Or  what  woman  having  ten  groats,  if  she  lose  one 
groat,  doth  not  light  a  candle,  and  sweep  the  house,  and  seek  dili¬ 
gently  until  she  find  it  ?  And  when  she  hath  found  it,  call  together 
her  friends  and  neighbors,  saying:  Rejoice  with  me,  because  I  have 
found  the  groat  which  I  had  lost.  So  I  say  to  you,  there  shall  be 
joy  before  the  angels  of  God  upon  one  sinner  doing  penance.” 

The  second  parable  comprehends  the  same  meaning  as  the  first, 
and  the  same  truth  is  presented  under  two  different  images.  The 
reader  has  not  forgotten  that  the  Saviour  had  already  proposed  to 
his  disciples  that  of  the  good  shepherd.  If  he  repeat  it  here,  he  does 
so  for  the  consolation  of  these  poor  sinners  who  came  to  him  with  so 
much  confidence,  whilst  he  at  the  same  time  instructed  those  harsh 
and  haughty  men  whose  whole  religion  consisted  in  repelling  these 
humble  sinners.  He  adds,  whilst  repeating  it,  the  circumstance  of 
the  joy  of  the  angels  of  heaven,  for  whom  the  day  of  the  conversion 
of  a  sinner  is  more  particularly  a  festal-day  and  a  day  of  joy.  Those 
here  on  earth,  who  are  the  truly  just,  should  share  this  joy,  and  they 
share  it  with  them  in  point  of  fact  :  those  principally  whom  God 
deigns  to  associate  with  him  in  the  work  of  his  mercy,  and  many 
of  them  can  vouch  that  the  moments  when  they  have  seen  the  tears 
of  repentance  flowing  at  their  feet,  have  been  the  most  delightful 
moments  of  their  life. 

But  if  a  good  shepherd  tenderly  loves  his  sheep — if  a  poor  woman 
is  strongly  attached  to  some  pieces  of  money — the  fruit  of  her  labor, 
the  support  of  her  life,  and  the  only  treasure  which  she  possesses, 
you  will  admit  that  these  affections  do  not  even  deserve  to  bear  that 
name,  if  we  compare  them  with  paternal  love,  the  deepest — if  we 
may  venture  to  use  the  expression — of  all  loves  ;  whilst  at  the  same 
time  it  is  the  most  tender  of  all.  Such  is  the  love  by  which  Jesus 
Christ  wishes  us  to  estimate  his  love  for  the  greatest  sinners— not 
such  love  as  exists  in  ordinary  fathers,  but  such  as  can  hardly  be 
found  even  in  the  best  and  most  indulgent.  Behold  the  image  which 
he  himself  hath  traced  with  his  divine  hand. 

“A  certain  man  had  two  sons  (I).  The  younger  of  them  said  to 

(7)  The  ancients  universally  believed  that  the  Jews  were  figured  by  the  eldest  of  these 


nrw  'tt v,7rw  r~r  ^  *11 


w 


Him'.: 


A 


% 


jff^ 


336 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 

his  father  :  Father,  give  me  the  portion  of  substance  that  falleth  to 
me  ;  and  he  divided  unto  them  his  substance  (8).  Not  many  days 
after  the  younger  son,  gathering  all  together,  went  abroad  into  a  far 
country,  and  there  wasted  his  substance,  living  riotously  (9).  After 
he  spent  all,  there  came  a  mighty  famine  in  that  country,  and  he  be¬ 
gan  to  be  in  want.  And  he  went  and  cleaved  to  one  of  the  citizens 
of  -that  country  ;  he  sent  him  into  his  farm  to  feed  swine  ;  and  he 


two  sons,  and  the  Gentiles  by  the  youngest.  It  has  been  since  asserted  that  the  two 
brothers  represent  the  just  man  and  the  sinner,  and  this  has  become  the  most  common 
interpretation.  Saint  Jerome,  who  excludes  neither  of  these  two  applications,  is  appa¬ 
rently  the  interpreter  who  has  reached  the  true  construction.  Firstly,  the  parable  is 
suitable  to  sinners  in  general.  This  conclusion  is  evident,  from  the  circumstance  where¬ 
in  Jesus  Christ  proposes  it.  The  Pharisees  murmured  because  he  received  publicans 
and  other  sinners  who  were  still  Jews.  Thus,  by  justifying  his  conduct  with  regard  to 
them,  Jesus  Christ  has  first  in  view  sinners  generally,  without  distinction  of  Jew  or  Gen¬ 
tile.  But  he  foresaw  the  murmurs  which  should  arise  amongst  the  converted  Jews 
when  the  apostles  preached  the  Gospel  to  the  Gentiles,  and  admitted  them  to  baptism, 
and  the  reply  to  these  murmurings  was  prepared  for  them  in  advance  by  this  parable. 
Therefore  it  is  suitable  to  both,  as  we  have  just  said,  notwithstanding  certain  difficulties, 
which,  according  to  the  different  impressions  which  they  have  made  upon  the  minds  of 
men,  have  given  rise  to  the  exclusion  of  one  of  the  two  meanings.  But  it  is  easy  to  solve 
these  difficulties,  as  may  be  seen  by  the  remarks  that  we  shall  make  upon  the  passages 
which  have  occasioned  them. 

(8)  The  younger  son’s  share  could  not  have  been  allotted  to  him  without  allotting,  at 
the  same  time,  to  the  elder  son  his  share  ;  but  the  latter  did  not  take  away  his  share. 

(9)  The  principal  object  of  the  parable  is  to  make  known  the  whole  extent  of  the  mer¬ 
cy  which  God  exercises  towards  the  sinner  who  returns  to  him  in  the  grief  and  sincerity 
of  his  heart.  The  youngest  of  these  two  sons  shows  by  what  path  man  alienates  himself 
from  God,  and  that  by  which  he  should  return  to  him.  The  eldest  is  to  make  us  aware 
that,  very  far  from  making  it  a  matter  of  regret,  we  should  rejoice  at  the  good  reception 
which  our  common  father  gives  to  our  brethren  when  they  return  from  their  wanderings. 
All  may  be  reduced  to  this  ;  and  the  other  personages,  as  well  as  the  other  circumstan¬ 
ces,  may  well  be  deemed  merely  accessory.  However,  interpreters  have  sought  for  moral 
significations  contained  in  them.  Here  are  such  as  are  generally  given  to  them  :  the  dis¬ 
sipation  of  the  paternal  estate  is  the  abuse  which  the  sinner  makes  of  the  natural  and  su¬ 
pernatural  gifts  which  he  has  received  from  God.  Famine  and  indigence  represent  that 
immense  vacuum  which  is  formed  in  a  soul  created  for  God  alone,  which  soul  is  destitute 
of  every  thing,  even  in  the  midst  of  abundance,  when  destitute  of  God.  The  master  to 
whom  the  prodigal  gives  himself  is  the  devil.  To  what  servitude  has  he  not  been  re¬ 
duced  by  a  false  freedom,  in  place  of  the  sweet  liberty  which  is  to  be  found  in  the  servi¬ 
tude  of  the  children  of  God  !  The  swine  are  those  infamous  passions  of  which  he  is  be¬ 
come  the  vile  slave,  and  the  husks  those  miserable  pleasures  to  which  he  has  sacrificed 
all — pleasures  which  often  disappoint  his  desires,  and  which  are  at  all  times  incapable  of 
satisfying  them. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


337 


CH  A.P.  XLIV.J 

would  fain  have  filled  his  belly  with  the  husks  the  swine  did  eat,  and 
no  man  gave  unto  him.  Returning  to  himself,  he  said  (10):  How 
many  hired  servants  in  my  father’s  house  abound  with  bread,  and  I 
here  perish  with  hunger.  I  will  arise,  and  will  go  to  my  father,  and 
say  to  him  :  Father,  I  have  sinned  against  heaven,  and  before  thee  ; 
I  am  not  now  worthy  to  be  called  thy  son  :  make  me  as  one  of  thy 
hired  servants  (11).  And  rising  up,  he  came  to  his  father.  When 
he  was  yet  a  great  way  off,  his  father  saw  him,  and  was  moved  with 
compassion,  and  running  to  him,  fell  upon  his  neck  and  kissed  him. 
Father,  the  son  said  to  him,  I  have  sinned  against  heaven  (12),  and 
before  thee  (13)  ;  I  am  not  now  worthy  to  be  called  thy  son.”  He 
did  not  finish,  whether  it  was  that  his  father  did  not  give  him  time, 
or  that  he  felt,  in  so  sweet  an  embrace,  that  he  had  already  obtain¬ 
ed  more  than  what  he  scarcely  ventured  to  ask.  This  good  fa¬ 
ther,  more  eager  to  grant  the  favor  than  the  son  was  to  obtain  it, 
“said  [immediately]  to  his  servants:  Bring  forth  quickly  the  first 
robe,  and  put  it  on  him  (14).  Put  a  ring  on  his  hand,  and  shoes  on 


(10)  There  is  no  sinner  who  doth  not  sigh  when  he  compares  the  misery  of  his  guilty 
years  with  the  happiness  of  those  spent  in  virtue.  Wherefore  doth  he  not  then  add  :  Let 
me  be  happy  again  ! 

(11)  He  said,  I  will  arise,  and  he  arose;  I  will  go,  and  he  went  without  deliberation 
snd  without  delay.  How  many  say  like  him  :  I  will  arise,  and  I  wall  go  !  One  class 
go  at  once  ;  the  others  put  off  their  return.  This  it  is  which  causes  some  to  be  peni¬ 
tent,  and  some  to  be  impenitent  ;  which  causes  some  who  have  sinned  much  to  be  rank¬ 
ed  among  the  elect,  and  some  to  be  reprobate  who  have  proposed  a  thousand  times  to 
do  penance.  Delay  not  to  be  converted  to  the  Lord,  and  defer  it  not  from  day  to  day. — 
Eccl.  v.  8. 

(12)  That  is  to  say,  1st,  against  the  God  of  Heaven.  This  word  by  itself  has  some¬ 
times  this  signification  in  the  sacred  language,  and  in  several  other  languages  ;  2d,  against 
the  angels  and  the  saints  who  inhabit  heaven.  They  resent  the  injury  which  is  perpe¬ 
trated  against  God,  as  good  children  resent  the  injury  done  to  their  father  ;  and  faithful 
subjects  that  which  is  levelled  against  their  king. 

(13)  What  injury,  then,  had  he  done  to  him?  He  had  neither  attacked  him  in  his 
honor,  nor  in  his  property,  nor  in  his  person.  Yet  it  is  obvious  to  every  one  that  a  son 
who  degrades  himself,  although  he  does  not  directly  attack  his  father,  offends  him,  nev^ 
ertheless,  by  his  bad  conduct.  It  is  a  surprising  fact,  that  there  are  men  who  cannot,  as 
they  say,  conceive  how  God,  who  is  not  injured  by  sin,  can  be  so  highly  offended  by  it. 

The  profligate  son  who  says  :  What  harm  does  that  do  to  my  father  ?  is  an  insolent  man, 
who  adds  outrage  to  injury  ;  and  the  sinner  who  says  :  What  evil  does  my  sin  do  to  God  ? 
ts  an  impious  man,  who  adds  iniquity  to  blasphemy. 

(14)  Mysterious  significations  have  been  also  given  10  all  this  passage.  The  precious 

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338 


THE  HISTOEY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[■PAET  II. 


liis  feet.  Brinsr  hither  the  fatted  calf,  and  kill  it:  let  us  eat  and 
make  merry,  because  this  my  son  was  dead,  and  is  come  to  life  again  ; 
was  lost,  and  is  found  :  and  they  began  to  be  merry.  Now  his  elder 
son  was  in  the  field,  and  when  he  came  and  drew  nigh  to  the  house, 
he  heard  music  and  dancing.  And  he  called  one  of  the  servants, 
and  asked  what  these  things  meant.  Thy  brother,  he  said  to  him, 
is  come,  and  thy  father  hath  killed  the  fatted  calf,  because  he  hath 
received  him  safe.  And  he  was  angry  (15),  and  would  not  go  in. 

robe  is  baptismal  innocence.  The  ring  is  the  pledge  of  the  return  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
into  a  heart,  whence  he  had  been  banished  by  sin,  and  into  which  he  had  just  entered 
with  the  plenitude  of  his  gifts  and  of  his  graces.  The  shoes  shield  the  feet  against  the 
stones  of  scandal,  and  defend  them  against  the  bite  of  the  infernal  serpent.  All  interpret¬ 
ers  understand  by  the  fatted  calf  the  flesh  of  Jesus  Christ,  given  to  the  penitent  in  sign 
of  perfect  reconciliation,  and  as  aliment  necessary  for  the  preservation  of  the  spiritual  life 
which  has  just  been  mercifully  restored  to  him. 

(15)  Here  are  the  murmurings  of  the  Jews,  which  are  spoken  of  in  the  11th  chapter 
of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  This  is  what  reasonably  determined  interpreters  to  apply 
the  parable  to  both  people  :  this  sense,  however,  does  not  exclude  the  other.  J ust  men, 
animated  by  a  too  ardent  zeal,  may  take  a  sort  of  scandal  from  the  mercy  which  God 
exercises  towards  the  greatest  sinners.  What  might  even  now-a-days  occur  must  have 
been  more  common  in  the  early  days  of  Christianity.  The  meekness  of  the  Gospel  was 
not  then  so  well  known  as  it  has  since  been.  Jesus  Christ  properly  commenced  to  make 
it  known,  and  it  was  no  easy  matter  to  assume  the  spirit  thereof  at  a  season  when  nothing 
was  breathed  but  the  rigor  of  the  ancient  law.  Hence  this  lesson  which  the  Saviour 
gave  to  the  two  children  of  thunder,  when  they  wished  to  strike  with  thunderbolts  the 
unfaithful  city  which  had  refused  to  receive  him.  You  do  not  know,  he  said  to  them,  to 
what  spirit  you  belong.  Lastly,  this  harsh  zeal  may  indeed  sometimes  be  only  an  imper¬ 
fection  and  a  venial  fault,  which  does  not  deprive  of  justice  those  who  follow  its  impulses, 
and  the  example  of  the  two  apostles  is  proof  thereof.  But  if  you  object  that  the  just 
could  not  be  represented  by  Pharisees,  who  were  as  sinful,  and  more  so,  than  the  others, 
we  reply  that  these  sinners  deemed  themselves  just,  and  that  the  Saviour  addresses  them, 
following  up  the  notion  which  they  entertained  concerning  themselves  :  the  argument 
thereupon  acquires  even  greater  force  as  against  them  ;  and  at  the  same  time  the  truly 
just,  who  would  be  capable  of  imitating  to  a  certain  extent  their  harshness,  find  therein 
the  instruction  suitable  to  them.  On  the  other  hand,  it  may  be  objected  that  the  con¬ 
verted  Jews,  who  were  previously  prevaricators  on  so  many  points,  could  not  say  to  God, 
as  the  eldest  son  said  to  his  father,  that  they  never  had  contravened  his  orders  ;  and, 
consequently,  that  this  eldest  son  could  not  be  the  figure  of  those  Jews.  But  it  is  suffi¬ 
cient,  in  order  to  justify  the  application,  that,  comparatively  with  the  Gentiles,  they  were 
just  upon  the  main  point,  which  was  the  knowledge  and  the  adoration  of  the  one  true 
God.  Thus  the  different  senses  given  to  the  parable  are  equally  applicable  to  it,  and  to 
wish  to  restrict  it  to  one  sense  would  be,  in  opposition  to  at  least  the  presumed  intention 
of  Jesus  Christ,  confining  it  within  narrower  bounds  than  those  which  it  should  naturally 
have. 


2. 


kin 


it)  1  O  9  9  0  0' 


W'-pSi] - 1 — -J-r 


CHAP.  XLIY.J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


His  father,  therefore,  coming  out,  began  to  entreat  him.  He  answer¬ 
ing,  said  to  his  hither  :  Behold,  for  so  many  years  do  I  serve  thee, 
and  I  have  never  transgressed  thy  commandment,  and  yet  thou  hast 
never  given  me  a  kid  to  make  merry  with  my  friends  ;  but  as  soon 
as  this  thy  son  is  come,  who  hath  devoured  his  substance  with  har¬ 
lots,  thou  hast  killed  for  him  the  fatted  calf.  Son,  the  father  said  to 
him,  thou  art  always  with  me,  and  all  I  have  is  thine  (16).  But  it 
was  fit  that  we  should  make  merry  and  be  glad,  for  this  thy  brother 
was  dead,  and  is  come  to  life  again  ;  he  was  lost,  and  is  found  (17).” 

To  a  portrait  so  affecting  we  shall  further  add  this  reflection,  viz., 
that  he  who  could  think  that  the  goodness  of  God  is  represented 
here  to  its  full  extent,  would  mistake  a  faint  glimmering  for  the  sun 
at  its  meridian,  and  a  dew-drop  for  the  immensity  of  the  waters  of 
the  ocean.  Ho  created  image  could  approach  to  it  ;  and  Jesus  Christ 
only  avails  himself  of  such,  in  order  that  what  is  known  to  us  may 
enable  us  to  form  some  idea  of  what  we  can  neither  know  nor  im¬ 
agine.  However  incredible  that  mercy  which  is  represented  under 
these  figures  may  appear  to  us,  there  is  none  which  the  Saviour  might 
not  have  terminated  with  this  expression  :  The  mercy  of  God  is  such 
as  I  have  just  described,  and  infinitely  greater.  In  point  of  fact,  this 
surprising  goodness  of  the  prodigal’s  father,  which  affects  us,  and 
sometimes  softens  us  even  unto  tears,  only  exhibits  a  part  of  the  good¬ 
ness  of  God,  and  that  part  the  smallest.  It  is  the  mercy  which  re¬ 
ceives,  but  not  the  grace  which  prevents  :  it  exhibits  God  when  for¬ 
giving  the  penitent  sinner,  but  not  when  he  seeks  the  ungrateful  sin¬ 
ner.  It  would  be  necessary,  in  order  to  make  this  a  complete  image, 
and  to  represent  God  entirely  therein — it  would  be  necessary,  I  say, 
that  the  father  should  follow  his  son  in  his  wild  career — that  he 
should  go  and  seek  him,  even  in  the  distant  climes  whither  his  dis- 


(16)  That  is  to  say,  every  thing  here  is  at  your  disposal;  and  you  have  no  reason  to 
reproach  me  for  not  having  given  to  you  what  I  have  left  you  at  liberty  to  take.  This 
grievance,  supposing  it  to  be  one,  could  not  be  imputed  by  the  son  to  his  father.  But, 
when  an  individual  is  in  ill  humor,  he  always  finds  out  cause  for  complaint. 

(17)  The  prodigal  was  dead  in  the  sense  of  his  being  lost;  and  he  is  resuscitated  in 
the  sense  of  his  being  found.  With  reference  to  the  penitent  sinner,  these  two  words 
bear  their  literal  signification.  Grace  or  habitual  justice  is  formally  the  life  of  the  soul, 
and  its  loss  is  the  death  thereof. 


w 

ntiy 

m 

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ft 

it 

IP 

Wi 

TWIT  |  xil]  |  r 


340 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 

orderly  propensities  liad  caused  liim  to  wander — that  he  should  pre¬ 
sent  himself  before  him  in  the  midst  of  his  debaucheries,  or  of  his 
miseries,  not  so  much  to  reproach  him  as  to  invite  him  to  return,  to 
offer  him  his  house,  his  table,  and  all  his  goods  ;  to  urge  him,  to  con¬ 
jure  him  that  he  would  accept  them.  For  such,  properly  speaking, 
is  the  grace  which  is  termed  preventive  :  behold  it  represented  in 
every  feature.  But  this  would  be  an  overdrawn  picture  of  any 
earthly  father  ;  and  if  the  parable  were  carried  to  that  extent,  it 
would  have  been  inconsistent  with  probability,  and,  perhaps,  even 
with  propriety.  Such  goodness  belongs  alone  to  the  Heavenly  Fa¬ 
ther,  and  it  is  worthy  of  it  to  signalize  itself  by  such  features  as  are 
far  beyond  all  the  tenderness  of  nature  and  of  blood. 

We  must  be  pardoned  for  dwelling  on  a  subject  so  interesting.  I 
shall,  therefore,  again  say,  that,  verily,  we  have  the  image  of  pre¬ 
ventive  grace  in  the  two  preceding  parables  of  the  strayed  sheep 
and  the  lost  groat.  We  think  that  we  see  it  drawn  to  the  very  life 
in  the  painful  and  earnest  search  of  the  woman  and  of  the  shepherd. 
Let  us,  however,  be  careful  to  notice  that  there  is  always  an  essen¬ 
tial  difference  between  these  faint  copies  and  their  divine  original. 
It  consists  in  this  :  the  lost  groat  and  the  lost  sheep  are  a  real  loss 
to  their  owners,  who,  when  they  seek  for  them,  seek  not  so  much 
the  thing  lost  as  themselves  and  their  own  advantage,  since  the  joy 
of  having  found  it  belongs  to  themselves  alone.  But  in  losing  us, 
God  has  lost  nothing.  Neither  his  existence  nor  his  happiness  de¬ 
pends  upon  us.  Even  his  exterior  glory,  viz.,  that  which  results  from 
the  manifestation  of  his  divine  attributes  (that  glory  which  can  add 
nothing  to  his  felicity,  and  which  he  well  knew  how  to  dispense  with 
during  an  entire  eternity),  would  have  been  no  less  satisfied,  had 
he  signalized  his  justice  by  the  punishment  of  the  guilty,  than  his 
clemency,  by  the  pardon  which  he  deigns  to  offer  them.  But  that 
lie  should  come  the  first  in  advance  to  meet  us — that  he  should  call 
us  with  never-ending  entreaties — that  he  should  seek  us  with  incred¬ 
ible  care  and  anxiety — that  he  should  stretch  forth  his  hand  to  us, 
and  throw  open  to  us  his  paternal  bosom — that  he  should  invite  us 
• — nay,  even  that  he  should  conjure  us  to  return  thither,  and  to  re¬ 
ceive  in  his  arms  the  pardon  of  all  our  crimes,  as  if  we  were  necessa¬ 
ry  to  him,  and  that  he  could  not  do  without  us  ;  as  if  his  happiness 


CHAP.  XLV.J  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  341 

depended  upon  ours,  or  tliat  our  salvation  was  his  own  :  behold  the 
miracle,  or  rather  the  mystery  of  the  goodness  of  God,  which  no  fig¬ 
ure  could  represent — which  no  created  mind  can  comprehend— the 
depth  of  which,  like  that  of  the  most  impenetrable  mysteries,  chal¬ 
lenges  our  adoration.  We  can  only  believe  it  by  faith  ;  it  is  above 
all  hope,  and  it  should  inflame  us  with  love  at  the  sight  of  goodness 
too  great  to  be  ever  comprehended  by  our  reason,  and  for  which  we 
could  never  have  dared  to  hope. 


CHAPTEK  XLV. 

PARABLE  OF  THE  STEWARD. - TO  MAKE  FRIENDS  FOR  OURSELVES  BY  WEALTH  UN¬ 
JUSTLY  ACQUIRED. - THE  RICH  BAD  MAN  AND  THE  POOR  GOOD  MAN. - FIRST  COM¬ 

ING  OF  THE  MESSIAH  DEVOID  OF  LUSTRE. 

The  following  parable,  or  rather  narrative,  is  no  longer  address¬ 
ed  to  the  Pharisees,  but  to  the  disciples.  The  first,  who  were  with¬ 
in  reach  of  hearing  him,  and  who  heard  him  in  point  of  fact,  were 
those  for  whom  it  was  most  necessary,  and  who  yet  profited  the 
least  from  it.  Perhaps  this  was  the  reason  which  influenced  the  Sa¬ 
viour  to  direct  no  further  discourse  to  them,  in  order  that  he  might 
not  appear  to  have  subjected  the  divine  word  to  the  derision  with 
which  they  treated  it,  and,  contrary  to  his  own  maxim,  to  have  cast 
pearls  before  swine.  Whatever  weight  there  may  be  in  this  reason, 
which  we  only  give  by  way  of  conjecture,  (a)  “Jesus  [< continuing  to 
speak]  said  also  to  his  disciples  :  There  was  a  certain  rich  man  who 
had  a  steward,  and  the  same  was  accused  unto  him,  that  he  had 
wasted  his  goods.”  However,  the  master,  a  just  and  humane  man, 
was  unwilling  to  condemn  him,  until  he  should  have  had  proof  of  his 
unfaithfulness.  “  He  called  him,  and  said  to  him  :  How  is  it  that  I 
hear  this  of  thee  ?  give  me  an  account  of  thy  stewardship  ;  for  [if 
what  they  have  told  me  be  true]  now  thou  canst  be  steward  no  longer. 
And  the  steward  [who  was  not  able  to  give  a  good  account]  said  with- 

( a )  St.  Luke,  xvi.  1-31. 


342 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  H. 


in  himself  :  What  shall  I  do  because  my  lord  taketh  away  from  me 
the  stewardship  ?  To  dig  I  am  not  able  ;  to  beg  I  am  ashamed.  I 
know  what  I  will  do,  that,  when  I  shall  be  removed  from  the  stew¬ 
ardship,  they  may  receive  me  into  their  houses.  Therefore,  calling 
together  every  one  of  his  lord’s  debtors,  he  said  to  the  first  :  How 
much  dost  thou  owe  my  lord  ?  A  hundred  barrels  of  oil,  he  said. 
The  steward  said  to  him  :  Take  thy  bill,  and  sit  down  quickly,  and 
write  fifty.  Then  he  said  to  another  :  And  how  much  dost  thou 
owe  ?  who  said  :  A  hundred  quarters  of  wheat.  Take  thy  bill,  he 
said  to  him,  and  write  eighty:  and  the  lord  commended  the  unjust 
steward,  forasmuch  as  he  had  done  wisely.  For  the  children  of  this 
world  are  wiser  in  their  generation  (1)  than  the  children  of  light  (2). 
And  I  say  to  you  [ concludes  the  Saviour,  for  that  was  precisely  what  he 
had  in  view ],  make  unto  you  friends  of  the  mammon  of  iniquity  (3), 


(1)  We  cannot  conclude  that  men  are  constituted  in  a  particular  way,  because  we  may 
have  supposed  that  a  certain  man  may  have  held  a  particular  line  of  conduct.  The  con¬ 
clusion  may  be  drawn,  if  it  be  true  that  he  has  held  the  line  of  conduct  attributed  to  him. 
In  a  word,  a  fact  is  only  deducible  from  a  fact.  Wherefore  this  is  no  fiction,  but  a  true 
narrative. 

(2)  Prudence  consists  in  the  judicious  choice  of  the  means  whereby  we  seek  to  attain 
a  reasonable  end.  The  children  of  the  world  excel  the  children  of  light  in  the  choice  of 
the  means  which  they  employ  ;  the  children  of  light  excel  with  reference  to  the  end 
which  they  propose  to  themselves.  Nothing  can  equal  the  industry  and  the  activity  of 
the  first  ;  but  whither  do  they  tend  ?  They  are  pointed  towards  acquisitions  which  death 
shall  take  away  from  them  on  the  morrow,  leaving  them  naked,  and  abandoned  to  rot¬ 
tenness  and  worms.  What  toil  and  industry  lost  !  The  second  labor  for  infinite  and 
eternal  acquisitions  ;  but,  less  eagerly  bent  than  the  first  on  the  object  of  their  la¬ 
bors,  they  do  not  equally  excel  in  the  choice  and  the  application  of  the  means.  We  may 
compare  the  first  to  an  architect  who  concentrated  all  the  ingenuity  of  his  art  in 
building  castles  with  cards,  which  a  breath  of  air  would  level  in  an  instant  ;  and  the  sec¬ 
ond  to  him  who,  with  moderate  talents,  occupied  himself  in  constructing,  with  solid 
materials,  good,  habitable  dwellings.  The  latter,  though  not  a  great  man,  would  yet  be 
a  sensible  man  :  the  other,  with  all  his  cleverness,  would  be  a  fool.  In  the  arts  the  union 
of  both  constitutes  the  great  man,  and  in  morality  it  constitutes  the  great  saint. 

(3)  If  we  possess  them  unjustly,  and  that  we  know  those  to  whom  they  belong,  we 
are  not  permitted  to  give  them  in  alms  :  we  must  restore  them.  If  it  be  impossible  to 
know  those  to  whom  restitution  should  be  made,  then  it  is  an  obligation  of  justice  to  re¬ 
store  to  the  poor  ;  and,  in  this  sense,  the  order  here  issued  by  the  Saviour  is  literally  exe¬ 
cuted.  But  mammon  is  here  termed  “  of  iniquity,”  in  a  more  extensive  signification.  1st. 
Because  it  frequently  occurs,  even  without  our  knowledge,  that  we  possess  riches  unjust¬ 
ly  according  to  this  expression  of  Saint  Jerome  :  Every  rich  man  is  unjust,  or  the  inher¬ 
itor  of  an  unjust  person.  2d.  Inasmuch  as  they  are  to  their  possessors  the  cause  and 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


348 


CHAP.  XLV.] 

that  when  they  shall  fail,  they  may  receive  yon  into  everlasting  dwell- 


Thus,  what  at  first  sight  might  appear  to  he  the  apology  of  fraud 
and  of  injustice,  becomes,  by  this  conclusion,  an  excellent  lesson  tu 
charity,  which  the  divine  Master  further  corroborates  by  the  follow¬ 
ing  maxims  :  “  He  that  is  faithful  in  that  which  is  least,  is  faithful 


also  in  that  which  is  greater  (5)  ;  and  he  that  is  unjust  in  that  which 


is  little,  is  unjust  also  in  that  which  is  greater.  If,  then,  you  have 
not  been  faithful  in  the  unjust  mammon  (6),  who  will  trust  you  in 


the  instrument  of  a  thousand  iniquities.  3d.  And  this  sense  comes  nearer  to  that  of  the 


parable,  because  we  are  but  too  prone  to  deem  ourselves  the  masters  and  proprietors  of 
them — a  qualification  which  belongs  essentially  to  God  alone,  who  has  merely  appointed 
us  to  be  the  disburser  of  them,  who  has  reckoned  them  out  to  us,  and  shall  demand  a 
reckoning  from  us.  This  latter  exposition  is  taken  from  Saint  Augustine.  - 

(4)  The  rich  are  in  this  world  the  benefactors  of  the  poor  :  the  poor  are  in  the  other 
world  the  benefactors  of  the  rich.  The  first  confer  bread — the  second  confer  heaven, 
Ye  rich  !  you  shall  never  obtain  it,  if  they  do  not  confer  it  upon  you.  Is  it,  therefore, 
enough  to  say  to  you  :  Do  good  to  them  ?  Would  it  not  be  more  advisable  to  say  :  Pay 
court  to  them  ? 

(5)  This  is  said  in  pursuance  of  the  common  opinion.  A  man  will  not  confide  a  treas¬ 
ure  to  him  whom  he  has  found  unfaithful  in  trifles  ;  he  would  rather  confide  it  to  him 
who  is  faithful  even  in  the  smallest  things.  The  party  so  acting  may  be  deceived,  never¬ 
theless  he  acts  prudently  ;  and  he  acts  imprudently,  supposing  even  it  should  turn  out 
that  he  was  not  deceived,  should  he  have  preferred  the  first  to  the  second. 

(6)  Other  interpreters  construe  deceitful  in  opposition  to  true.  They  understood  by 
the  latter  the  riches  of  eternity,  the  only  riches  which  truly  deserve  this  name.  The  Sa¬ 
viour  further  says  of  the  first,  that  they  belong  to  another,  in  the  sense  of  our  merely 
having  a  loan  of  them,  and  that  we  are  merely  the  disbursers  of  them  ;  whereas  those  of 
the  other  life  shall  be  given  to  us  with  full  property  therein,  and  in  perpetuity.  They 
never  shall  be  taken  from  us,  and  we  shall  never  be  called  upon  to  account  for  them. 
This  is  the  explanation  given  by  the  interpreters.  It  has  been  recently  fancied  that  this 
was  here  an  exhortation  to  the  disciples  alone,  to  sell  their  property  and  distribute  the 
produce  of  the  sale  among  the  poor,  and  for  two  reasons.  One  is,  that  if  it  were  noticed 
that  they  retained  that  property  which  has  attached  to  it,  like  all  worldly  goods,  the  gen¬ 
eral  suspicion  of  injustice,  the  faithful  would  not  willingly  confide  to  them  the  alms  which 
they  might  intend  to  give  out  of  their  legitimate  property  :  this  is  what  they  understand 
by  the  iniquum  and  the  verum  mammona.  The  other  reason  is,  that  if  the  disciples 
keep  this  property,  which  may  be  suspected  of  belonging  to  another,  inasmuch  as  the  prop¬ 
erty  may  lie  under  the  suspicion  of  having  been  badly  acquired,  the  faithful  would  feel 
repugnance  in  paying  them  their  legitimate  dues  for  their  ministerial  functions — that  is 
to  say  (apparently),  tithe  and  the  honorary  gifts.  And  this  is  the  sense  in  which  the  later 
expositors  have  construed  the  alienum  and  the  vestrum.  This  has  appeared  very  fine, 
because  it  is  novel.  However,  nothing  is  more  unreasonable.  For,  1st.  The  apostles, 


If  i 


that  which  is  the  true  ?  And  if  you  have  not  been  faithful  in  that 
which  is  another’s,  who  will  give  you  that  which  is  properly  your 
own  ?  No  servant  can  serve  two  masters,  for  either  he  will  hate  the 
one,  and  love  the  other,  or  he  will  hold  to  the  one,  and  despise  the 
other.  You  cannot  serve  God  and  mammon  ('7).” 

The  miser,  the  most  absurd  of  all  men,  considers  nothing  so  ridicu¬ 
lous  as  that  which  is  the  noblest  quality  in  man,  viz.,  the  contempt 
of  riches.  We  cannot,  therefore,  be  surprised  that  these  sublime 
maxims  should  have  been  badly  received  by  a  portion  of  the  assem¬ 
bled  multitude.  The  Saviour,  as  we  have  said,  addressed  them  to 
the  disciples  alone.  But  “  the  Pharisees,  who  were  covetous,  heard 
all  these  things,  and  they  derided  him.” 

These  were  gross  hypocrites,  whose  apparent  austerity  cloaked  an 
insatiable  avarice,  as  usually  happens  with  men  of  this  character. 
For  avarice,  which  displays  no  prominent  vices,  possesses  in  an  emi¬ 
nent  degree  all  the  economical  and  lucrative  virtues  with  which  it  is 
easy  to  make  up  a  mask  of  sanctity.  Men  who  only  see  the  surface 
are  often  its  dupes  ;  but  no  one  could  impose  upon  Him  whose  eye 
penetrates  to  the  inmost  recesses  of  hearts,  and  he  knew  well  how 
to  make  them  sensible  of  this  by  those  strong  expressions  wherewith 
he  opposed  their  malicious  taunts  :  “  You  are  they,  he  said  to  them, 
who  justify  yourselves  before  men;  but  God  knoweth  your  hearts. 
For  that  which  is  high  to  men  is  an  abomination  before  God.” 

They  might  object  to  that,  and  perhaps  they  did  so  internally, 
that  those  temporal  riches,  the  contempt  of  which  he  preached,  were 
the  recompense  promised  by  the  law  to  its  observers.  Jesus  know¬ 
ing  their  thoughts,  or  anticipating  them,  answers  :  “  The  law  and  the 
prophets  were  until  John.  From  that  time  the  kingdom  of  God  is 
preached,  and  every  one  useth  violence  towards  it.” 


very  far  from  desiring  to  be  answerable  for  the  distribution  of  alms,  released  themselves 
from  that  office  as  soon  as  they  could,  in  doing  which  they  seem  to  have  followed  the 
dictates  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  2d.  To  assign  them  as  a  disinterested  motive  such  an  in¬ 
terested  view  as  that  of  securing  their  restitutions,  supposes  them  to  be  of  very  grovel¬ 
ling  dispositions,  even  during  the  time  whilst  they  were  yet  imperfect.  And  what  idea 
must  have  been  formed  of  Jesus  Christ  by  the  person  who  makes  him  the  proposer  of 
such  a  motive  ? 

(7)  See  note  2,  page  138,  Part  I. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


345 


CHAP.  XLV.] 

That  violence  consists  in  mortifying  the  passions  which  the  law 
promised  to  satiate,  and  of  which  the  Gospel,  signified  by  the  king¬ 
dom  of  God,  requires  the  sacrifice.  Does  the  Gospel,  therefore,  an¬ 
nihilate  the  law  ?  the  Pharisees  might  further  say.  No,  it  perfects 
it,  by  offering  infinite  and  eternal  treasures,  of  which  the  temporal 
goods  promised  by  the  law  were  merely  the  shadow  and  the  figure  ; 
for  such  is  the  meaning  of  that  declaration  which  the  Saviour  imme¬ 
diately  adds  :  “  It  is  easier  for  heaven  and  earth  to  pass,  than  one 
tittle  of  the  law  to  fall.” 

It  is  true  that  the  goods  of  this  world  were  the  incentive  which 
God  held  out  in  order  to  induce  these  stubborn  and  carnal  men  to 
observe  his  holy  law.  However,  he  did  not  wish  to  leave  them  in 
ignorance  of  the  rewards  and  chastisements  of  the  future  life.  We 
see  them  represented  in  a  thousand  passages  of  Scripture,  as  the  main 
object  for  their  fear  and  for  their  hope  ;  and,  in  order  that  this  truth 
might  become  more  impressive,  God  had  been  mindful  to  make,  from 
time  to  time,  exceptions  to  the  general  system  of  the  ancient  law. 
It  was  with  this  view  that  he  had  tried  some  of  the  holiest  of  his 
servants  (such  as  Tobias  was)  by  the  most  cruel  adversities,  whilst 
the  impious  were  seen  passing  their  days  in  glory  and  in  opulence. 
Since  it  is  impossible  that  a  just  God  should  leave  virtue  without  re¬ 
ward,  and  crime  without  punishment,  it  is  easy  to  conclude  that  it 
was  in  the  other  life  that  men  were  to  find  those  fearful  penalties 
and  those  true  joys,  of  which  those  of  this  life  could  only  be  a  feeble 
image,  and  a  very  imperfect  foretaste.  But  for  those  earth-bound 
souls  the  present  was  all  and  the  future  nothing.  Prosperity  was 
called  benediction,  and  adversity  malediction.  The  illusion  even 
went  so  far  as  to  regard  the  first  as  the  proof  of  virtue,  and  the  sec¬ 
ond  as  the  evidence  of  crime,  and  to  their  eyes  the  fortunate  man 
was  just,  and  the  unfortunate  was  always  guilty.  In  order,  there¬ 
fore,  to  reclaim  them,  from  so  gross  an  error,  to  the  important  truth 
which  they  so  strangely  misunderstood,  Jesus  Christ  proposes  to 
them  the  parable  of  the  rich  glutton,  and  of  the  virtuous  poor  man, 
wherein  virtue  followed  by  eternal  happiness  is  found  associated  with 
the  alleged  curse  of  misfortune  ;  whilst,  notwithstanding  the  appa¬ 
rent  blessing  of  temporal  prosperity,  vice,  happy  in  this  world,  has 
for  its  ultimate  lot  the  fire  which  is  never  quenched.  Although  this 


V-J 


Û  ? 


M 


346 


TILE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 


appears  to  be  the  main  subject,  yet  it  does  not  prevent  us  from  see¬ 
ing  tbat  tbe  Saviour  had  auother  intention,  viz.,  to  complete  the  in¬ 
struction  which  he  had  commenced  upon  alms-deeds,  by  exhibiting 
the  merciless  rich  man  buried  in  the  pit  of  hell.  After  having  shown 
the  heavens  opening,  in  order  to  receive  the  beneficent  and  charita¬ 
ble  rich,  he  continues  thus  : 

(8)  “  There  was  a  certain  rich  man,  who  was  clothed  in  purple  and 
fine  linen,  and  feasted  sumptuously  every  day.  And  there  was  a  cer¬ 
tain  beggar  named  Lazarus,  who  lay  at  his  gate,  full  of  sores,  desir¬ 
ing  to  be  filled  with  the  crumbs  that  fell  from  the  rich  man’s  table, 
and  no  one  did  give  him  :  moreover,  the  dogs  (9)  \less  inhuman  than 
their  master ]  came  and  licked  his  sores.  It  came  to  pass  that  the 
beggar  died,  and  was  carried  by  the  angels  into  Abraham’s  bo¬ 
som  (10).  The  rich  man  also  died,  and  he  was  buried  in  hell  (11). 


(8)  The  question  has  been  also  raised  whether  this  was  a  parable  or  a  real  occurrence  : 
the  latter  is  the  prevalent  notion.  This  is  founded  principally  upon  the  fact  of  Lazarus 
being  therein  named,  a  fact  which  does  not  occur  in  the  parables.  If  the  rich  glutton  is 
not  named,  the  reason  is  because  it  would  be  a  blot  upon  his  name  and  upon  his  family. 
However,  the  Saviour  might  have  given  him  a  name  as  well  as  Lazarus,  if  the  name 
of  the  latter  had  been  a  name  composed  for  the  purpose  of  signifying  the  state  wherein 
he  represented  him  ;  for  Lazarus,  in  Hebrew,  signifies  helpless,  supposing  that  it  be  not 
an  abbreviation  of  Eleazar,  which  signifies,  on  the  contrary,  the  help  of  God.  Whatever 
way  we  view  the  fact  of  the  rich  man  not  being  named,  whilst  the  poor  man  is  named, 
we  see  that  this  is  a  further  reason  for  believing  that  the  name  of  the  latter  is  the  name 
of  a  person  who  had  really  existed.  Difficulties  afterwards  ensue.  We  shall  reply  to 
them  when  they  present  themselves. 

(9)  It  was  they  who  eat  the  crumbs  that  fell  from  the  table.  Their  condition  was  bet¬ 
ter  than  his.  The  poor  have  been  heard  to  express,  by  bitter  complaints,  the  envy  which 
they  entertain  towards  them.  If  he  who  has  regaled  the  rich  shall  be  inexcusable 
for  not  having  appeased  the  hunger  of  the  poor,  what  shall  be  the  excuse  of  those  who 
might  have  fed  whole  families,  by  the  expense  they  incurred  in  feeding  a  pack  of  animals 
which  only  minister  to  luxury  and  to  pleasure  ? 

(10)  The  souls  of  the  just  are  carried  to  heaven  by  the  angels.  The  Church  believes 
so.  Command,  0  Lord,  it  says  in  the  prayer  which  it  recites  for  the  dying,  that  the 
holy  angels  of  God  meet  his  soul,  and  bring  her  into  the  city  of  the  heavenly  Jerusalem. 
For  the  contrary  reason,  it  is  thought  that  the  demons  carry  off  to  hell  the  reprobate 
souls. 

(11)  A  sensual  and  ostentatious  life,  especially  if  it  be  accompanied  with  harshness  to¬ 
wards  the  poor,  is  a  life  manifestly  deserving  of  damnation  :  if  not  more  criminal,  at  least 
more  dangerous  than  a  profligate  life.  If  it  has  not  all  the  vices  of  the  latter,  neither  has 
it  the  same  remorse. 


OF  OUB  LORD  JESUS  CUEIST. 


347 


CHAP.  XLV.] 

And  lifting  up  his  eyes  when  he  was  in  torments,  he  saw  Abraham 
afar  off,  and  Lazarus  in  his  bosom,  and  he  cried  and  said  :  Father 
Abraham,  have  mercy  on  me,  and  send  Lazarus,  that  he  may  dip  the 
tip  of  his  finger  in  water,  to  cool  my  tongue  (12)  ;  for  I  am  torment¬ 
ed  in  this  flame  (13).  Son,  Abraham  said  to  him,  remember  that 
thou  didst  receive  good  things  in  thy  lifetime,  and  likewise  Lazarus 
evil  things  (14)  ;  but  now  he  is  comforted,  and  thou  art  tormented. 
Besides  all  this,  between  us  and  you  there  is  fixed  a  great  chaos,  so 
that  they  who  would  pass  from  hence  to  you  cannot,  nor  from  thence 
come  hither.  And  he  said  :  Then,  father,  I  beseech  thee  that  thou 


(12)  Souls  separated  from  bodies  have  neither  tongues  nor  fingers,  neither  do  they  de¬ 
sire  water,  nor  can  they  give  water.  Moreover,  those  who  are  reprobate  have  no  com¬ 
munication  with  those  who  are  in  the  sojourn  of  beatitude  ;  they  would  not  entertain  the 
notion  of  soliciting  from  them  a  solace  which  they  well  know  that  they  never  can 
obtain.  These  are  those  difficulties  which  have  made  some  believe  this  a  parable. 
Several  others  believe  that  the  (commencement  was  historical,  and  that  the  parable  com¬ 
menced  here.  However,  God  might  have  brought  it  about— 1st.  That  the  rich  glutton, 
at  the  moment  of  his  entry  into  hell,  had  a  Hew — if  we  prefer  we  may  say  that  he  had  a 
vision — of  the  bosom  of  Abraham,  and  of  the  delicious  repose  which  Lazarus  therein  enjoy¬ 
ed.  2d.  That,  notwithstanding  the  distance  of  places,  these  two  souls  (that  of  Abraham 
and  that  of  the  rich  glutton)  may  have  been  enabled  to  communicate  to  each  other  their 
thoughts  and  their  desires.  3d.  That  the  soul  of  the  rich  man  may  have  felt  neat  simi¬ 
lar  to  that  which  would  be  felt  by  a  man  whose  body  was  in  the  midst  of  a  burning  fur¬ 
nace,  and  that  it  may  have  desired  a  solace  similar  to  what  would  be  procured  by  a  drop 
of  fresh  water  upon  the  tip  of  his  tongue.  4th.  It  is  not  impossible  that  the  unhappy 
man  may  have  been  ignorant  that  he  could  not  obtain  what  he  asked,  or  that,  aware  of 
the  fact,  the  violence  of  pain  should  have  extorted  from  him  this  useless  prayer.  Now, 
as  it  is  the  alleged  impossibility  of  all  these  matters  which  made  recourse  be  had  to  the 
parable,  we  may  still  adhere  to  the  probability  of  this  being  a  narrative. 

(13)  This  expression  has  given  rise  to  two  opposite  errors — one,  that  the  soul  is  mate¬ 
rial  ;  the  other,  that  the  fire  of  hell  is  not  eternal.  God  was  sufficiently  powerful  to  cause 
that  a  material  fire  should  act  upon  spiritual  souls  when  they  are  separated  from  the 
bodies,  as  he  is  able  to  cause  the  same  effect  when  they  are  still  confined  within  the  bod¬ 
ies  ;  because  in  both  these  operations  it  is  always  matter  acting  upon  mind. 

(14)  Prosperity  in  this  world,  presumption  of  future  unhappiness — I  say  presumption, 
and  not  proof  ;  for  here  exceptions  occur.  Wherefore  let  not  the  poor  thereupon  prize 
too  highly  their  position,  and  let  not  the  rich  despair.  It  is  the  rich  Abraham  who  re¬ 
ceived  the  predestined  soul  into  his  bosom,  and  many  poor  burn  side  by  side  with  the 
rich  sensualist.  Charity,  or  harshness,  in  the  first — patience,  or  impatience,  in  the  sec¬ 
ond  class,  make  all  the  difference  between  them.  However,  since  the  presumption  is 
against  the  first,  and  in  favor  of  the  second  class,  it  must  be  the  fact,  that  charity  is.oft- 
ener  found  to  be  deficient  in  the  rich  than  patience  in  the  poor. 


348 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 

wouldst  send  him  to  my  father’s  house  (for  I  have  five  brethren), 
that  he  may  testify  unto  them,  lest  they  also  come  unto  this  place  of 
torments  (15).  They  have  Moses  and  the  prophets,  Abraham  said 
to  him  ;  let  them  hear  them.  But  he  said  :  No,  father  Abraham  ; 
but  if  one  went  to  them  from  the  dead,  they  will  do  penance.  But 
Abraham  said  to  him  :  If  they  hear  not  Moses  and  the  prophets, 
neither  will  they  believe  if  one  rise  again  from  the  dead  (16).” 

We  need  not  remark  that  the  Saviour  spoke  often  of  the  kingdom 
of  God.  The  Jews  never  understood  it  otherwise  than  in  reference 
to  the  temporal  kingdom  of  the  Messiah  here  on  earth.  This  was 
the  object  of  all  their  desires,  and  it  was  very  natural  that  they 
should  be  impatient  to  know  when  it  was  to  take  place.  But  that 
which  they  longed  for  was  never  to  come  to  pass,  and  that  which 
they  did  not  desire  was  already  come,  as  Jesus  Christ  informed  them. 
For,  (a)  “being  asked  by  the  Pharisees  when  the  kingdom  of  God 
should  come,  he  answered  them  :  The  kingdom  of  God  cometh  not 
with  observation  (17),  neither  shall  they  say,  Behold  here,  or  be¬ 
hold  there  ;  for  lo,  the  kingdom  of  God  is  within  you.” 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xvii.  20-22. 


(15)  Another  reason  for  assuming  that  this  is  a  parable.  The  reprobate  in  hell  have 
no  zeal  for  the  salvation  of  souls.  All  that  can  be  inferred  from  this  is,  that  the  man 
may  have  spoken  from  some  other  motive.  Many  motives,  more  or  less  probable,  have 
been  attributed  to  him  ;  but  suppose  none  could  he  assigned  him,  this  general  reason  suf¬ 
fices,  viz.,  that  Jesus  Christ  could  not  make  him  utter,  even  in  a  parable,  such  sentiments 
as  it  would  be  impossible  for  a  reprobate  to  entertain.  This  would  militate  against  all 
probability,  and  be  at  variance  with  the  primary  rule  of  all  parables. 

(16)  Notwithstanding,  the  resurrection  of  Christ  has  been  followed  by  the  faith  of  the 
entire  world.  But  a  distinction  must  be  made  between  those  who  have  not  as  yet  suffi¬ 
cient  proofs  in  order  to  believe,  and  those  who  have  them.  Those  who  have  them  not 
will  believe  at  the  sight  of  a  dead  person  resuscitated,  and  those  who  have  them,  gener¬ 
ally  speaking,  will  not  believe.  Thus,  miracles  which  would  convert  an  idolatrous  nation 
shall  not  convert  an  heretical  nation,  and  those  which  would  convert  heretics  who  are 
such  from  education  and  from  prejudice,  shall  not  convert  Christians  who  are  become  in¬ 
fidels  from  libertinism.  Nothing  ever  satisfies  them  who  do  not  wish  to  believe.  A  dead 
man  raised  to  life  would  not  convert  the  sinners  whom  this  narrative  did  not  convert. 
What  could  he  say  more  certain  or  more  forceful  ? 

(F7)  It  shall  not  appear  with  such  dazzling  lustre  that  it  would  be  impossible  not  to 
perceive  it.  Such  was,  in  point  of  fact,  his  first  coming.  It  was  necessary  then  to  seek 
out  the  Messiah  in  order  to  find  him,  and  to  study  him  in  order  to  know  him.  At  his 
second  coming  he  shall  be  more  visible  than  the  sun  in  the  splendor  of  its  meridian.  In 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


Dissatisfied  with  an  answer  which  did  not  tell  what  they  wanted 
to  know,  and  which  told  too  plainly  what  they  wished  not  to 
know,  the  Pharisees  ceased  to  interrogate  him.  “Jesus  [pursu¬ 
ing  his  discourse ]  said  to  his  disciples  :  The  days  will  come  when 
you  shall  desire  to  see  one  day  of  the  Son  of  man  ;  and  you  shall 
not  see  it  as  if  he  had  said  to  them,  I  shall  soon  disappear  from 
your  eyes,  and  my  absence  shall  be  exceedingly  painful  to  you  ;  for 
he  foretold  them  the  time  when,  exhausted  with  fatigue,  exposed 
without  defence  to  the  rage  of  their  enemies,  they  would  in  vain  de¬ 
sire  his  sensible  presence,  which  was  to  them  an  inexhaustible  source 
of  light  and  consolation.  The  love  which  he  entertained  for  them 
prompted  him  to  speak  in  this  way.  But,  apprehensive  lest  the  too 
ardent  desire  of  seeing  him  again  might  make  them,  together  with 
their  first  disciples,  fall  into  the  snares  which  the  false  Messiahs 
would  lay  to  ensnare  their  faith,  he  warns  them  that  before  his  re¬ 
turn,  which  he  at  the  same  time  foretells,  several  of  those  false  Mes¬ 
siahs  should  appear.  They  appeared,  in  point  of  fact,  before  the 
ruin  of  Jerusalem,  of  which  they  were  as  if  the  forerunners,  which 
circumstance  furnished  Jesus  Christ  with  an  occasion  to  foretell  that 
downfall  with  the  other  signs  by  which  it  shall  be  preceded.  From 
thence,  glancing  forward  to  the  most  remote  futurity,  he  announces 
the  awful  signs  which  shall  precede  the  ruin  of  the  whole  world,  of 
which  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  was  to  be  merely  the  figure,  mix¬ 
ing  up  one  with  the  other,  and,  nevertheless,  keeping  them  so  dis¬ 
tinct  that  they  cannot  be  confounded.  This  instruction,  necessary 
for  those  who  witnessed  the  first  of  these  two  events,  and  also  for 
those  who  shall  witness  the  second,  is  not  useless  to  those  who, 
placed  between  the  two,  have  neither  seen  nor  shall  see  one  or  the 
other.  Assured  of  the  accomplishment  of  the  first,  they  cannot  ques¬ 
tion  the  truth  of  the  prophecy  which  announces  the  second.  But  as 
Jesus  Christ  speaks  still  more  in  detail  a  short  time  previous  to  his 
death,  we  shall  give  in  another  chapter  a  more  extensive  and  a  more 
complete  picture. 


one  he  is  evident  to  those  who  seek  him — in  the  other  he  shall  be  evident  to  those  even 
who  do  not  seek  him.  Whence  it  follows  that  it  is  meritorious  to  recognize  him  in  his 
first  coming,  and  that  there  shall  be  no  merit  in  recognizing  him  when  he  comes  again. 


[  w\V 

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lïifflïr 

ill'll., 

:  ilMI 

■MIL 


CHAPTER  XLYI. 

WE  MUST  PE  A. Y  ALWAYS. - THE  PHARISEE  AND  THE  PUBLICAN. - MARRIAGE  INDISSO¬ 
LUBLE. - VIRGINITY  PREFERABLE. - LITTLE  CHILDREN  BLESSED. 

On  another  occasion  (a)  “Jesus  spoke  also  a  parable  to  his  disci¬ 
ples,  that  we  ought  always  to  pray(l),  and  not  to  faint,  saying: 
There  was  a  judge  in  a  certain  city,  who  feared  not  God,  nor  regard¬ 
ed  man.  And  there  was  a  certain  widow  in  that  city,  and  she  came 
to  him,  saying  :  Avenge  me  of  my  adversary.  He  would  not  for  a 
long  time.  But  afterwards  he  said  within  himself  :  Although  I  fear 
not  God  nor  regard  man,  yet,  because  this  widow  is  troublesome  to 
me,  I  will  avenge  her,  lest  continually  coming,  she  weary  me.  And 
the  Lord  said  :  Hear  what  the  unjust  judge  saith.”  He  cannot,  in¬ 
iquitous  though  he  be,  resist  a  persevering  prayer.  “  And  will  not 
God  revenge  his  elect  who  cry  to  him  day  and  night  (2),  and  will 
he  have  patience  in  their  regard  ?  I  say  to  you  that  he  will  quickly 
revenge  them  (3).” 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xviii. 


(1)  We  pray  always,  when,  at  the  time  when  we  cannot  pray,  we  recall,  as  well  as  we 
can,  the  thought  of  God’s  presence,  and  that  we  offer  him  the  action  with  which  we  are 
then  occupied.  In  this  way  there  is  no  one  who  cannot  always  pray,  as  God  exhorts  us 
to  do  in  several  passages  of  Scripture.  This,  however,  is  not  the  sense  in  which  it  is  here 
said  that  we  must  pray  always  :  what  Jesus  Christ  has  directly  in  view  is,  to  teach  us  not 
to  be  disheartened  when  God  defers  hearing  us,  being  persuaded  that  a  persevering  pray¬ 
er  shall  infallibly  be  heard.  This  second  sense  is  clearly  determined  by  the  parable. 

God  seems  to  postpone,  because  he  does  not  listen  to  us  at  the  very  time  when  we  de¬ 
sire  to  be  heard.  Really,  and  in  point  of  fact,  he  does  not  postpone,  because  he  listens 
at  the  time  when  it  is  most  advantageous  for  us  to  be  heard.  If  he  communicated  his 
secret  to  us,  we  should  thank  him  for  his  very  delays  ;  but  he  prefers  to  leave  us  in  ig¬ 
norance  of  it,  because  this  ignorance  is  also  the  best  state  for  us  to  be  left  in. 

(2)  The  just  request  that  God  would  deliver  them  from  oppression,  not  by  ruining  the 
wicked  who  oppress  them,  but  by  depriving  the  wicked  of  the  desire  or  the  means  of  op¬ 
pressing.  Save  us,  0  Lord  :  do  further — save  them  with  us.  Such  a  prayer  is  truly  a 
Christian  prayer. 

(3)  This  life  is  so  short,  and  that  which  follows  it  so  long,  that  it  is  true  to  say  that 
God  does  not  delay,  when  he  delays  vengeance  until  the  other  life.  If  a  thousand  years, 


Pf. 


? 


% 


vüfi  >'ny  •'"•««j  ‘ifïüf  ^  j-WTwg 


CHAP.  XL VI.] 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


351 


But  tlie  reason  why  so  few  are  revenged  or  delivered  from  oppres¬ 
sion  is,  that  few  persevere  in  prayer,  according  to  this  expression  : 
he  who  shall  have  persevered  until  the  end  shall  be  saved.  But  whence 
comes  the  want  of  perseverance,  if  not  from  the  feebleness  of  faith  ? 
We  must  not,  therefore,  be  surprised  that  Jesus  Christ,  when  he 
shall  appear  in  the  lustre  of  his  majesty  to  avenge  all  his  elect,  finds 
so  few  of  them  who  deserve  to  experience  the  effects  of  his  powerful 
protection.  In  those  days  of  seduction  and  apostacy,  the  true  faith¬ 
ful  shall  be  reduced  to  so  small  a  number,  that  he  who  reckoned 
them  beforehand  asks  with  apparent  surprise  :  (4)  “  But  yet  the 
Son  of  man,  when  he  cometh,  shall  he  find,  think  you,  faith  on  the 
earth  ?” 

Although  this  was  addressed  to  the  disciples,  there  is  every  rea¬ 
son  to  think  that  Jesus  Christ  had  also  other  hearers,  among  whom 
were  to  be  found  several  Pharisees.  The  weakness  of  the  first  made 
it  necessary  to  exhort  them  to  a  confidence  both  lively  and  persever¬ 
ing.  Another  lesson  was  required  for  the  second.  The  pride  of  the 
latter  disclosed  itself  even  in  the  very  humblest  of  all  actions,  which 
is  prayer.  Their  prayer  was  rather  a  satire  upon  the  rest  of  man¬ 
kind  than  the  avowal  of  their  own  miseries,  and  they  used  it  much 
less  for  the  purpose  of  praising  God  than  that  of  praising  themselves. 
These  are  they  who  are  spoken  of  when  the  evangelist  said  that  “  to 
some  who  trusted  in  themselves  as  just,  and  despised  others,  Jesus 
spoke  also  this  parable.” 

“  Two  men  went  up  into  the  temple  to  pray  :  the  one  a  Pharisee, 
and  the  other  a  publican.  The  Pharisee  standing,  prayed  thus  with 
himself:  O  God,  I  give  thee  thanks  that  I  am  not  as  the  rest  of 
men  (5),  extortioners,  unjust,  adulterers,  as  also  is  this  publican.  I 


compared  to  eternity,  are  equivalent  to  a  day,  what  are  ten,  fifteen,  or  twenty  years, 
hours,  or  minutes  ? 

(4)  We  have  followed  the  common  interpretation,  in  order  to  connect  these  latter 
words  with  the  preceding.  If  the  connection  does  not  appear  sufficiently  natural,  we 
may  be  permitted  to  deem  this  one  of  those  detached  facts  which  are  sometimes  found 
in  the  Gospels,  without  any  dependence  on  what  precedes  or  follows. 

(5)  A  saint  has  never  yet  said  :  Thanks  be  to  God,  I  am  a  saint.  I  have  sinned  much 
— I  sin  much  every  day  ;  and,  if  God  did  not  support  me  with  bis  almighty  hand,  I 
would  commit  enormous  crimes  :  behold  what  the  saints  say,  and  they  say  the  truth. 


r  t*. 


ZL 


m 


[part  u. 

fast  twice  in  the  week  (6)  ;  I  give  tithes  of  all  that  I  possess.  And 
the  publican,  standing  afar  off,  would  not  so  much  as  lift  up  his  eyes 
towards  heaven,  but  struck  his  breast,  saying:  O  God,  be  merci¬ 
ful  to  me  a  sinner  (7).  I  say  to  you,  this  man  went  down  into 
his  house  justified,  rather  than  the  other.  Because  every  one  that 
esalteth  himself  shall  be  humbled,  and  he  that  humbleth  himself 
«hall  be  exalted. 

(a)  “  When  Jesus  had  ended  these  words,  he  departed  from  Gali¬ 
lee,  and  came  into  the  coasts  of  Judea  beyond  the  Jordan.  The 
multitudes  flock  to  him,  he  healed  them  there,  and,  as  he  was  ac¬ 
customed,  he  taught  them.  There  came  to  him  the  Pharisees  tempt¬ 
ing  him.”  With  this  design  they  proposed  to  him  a  question  which 
was  then  much  debated  :  “  Is  it  lawful  for  a  man,  they  asked  him, 
to  put  away  his  wife  for  every  cause  ?” 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xix.  1-6  ;  St.  Mark,  x.  1-5. 


An  apostle  hath  said  :  For  in  many  things  we  all  offend  :  and  what  he  states  of  oth¬ 
ers,  he  stated  also  with  reference  to  himself.  The  saints  perceive  distinctly  the  slightest 
sins  which  we  do  not  perceive,  and  which  we  commit  by  thousands.  They  scan  them 
by  the  opposition  which  these  sins  have  to  the  infinite  purity  of  God,  known  to  these 
saints,  and  not  known  to  us  ;  and  in  this  point  of  view  these  specks  of  sin  appear  mon¬ 
sters  to  them  ;  and  they  are  such  in  point  of  fact. 

The  saints  consider  nothing  in  themselves  but  their  faults  and  their  sins — in  others, 
nothing  but  their  virtues  and  their  good  works.  They  conclude  from  thence  that  others 
are  better  than  themselves,  or  that  they  are  worse  than  all  others — a  conclusion  which 
seems  as  evident  to  them  as  is  the  evidence  that  virtues  are  better  than  faults,  and  good 
works  than  sins. 

An  attempt  was  once  made  to  perplex  one  of  these  saints,  who  was  an  incarnate  ser¬ 
aph,  by  inquiring  from  him  if  he  could  think  himself  as  wicked  as  a  robber  notorious  all 
over  the  country  for  his  murders  and  his  robberies.  Yet  his  humility  found  out  the 
proper  reply  :  If  he  had  had  the  graces  which  I  have  had,  he  would  be  a  better  man 
than  I  am.  * 

If  such  are  the  sentiments  and  the  language  of  the  saints,  therefore  language  and  sen¬ 
timents  of  a  contrary  character  prove  the  reverse  of  sanctity.  This  conclusion  is  also  in¬ 
ferred  from  the  parable. 

(6)  This  language  is  so  natural  to  man,  that  it  is  sometimes  found  issuing  from  the 
mouths  of  penitents,  whose  confession  is  only,  like  the  prayer  of  the  Pharisee,  the  mere 
declaration  of  their  own  virtues,  and  the  accusation  of  other  people. 

(7  )  This  word,  coming  from  the  bottom  of  the  heart,  can  convert  in  a  moment  the 
greatest  sinner  into  a  just  man  ;  and  a  thousand  millions  of  sinners,  who  have  had  entire 
years  to  speak  it,  are  eternally  reprobate  for  not  having  spoken  it.  Let  him  who  can, 
understand  this  prodigy  of  stupidity  or  insanity. 


OP  OUR  LORD  JRSUS  CHRIST. 


353 


CHAP.  XLVI."] 

.  Their  manner  of  putting  the  question  makes  it  sufficiently  evident 
that  they  considered  themselves  authorized  to  divorce  on  very  slight 
grounds,  and  very-  often  without  any  cause,  and  out  of  pure  caprice. 
This  liberty,  or  rather  this  licentiousness,  was  precious  to  men  ;  and 
by  infringing  on.  it,  Jesus  Christ  must  needs  offend  them.  On  the 
other  hand,  he  could  not  approve  of  it  without  rendering  himself 
odious  to  all  women.  This  appears  to  have  been  the  snare  which 
they  laid  for  him,  in  addition  to  the  hope  which  they  entertained 
of  detecting  him  in  contradiction  to  the  law  of  Moses.  Jesus  avail¬ 
ed  himself  of  the  opportunity,  in  order  to  declare  the  reformation 
he  was  going  to  institute  with  regard  to  marriage  ;  and  wishing  at 
the  same  time  to  inform  them  of  his  motives,  “  he  answering,  saith 
to  them  [ interrogating  them  in  his  turn ]  :  What  did  Moses  com¬ 
mand  you  ?  who  said  :  Moses  permitted  to  write  a  bill  of  divorce, 
and  to  put  her  away.  Jesus  answering,  said:  Because  of  the  hard¬ 
ness  of  your  hearts  he  wrote  you  that  precept  (8).  Have  ye  not 
read  that  he  who  made  man  from  the  beginning,  made  them  male 
and  female  ?  and  he  said  (9)  :  For  this  cause  shall  a  man  leave  fa¬ 
ther  and  mother,  and  cleave  to  his  wife,  and  they  two  shall  be  in 
one  flesh  (10).  Therefore  now  they  are  not  two,  but  one  flesh  (11). 
What,  therefore,  God  hath  joined  together,  let  not  man  put  asunder.” 


(8)  It  was,  therefore,  merely  toleration  on  the  part  of  God.  The  wickedness  of  this 
people  had  rendered  it  necessaiy,  in  order  to  obviate  a  greater  amount  of  evil.  God 
deemed  it  more  proper  to  allow  them  to  quit  their  wives  and  to  take  others,  than  to  ex¬ 
pose  them  to  the  temptation,  into  which  they  would  have  but  too  often  fallen,  of  getting 
rid  of  them  by  the  sword  or  by  poison.  Some  have  thought  that  this  toleration  was 
merely  of  a  civil  nature,  that  is  to  say,  that  by  not  decreeing  any  penalty  against  those 
who  availed  themselves  of  it,  it  still  left  the  sin  remaining.  Several  others  have  thought, 
with  more  probability,  that  divorced  parties  could  conscientiously  avail  themselves  of  the 
right  which  was  conferred  by  this  toleration,  provided  the  grounds  were  valid,  and  that 
it  was  done  in  the  manner  and  form  prescribed. 

(9)  It  was  Adam  who  spoke  it  ;  but  he  spoke  it  by  the  inspiration  of  God,  who  re¬ 
vealed  to  him  at  that  moment  the  nature  of  the  union  which  was  to  exist  between  the 
married  couple,  and  of  that  union  which  was  to  unite  children  and  parents,  all  which 
things  Adam  could  not  then  know  except  by  revelation. 

(10)  This  decides  plainly  the  preference  due  to  the  wife  as  to  society — assistance  and 
care.  We  are  not  unaware,  however,  that  the  wife  owes  the  same  obligation  to  her  hus¬ 
band 

(11)  Saint  Paul  explains  this  where  he  says  (1  Cor.  vi.  16):  Know  ye  not  that  he  who 
is  joined  to  a  harlot  is  made  one  body  ?  For  they  shall  be,  saith  he,  t  wo  in  one  flesh. 


ï 


f'/iw 


% 


In  point  of  fact,  if  the  original  intention  of  God  had  been  that 
man  should  have  several  wives,  either  at  the  same  time  by  polyga¬ 
my,  or  successively  by  divorce,  he  would  have  created  more  than 
one  for  the  first  man,  as  it  is  thought  that  he  created  several  females 
in  each  species  of  animals,  for  the  purpose  of  accelerating  their  mul¬ 
tiplication.  But  his  design  was  to  form  the  most  perfect  union  im¬ 
aginable,  by  making  two  different  persons  one  and  the  same  heart, 
one  and  the  same  soul,  and  one  and  the  same  flesh.  Now  this  union, 
or  rather  this  unity,  is  to  be  found  in  marriage,  which  being  the 
work  of  God,  no  earthly  being  has  a  right  to  break,  because  no 
one  has  a  right  to  undo  what  God  has  done.  God  alone,  master  of 
his  own  work,  has  this  right  ;  and  he  exercised  it,  when,  for  rea¬ 
sons  worthy  of  his  wisdom,  he  permitted  polygamy  and  divorce  ; 
but  these  reasons  having  ceased  by  the  establishment  of  a  more  per¬ 
fect  law,  the  dispensations  which  they  occasioned  can  no  longer  ex¬ 
ist.  All  marriages  are  to  become  similar  to  the  first  which  God  in¬ 
stituted,  in  order  to  serve  as  a  model  to  others.  An  indissoluble 
and  perpetual  bond  shall  henceforth  unite  all  couples,  whose  union 
shall  henceforward  end  only  when  they  cease  to  live  ;  and,  whilst 
God  shall  preserve  them  upon  earth,  they  shall  be  so  bound  one  to 
another,  that,  although  the  earth  may  be  full  of  men  and  women, 
they  shall  be  no  more  to  the  married  pair  than  if  they  were,  like 
Adam  and  Eve,  the  sole  inhabitants  of  the  earth.  Thus  marriage, 
reformed  according  to  the  original  design  of  the  Creator,  recovers 
all  the  purity  of  its  institution,  and  the  union  of  our  first  parents  is 
perfectly  represented  by  those  of  their  descendants.  Another  re¬ 
semblance  was  soon  to  render  the  union  more  sacred,  and  the  rights 
more  inviolable,  viz.,  that  which  it  was  to  have  to  the  spiritual  mar¬ 
riage  of  Jesus  Christ  with  his  Church.  But  the  time  was  not  as  yet 
come  to  propose  this  great  mystery  ;  and  the  Saviour  contented  him¬ 
self  at  that  time  with  again  insisting  upon  the  indissolubility  of  mar¬ 
riage,  struggling  rather  against  the  repugnance  than  against  the  rea¬ 
soning  of  the  Pharisees. 

For,  surprised  at  a  doctrine  so  contrary  to  their  prejudices  and 
their  passions,  (a)  “  Why,  then,”  they  say  to  him,  “  did  Moses  com- 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xix.  7-9. 


OF  OUK  LOUD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


355 


CHAP.  XI VI.] 

mand  to  give  a  bill  of  divorce  (12),  and  to  put  away  ?”  The  com¬ 
mandment  applied  merely  to  the  act  of  divorce,  and  not  to  the  di¬ 
vorce  itself.  From  the  manner  in  which  the  Pharisees  expressed 
themselves,  they  appeared  to  apply  it  to  both.  In  order  to  teach 
them  to  make  this  distinction,  “Jesus  saith  to  them:  Because  Mo¬ 
ses,  by  reason  of  the  hardness  of  your  heart,  permitted  you  to  put 
away  your  wives  :  but  from  the  beginning  it  was  not  so.  And  I 
say  to  you,  that  whosoever  shall  put  away  his  wife,  except  it  be  (13) 
for  fornication  (14),  and  shall  marry  another,  committeth  adultery; 
and  he  that  shall  marry  her  that  is  put  away,  committeth  adul¬ 
tery.” 

The  disciples  did  not  wish  to  interrupt  their  Master  whilst  he  was 
engaged  with  the  Pharisees  ;  yet  they  doubted  whether  such  moral¬ 
ity,  which  appeared  to  them  so  severe,  should  be  taken  to  the  very 
letter.  In  order  to  have  on  this  point  the  explanation  which  they 


(12)  The  reader  has  the  form  of  this  act  at  note  7,  page  125,  Part  I. 

(13)  The  exception  of  the  case  of  adultery  excuses  the  dismissal  of  the  wife,  and  not 
the  subsequent  marriage.  The  case  stands  as  if  it  read  thus  :  Whoever  shall  dismiss  his 
wife — whom  it  is  not  allowable  to  dismiss  except  in  case  of  adultery — and  shall  marry  an¬ 
other,  shall  be  an  adulterer.  The  Church  has  always  so  understood  it,  and  Jesus  Christ 
even  gives  us  sufficiently  to  understand  this,  when,  in  the  repetition  which  he  makes  to 
his  disciples,  he  says  absolutely,  and  without  excepting  any  case  :  Whoever,  having  dis¬ 
missed  his  first  wife,  shall  marry  a  second,  becomes  an  adulterer. 

However,  the  pretended  reformers  hold  that  the  exception  in  case  of  adultery  should 
extend  to  the  consequence  as  well  as  to  the  crime  ;  and  that  this  case,  which  justifies  di¬ 
vorce,  justifies  equally  the  marriage  with  another  woman.  Let  them  speak  sincerely. 
Marriage,  such  as  it  was  re-established  by  Jesus  Christ,  was  not  relished  by  them.  They 
wished  to  substitute  for  it  the  Jewish  marriage  condemned  by  Jesus  Christ.  For  had 
they  submitted  in  this  point  to  the  authority  of  his  word,  they  would  not  have  allowed 
another  wife  except  in  the  case  of  adultery,  since  it  is  evident  that  Jesus  Christ,  every 
time  he  treats  this  subject,  either  excepts  this  case  only,  or  excepts  none.  But  we  know 
that  they  have  added  those  of  long  absence,  obstinate  separation,  and  others,  which 
would  multiply  to  an  amazing  degree  amongst  them  these  second  marnages,  if  they 
sought  to  avail  themselves  of  the  freedom  which  this  new  Gospel  gives  them.  But  it  is 
due  to  them  in  justice  to  state,  that  this  legislation  allows  them  much  more  liberty  than 
they  usually  allow  themselves  ;  and  it  is  well  that  this  legislation  has  not  added  to  the 
Jewish  divorce  Mahometan  polygamy,  approved,  at  least  tolerated  in  the  person  of  the 
Landgrave  of  Hesse  by  Luther,  and  those  who,  with  him,  were  the  chief  leaders  of  the 
Reformation. 

(14)  As  to  the  other  causes  of  separation,  and  their  difference  from  that  of  adultery, 
see  note  8,  page  125,  Part  I. 


If  A 


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356 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  H. 


desired,  (a)  when  he  was  “  in  the  house  again  his  disciples  asked  him 
concerning  the  same  thing.” 

Jesus  gave  no  explanation  of  what  he  had  said,  but  merely  a  repe¬ 
tition  thereof.  ( b )  “  AVhosoever,  he  saith  to  them,  shall  put  away 
his  wife  and  marry  another,  committeth  adultery  against  her  ;  and 
if  the  wife  shall  put  away  her  husband,  and  be  married  to  another, 
she  committeth  adultery.  His  disciples  say  unto  him  :  If  the  case 
of  a  man  with  his  wife  be  so,  it  is  not  expedient  to  marry.” 

This  answer  included  a  profound  meaning,  which  they  themselves 
did  not  as  yet  comprehend,  wherefore  “  Jesus  said  to  them  :  All  men 
take  not  this  word,  but  they  to  whom  it  is  given”  from  on  high  ; 
and,  in  order  to  give  them  the  first  lesson  on  this  subject,  he  add¬ 
ed:  “For  there  are  eunuchs  who  were  born  so  from  their  mother’s 
womb  ;  and  there  are  eunuchs  who  were  made  so  by  men  ;  and 
there  are  eunuchs  who  have  made  themselves  eunuchs  for  the  king¬ 
dom  of  Heaven  (15).  He  that  can  take,  let  him  take  it.” 


(a)  St.  Mark,  x.  10-12. 


(b)  St.  Matthew,  xix.  10-17. 


(15)  In  order  to  secure  it  for  themselves,  and  to  merit  therein  a  richer  crown.  They 
make  themselves  eunuchs,  not  by  attempting  against  their  own  persons  what  the  Church 
has  always  condemned,  but  by  resolution,  or,  what  is  better,  by  vow  made  to  God  of  living 
in  perpetual  virginity.  It  is  a  matter  of  faith  that  this  state  is  more  perfect  than  that  of 
marriage.  Protestants  have  repudiated  it  with  the  utmost  vehemence.  There  is  nothing 
surprising  in  this  on  the  part  of  those  who  have  approved  of  divorce,  and  permitted  po¬ 
lygamy.  Moreover,  we  are  not  ignorant  of  the  fact,  that  their  leaders  were  for  the  most 
part  priests  and  men  bound  by  religious  vows,  and  who,  being  tired  of  celibacy,  would 
fain  not  be  suspected  of  having  rather  embraced  the  Reformation  from  the  desire  of  mar¬ 
riage,  than  marriage  from  the  spirit  of  reform. 

After  these  reformers  appeared  the  theorists,  advocating  population.  If  we  had  lei¬ 
sure  to  treat  the  subject  at  some  length,  we  should  not  want  reasons  to  refute  them. 
We  are  satisfied  in  opposing  to  them  the  following  reason,  which  is  calculated  to  make 
an  impression  upon  them,  viz.,  the  Christian  religion  is  of  all  others  the  most  favorable 
to  population.  Here  is  the  proof  of  this  fact,  drawn  from  its  principles  and  its  morality  : 

1st.'  Except  wherein  parties  are  legitimately  married,  every  thing  is  criminal  where  pu¬ 
rity  is  concerned.  How  many  persons  who  have,  at  the  same  time,  both  excitable  pas¬ 
sions  and  a  timid  conscience,  are,  as  it  were,  forced  into  marriage  by  this  inflexible  sever¬ 
ity  !  2d.  Every  thing  is  criminal,  even  in  marriage,  that  is  beside  the  end  of  marriage, 

viz.,  the  generation  of  children.  How  many  married  couples,  already  burdened  with  off¬ 
spring,  would  give  themselves  licentious  freedom,  if  the  curb  of  religion  did  not  restrain 
them  !  3d.  It  is  criminal  in  married  persons  to  refuse  each  other,  unless  the  refusal  be 

founded  upon  a  grave  reason.  How  many  obstinate  refusals*  and  concealed  divorces 


h 


\ 


v/, 


CHAP.  XLVLj  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  oOT 

Whilst  the  Saviour  was  treating  such  grave  questions,  ( a )  “  there 
were  little  children  presented  to  him,  that  he  should  impose  hands 
upon  them  and  pray.  And  the  disciples  [who  thought  he  might  be 
troubled  by  them ]  rebuked  them  that  brought  them.  Whom,  when 
Jesus  saw,  he  was  much  displeased,  and  calling  [the  children]  togeth¬ 
er,  said  :  Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  unto  me,  and  forbid  them 
not  (16)  ;  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  for  such.  Amen  I  say  to 
you  :  Whosoever  shall  not  receive  the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  little 
child,  shall  not  enter  into  it  ;  and  embracing  them,  when  he  had  im¬ 
posed  hands  upon  them,  he  blessed  them,  and  [after  having  given 
this  proof  of  his  goodness ]  he  departed  from  thence.” 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xix.  13-15  ;  St.  Luke,  xviii.  16,  17  ;  St.  Mark,  x.  16. 


would  be  produced  by  certain  apprehensions  which  it  is  no  longer  lawful  to  regard,  by 
disgusts,  antipathies,  resentments,  &c.,  if  religion  did  not  enforce,  by  the  most  terrible 
menaces,  what  has  been  justly  termed  a  right  on  one  part,  and  a  duty  on  the  other! 
And  if  at  present  one  were  willing  to  take  the  trouble  of  calculating,  it  would  be  easy  to 
show  that  in  all  these  ways  religion  gives  more  to  the  species  than  it  takes  away  by  ec¬ 
clesiastical  and  religious  celibacy.  You  will  say  that  all  these  advantages  are  to  be  found 
in  Protestantism,  which  has  not  the  unavailable  class  of  celibacy  ;  but  besides  that  we 
must  take  religion  as  God  has  made  it,  and  not  such  as  man  may  accommodate  to  his 
own  views,  we  may  further  reply  that  the  causes  which  we  have  just  advanced  only  op¬ 
erate  by  means  of  confession,  which  Protestants  have  abandoned.  This  is  only  thorough¬ 
ly  known  to  those  whom  their  ministry  brings  within  reach  of  the  secrets  of  consciences. 
But  there  is  no  doubt  that,  from  the  knowledge  thus  in  their  possession,  they  have  form¬ 
ed  the  opinion  which  we  have  just  maintained  ;  and  unquestionably  their  notion  on  this 
point  is,  without  contradiction,  the  most  probable. 

(16)  We  hinder  them  when  we  put  off  indefinitely  the  first  communion  of  children. 
The  Master  of  the  feast  cries  out  in  vain  that  these  innocent  souls  must  be  allowed  to  ap¬ 
proach.  A  harsh  and  austere  zeal  is  obstinately  bent  on  driving  them  away.  We  know 
that  the  respect  due  to  this  sovereign  Master  has  induced  the  Church  to  abolish  the  cus¬ 
tom  of  giving  communion  to  children  immediately  after  baptism  ;  but  if  the  Church  no 
longer  wishes  the  age  of  reason  to  be  anticipated,  much  less  does  it  wish  that  we  should 
allow  reason  to  be  anticipated  by  the  age  of  the  passions.  And  how  often  has  it  occur¬ 
red  that  the  passions,  always  so  strong  at  this  age,  when  reason  is  so  weak,  not  being  re¬ 
strained  by  the  powerful  check  which  the  Eucharist  opposes  to  them,  have  caused  the 
most  fearful  ravages,  and  given  rise  to  those  first  wanderings  from  which  the  soul  returns 
with  such  difficulty,  and  so  late  ! 

If  this  reason  does  not  suffice,  and  if  we  wish  to  know  what  are  upon  this  point  the 
intentions  of  the  Saviour,  we  have  no  fear  in  saying  that  he  will  always  be  better  pleased 
to  have  greater  innocence  with  a  little  levity,  than  greater  composure  of  mind  with  cor¬ 
ruption  already  commenced.  We  should,  therefore,  rather  incur  the  risk  of  the  first  than 
of  the  second. 


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CHAPTER  XLVII. 

THE  YOUNG  MAN  CALLED  TO  PERFECTION. - SALVATION  DIFFICULT  TO  THE  RICH. - 

ALL  MUST  BE  RELINQUISHED  TO  FOLLOW  JESUS  CHRIST. - PROMISES  ATTACHED  TO 

THIS  RENUNCIATION. - THE  PARABLE  OF  THE  LABORERS  IN  THE  VINEYARD. 

(a)  “  When  lie  was  gone  forth  into  the  way,  a  certain  ruler  run¬ 
ning  up,  and  kneeling  before  him,  Good  Master,  he  said  to  him, 
what  shall  I  do  that  I  may  receive  life  everlasting  ?  Jesus  said  to 
him  :  Why  askest  thou  me  concerning  good,  and  why  dost  thou  call 
me  good  (1)  ?  None  is  good  but  God  alone  (2).  But  [ added  the 
Saviour ]  if  thou  wilt  enter  into  life,  keep  the  commandments. 
Which  ?  he  said  to  him,”  thinking,  perhaps,  that  the  new  teacher 
would  introduce  some  new  commandments.  “  And  Jesus  said  : 
Thou  knowest  the  commandments  :  Thou  shalt  do  no  murder  (3)  ; 
thou  shalt  not  commit  adultery  ;  thou  shalt  not  steal  ;  thou  shalt 
not  bear  false  witness  ;  do  no  fraud  ;  honor  thy  father  and  thy  moth¬ 
er  ;  and,  thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself.  The  young  man 
saith  to  him  :  All  these  have  I  kept  from  my  youth  ;  what  is  yet 

(a)  St.  Mark,  x.  17-27  ;  St.  Luke,  xviii.  18-24;  St.  Matthew,  xix.  16-25. 


(1)  (This  might  as  well  be  thus  translated:  Why  askest  thou  me,  calling  me  good? 
Then  Saint  Matthew  would  only  make  the  Saviour  say  what  Saint  Mark  and  Saint  Luke 
represent  him  as  saying,  which  is  not  unlikely,  nor  neither  is  it  improbable  that  he  made 
use  of  both  these  expressions.) 

(2)  He  informs  him  that  God  alone  is  essentially  good,  and  that  nothing  is  good  apart 
from  God  except  by  the  communication  of  his  goodness.  The  Arians  have  grossly 
abused  this  text,  forsooth  because  Jesus  Christ  seems  here  to  reprove  the  young  man  for 
attributing  to  him  a  quality  which  belongs  properly  to  God  alone.  The  Fathers  refuted 
them  by  this  very  simple  reply  :  This  young  man  is  not  aware  that  Jesus  Christ  is  God, 
and  Jesus  Christ  speaks  to  him  in  the  certainty  of  his  ignorance. 

(3)  The  second  class  of  precepts  is  alone  spoken  of,  viz.,  the  precepts  which  regulate 
our  duties  towards  our  neighbor.  That  does  not  mean  to  assert  that  there  exist  no  other 
precepts,  or  that  the  others  are  of  little  importance  ;  but  if  we  observe  these,  we  shall 
observe  all  the  others.  Taken  by  themselves,  they  do  not  constitute  the  entire  law  ; 
but  their  accomplishment  is  presumptive  proof  of  the  accomplishment  of  the  whole,  ac¬ 
cording  to  this  expression  of  Saint  Paul  (Rom.  xiii.)  :  He  that  loveth  his  neighbor  hath 
fulfilled  the  law. 


&  - 


CHAP.  XL  VH.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


wanting  to  me  ?  Which,  when  Jesus  had  heard,  looking  on  him, 
he  loved  him,”  because  of  this  virtuous  desire  to  add  to  the  good 
which  he  had  hitherto  done  ;  and,  in  order  to  confer  upon  him  the 
most  valuable  of  all  proofs,  “he  said  to  him:  Yet  one  thing  is  want¬ 
ing  to  thee.  If  thou  wilt  be  perfect,  go  sell  what  thou  hast,  and 
give  to  the  poor  (4),  and  thou  shalt  have  treasure  in  heaven  (5)  ; 
and  \then\  come,  follow  me.” 

He  called  him  to  evangelical  perfection.  Inestimable  favor  ! 
which,  on  the  part  of  God,  is  the  effect  of  marked  predilection.  It 
is  usually  at  that  age  that  God  confers  this  favor,  and  he  usually  con¬ 
fers  it  on  those  who,  like  this  young  man,  have  passed  their  first 
years  in  innocence  :  happy  those  who  know  how  to  profit  by  it  ! 
Whatever  it  may  cost  them,  they  may  say  that  they  have  purchased 
at  a  low  rate  a  rich  treasure.  But  all  have  not  the  courage  to  effect 
this  ;  and  the  individual  here  referred  to  has  but  too  many  imitators 
of  his  cowardice.  “  When  the  young  man  had  heard  this  word  [of 
the  Saviour\  being  struck  sad,  he  went  away  sorrowful  ;  for  he  had 
great  possessions.  Jesus  seeing  him  become  sorrowful,  and  looking 


(4)  Calvin,  who  deemed  the  state  of  marriage  better  than  that  of  virginity,  also  assert¬ 
ed  that  it  is  better  to  retain  property,  and  subtract  from  its  income  the  alms  which  may 
be  distributed,  than  to  sell  all  at  once,  and  immediately  distribute  the  price  to  the  poor. 
Other  heretics  have  foundered  on  the  opposite  rock  :  for  the  Eustatheans,  who  were  con¬ 
demned  in  the  Council  of  Gangres,  alleged  that  married  people  could  not  be  saved  ;  and 
some  Pelagians  were  to  be  found  who  advanced  that  there  was  no  salvation  for  those 
who  retained  the  use  of  their  possessions.  We  have  already  remarked,  that  Catholic 
truth  is  usually  to  be  found  between  two  opposite  errors,  like  Jesus  Christ  crucified  be¬ 
tween  two  robbers,  according  to  the  expression  of  Tertullian.  Many,  Catholics  entertain 
Calvin’s  notion  regarding  the  counsel  of  selling  all  without  exception,  in  order  to  give 
the  price  to  the  poor.  We  have  even  heard  them  declaim  .more  outrageously  against 
this  counsel  than  against  that  of  virginity.  It  is  no  difficult  matter  to  divine  the  reason  : 
they  inherit  property  from  those  who  make  a  vow  of  virginity,  and  they  lose  the  succes¬ 
sion  which  they  expected  to  enjoy  fromJliose  who  strip  themselves  of  all  in  favor  of  the 
poor.  That  those  who  see  themselves  thereby  frustrated  in  their  hopes  should  be  griev¬ 
ed,  does  not  surprise  us,  and  we  pardon  their  imperfection.  But  if  they  dare  to  assert 
that  these  disinterested  persons  commit  a  wrongful  act,  a  great  sin,  an  enormous  injus¬ 
tice,  they  place  themselves  in  direct  opposition  to  Jesus  Christ;  they  entertain  and  they 
express  heretical  notions. 

(5)  The  observance  of  the  precepts  shall  be  rewarded  ;  that  of  tire  counsels  shall  re¬ 
ceive  a  recompense  incomparably  higher.  The  observers  of  the  first  shall  receive  the 
■pence  :  a  treasure  is  promised  to  the  observers  of  the  second. 


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round  about,  saitli  to  bis  disciples  :  How  hardly  shall  they  that  have 
riches  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God  (6)  !  Amen,  I  say  to  you, 
that  a  rich  man  shall  hardly  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  The 
disciples  were  astonished  at  his  words  ;  but  Jesus  again  answering, 
saith  to  them  :  Children,  how  hard  is  it  (7 )  for  them  that  trust  in 
riches  (8)  to  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God  !  It  is  easier  for  a  camel 
to  pass  through  the  eye  of  a  needle  (9),  than  for  a  rich  man  to  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  God.  The  disciples  \_as  we  have  said ]  wonder¬ 
ed  the  more  when  they  had  heard  this,  saying  among  themselves  : 
Who,  then,  can  be  saved?  Jesus  looking  on  them,  saith:  With 
men  it  is  impossible  ;  but  not  with  God  ;  for  all  things  are  possible 
with  God  (10).” 

(6)  This  having  been  said  on  the  occasion  of  the  young  man’s  refusal  to  follow  the 
counsel  of  Jesus  Christ,  it  might  occur  to  us  that  this  counsel  was  obligatory,  under  pain 
of  being  excluded  from  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  thereupon  that  it  was  no  counsel,  but 
a  precept.  It  is  hardly  to  be  doubted  but  that  such  was  one  of  the  arguments  of  these 
Pelagians  to  whom  we  have  just  been  alluding.  However,  the  different  manner  in  which 
precepts  and  counsels  are  proposed,  proves  evidently  that  this  was  merely  a  counsel. 
When  precepts  are  in  question,  Jesus  Christ  says  :  If  thou  wilt  enter  into  life,  keep  the 
commandments  ;  whereas  he  says  here  :  If  thou  wilt  be  perfect,  go  sell,  Sic.,  <fcc.  This 
marks  the  difference  between  perfection  and  duty,  which  is  tantamount  to  that  of  coun¬ 
sel  and  of  precept.  Wherefore  the  attachment  of  the  young  man  to  his  great  wealth 
furnished  only  an  occasion  to  the  Saviour  for  declaring  how  hard  it  was  for  the  rich  to 
obtain  salvation.  Perhaps  he  also  foresaw  that  he  should  have  been  saved  by  laying 
aside  his  riches,  or  lost  by  the  abuse  he  would  make  of  them  ;  but  their  possession  then 
should  be  the  occasion,  and  not  the  cause  of  his  loss,  and  in  this  sense  it  is  true  to  say 
that,  whilst  he  incurred  reproof  for  not  having  followed  the  counsel  of  the  Saviour,  he 
has  not,  nevertheless,  sinned  by  not  following  it.  The  whole  bears  upon  this  evident 
maxim  :  a  counsel  by  itself  is  not  obligatory  ;  and  if  it  were  obligatory,  it  would  no  longer 
be  a  counsel,  but  a  precept.  The  virgin  ivho  married  hath  not  shined,  saith  Saint  Paul, 
which  is  true  even  with  reference  to  her  who  should  have  deemed  herself  called  to  a 
state  of  virginity,  inasmuch  as  the  call  to  this  state  was  merely  a  counsel  on. the  part  of  God. 

(7)  Jesus  Christ  saith  with  a  sort  of  surprise,  shall  hardly!  He  saith  with  an  oath: 
Amen,  I  say  to  you.  He  saith  it  even  three  times.  0  rich  !  if  this  thunder  doth  not 
awaken  you,  you  do  not  sleep,  you  are  dead. 

'  (8)  To  place  confidence  in  riches  is  to  expect  from  them  all  one’s  happiness  ;  it  is, 
therefore,  to  treasure  them  in  our  heart  in  the  place  of  God,  who  alone  can  render  us 
happy.  Behold,  therefore,  why  it  is  that  covetousness  is  termed  by  Saint  Paul  a  serving 
of  idols  (Ephes.  v.  5). 

(9)  A  hyperbolical  fashion  of  speech,  which  had  passed  into  a  proverb  with  the  Jews  : 
it  is  also  to  be  found  in  the  Talmudists. 

(10)  Ask  how  the  universe  could  be  drawn  forth  from  nothing,  and  how  it  is  possible 
that  a  rich  man  can  be  saved — the  answer  is  the  same  :  God  is  all-powerful. 


/ 


ir 


:o  a  o  «  a  *  ® 


TWtl 


CHAP.  XLVII.J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


But  whilst  the  disciples  were  engrossed  by  the  startling  informa¬ 
tion  contained  in  the  latter  words  of  the  Saviour,  Peter  did  not  for¬ 
get  that  it  contained  something  advantageous  to  himself.  He  was 
one  of  those  voluntary  poor  who  had  left  all  in  order  to  follow  Je¬ 
sus  Christ,  and  to  whom  the  Saviour  had  made  such  magnificent 
promises.  He  desired  to  know,  then,  in  what  the  promised  recom¬ 
pense  was  likely  to  consist.  (<?■)  “  Then  Peter  answering,  said  to  him 
[speaking  also  for  his  brethren ]  :  Behold,  we  have  left  all  things  (11) 
and  followed  thee  ;  what,  therefore,  shall  we  have  ?  Jesus  answer¬ 
ing,  said  to  them  :  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  that  you  who  have  followed 
me,  in  the  regeneration  (12),  when  the  Son  of  man  shall  sit  on  the 
seat  of  his  majesty,  you  also  shall  sit  on  twelve  seats,  judging  the 
twelve  tribes  of  Israel  (13).  And  every  one  that  hath  left  house, 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xix.  27-29;  St.  Mark,  x.  29-31. 


(11)  Those  who  would  depreciate  the  sacrifice  of  the  apostles,  saying  that  they  mere¬ 
ly  quitted  a  bark  and  nets,  would  be  ignorant  that,  in  order  to  quit  all  without  any  ex¬ 
ception,  requires  an  incredible  effort,  and  merits  an  inestimable  recompense.  The  mon¬ 
arch  who  should  renounce  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world,  and  should  still  remain  attach¬ 
ed  to  any  thing  whatsoever,  were  it  a  thing  of  as  little  value  as  the  net  of  Saint  Peter, 
would  make  a  sacrifice  incomparably,  we  might  say  infinitely,  less  painful  to  nature  than 
that  of  a  man  who,  being  owner  of  this  net  alone,  sacrifices  it  without  reserving  to  him¬ 
self  even  the  slightest  attachment.  Nothing  can  fill  the  heart  of  man  ;  but  a  mere  noth¬ 
ing  is  sufficient  to  fix  his  affection.  Now,  to  disengage  one’s  self  from  this  trifle,  in  or¬ 
der  to  cling  to  God  alone — in  order  to  repose  solely  in  God — to  have  no  other  good — 
no  other  hope — no  other  support  than  God — who  is  the  individual  who  can  do  this  ? 
Let  him  be  shown  to  us,  and  we  shall  not  refuse  him  his  meed  of  praise  ;  for  he  has 
wrought  a  greater  miracle  than  if  he  had  raised  up  the  dead. 

The  widow  who  gave  the  two  pence  gave  more  than  the  rich,  because  she  gave  all. 

The  sacrifice  of  a  moderate  fortune  is  really  greater  than  that  of  a  greater  fortune, 
because  an  individual  sacrifices  more  contentment  and  repose. 

(12)  In  the  resurrection  which  shall  be  like  a  second  generation,  by  which  men  shall 
be  born  again  to  an  immortal  life. 

(13)  Jesus  Christ  says  so  with  the  tacit  condition  that  they  shall  persevere  in  the 
state  of  perfection  which  they  had  embraced.  For  Judas  was  to  exclude  himself  by 
his  treachery,  so  that,  amongst  those  present,  only  eleven  were  to  sit  upon  these  sub¬ 
lime  thrones.  On  the  other  hand,  Saint  Matthias  was  to  be  chosen  in  the  place  of  Ju¬ 
das  ;  Saint  Paul  and  Saint  Barnabas  were  to  be  admitted  to  the  apostolical  college, 
thereby  increasing  to  fourteen  the  number  of  the  assistant  judges.  We  must  take  it 
that  Jesus  Christ  speaks  to  the  apostles  according  to  the  number  of  those  to  whom  he 
addressed  his  speech,  and  that  his  mode  of  speaking  is  tantamount  to  this  :  Each  of  you 
(if  he  be  faithful  to  his  engagements)  shall  be  seated  upon  a  throne  whence  he  shall 


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/  —  r//i urn:'" 


liPW 

1 


362 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 

or  brethren,  or  sisters,  or  father,  or  mother,  or  wife  (14),  or  chil¬ 
dren,  or  lands,  for  my  name’s  sake,  shall  receive  a  hundred-fold, 
now  in  this  present  time  (15),  in  houses,  and  brethren,  and 
sisters,  and  mothers,  and  children,  and  lands  (16),  with  persecu- 


judge,  &c.,  &c.  The  number  twelve  should  not,  therefore,  be  taken  literally.  It  com¬ 
prises  universally  those  who  shall  judge  with  Jesus  Christ,  in  the  same  way  as  the  mul¬ 
titude  of  those  who  shall  be  judged  is  expressed  by  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel.  Know 
you  not  that  we  shall  judge  angels ?  says  Saint  Paul,  which  proves  that  the  Jews  are 
not  the  only  people  who  shall  be  judged  by  the  apostles.  Lastly,  when  it  is  said 
that  they  shall  judge,  this  judicial  prerogative  is  not  merely  deducible  from  the  com¬ 
parison  which  shall  originate  between  them  and  the  reprobates  (this  comparison  would 
not  be  more  peculiar  to  them  than  to  the  Queen  of  Saba  and  the  Ninevites),  nor  simply 
from  the  approbation  with  which  they  shall  hail  the  judgment  of  Jesus  Christ.  All  the 
just  shall  applaud  his  judgment  with  unanimous  acclamation.  So  great  a  promise  an¬ 
nounces  something  more  ;  and  what  can  this  be,  if  it  be  not  that,  seated  with  Jesus 
Christ,  they  shall  pronounce  judgment  with  him,  and  in  the  same  way? 

(14)  We  have  seen  that  Jesus  Christ  only  permits  divorce  in  the  case  of  adultery. 
Nevertheless,  an  individual  may  leave  his  wife  on  account  of  Jesus  Christ  in  several  ways. 
1st.  By  not  marrying,  and  then  leaving,  signifies  not  to  take  one.  2d.  By  leaving  a  mar¬ 
ried  bride  before  the  consummation  of  the  marriage.  Such  was  the  case  of  Saint  Alexis. 
It  is  always  allowable  to  imitate  him,  provided  this  be  done  with  the  view  of  embracing 
the  religious  state.  The  marriage  which  has  been  celebrated,  although  not  consum¬ 
mated,  is  dissolved  by  the  profession,  which  restores  back  to  the  party  who  has  been  re¬ 
linquished  the  right  of  again  contracting.  If  any  one  dares  to  deny  this,  the  Council 
of  Trent  casts  its  anathema  upon  him.  3d.  By  leaving  her,  in  point  of  fact,  when  an  in¬ 
dividual,  from  being  an  infidel,  changes  to  be  a  Christian — I  say  leaving  her,  when  the 
wife,  remaining  an  infidel,  might  prove  an  obstacle  to  the  profession  of  Christianity,  or 
to  the  accomplishment  of  the  duties  which  it  proposes.  This  case  frequently  arose  in 
the  primitive  times,  and  it  is  still  to  be  met  amongst  infidels  who  become  converted  to 
the  faith.  4th.  By  abstaining,  both  parties  consenting,  from  the  use  of  marriage,  and 
living  together  like  brother  and  sister.  The  first  centuries  of  Christianity  furnish  us  ex-, 
amples  in  thousands.  Our  century  but  little  resembles  them  in  this  point,  and  would 
to  God  there  were  no  other  features  of  dissimilarity.  5th.  It  maybe  said  that  an  indi¬ 
vidual  leaves  his  wife  for  Jesus  Christ  and  the  Gospel,  when  he  refuses  to  yield  to  her 
criminal  wishes,  and  that  he  is  disposed  to  endure  her  humors,  her  transports  of  passion, 
and,  if  necessary,  her  withdrawal  and  her  separation,  rather  than  prevaricate  out  of  com¬ 
placency.  Too  many  husbands,  since  Adam,  have  been  put  to  this  trial,  and  have  sus- 
tainëd  it  no  better  than  he  did. 

(15)  It  does  not  appear  that  the  thrones  and  the  right  of  judging  is  promised  to  this 
class,  although  several  interpreters  are  of  this  opinion.  This  second  promise  only  an¬ 
nounces,  besides  eternal  life,  the  hundred-fold  of  this  life,  proportioned  to  the  extent 
and  the  perfection  of  the  sacrifices. 

(16)  Since  we  see  not  that  this  hundred-fold  refers  to  mothers,  brethren,  sisters, 
houses,  or  inheritance,  interpreters  have  perplexed  themselves  in  order  to  find  it  out. 
Those  who  advocate  the  millennium  seem  to  be  less  embarrassed  about  the  matter.  The 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


CHAP.  XL VII.] 

tions  (17),  and,' in  the  world  to  come,  life  everlasting.  But  [adds 
the  Saviour ]  many  that  are  first  shall  be  last,  and  the  last  first.” 

It  is  not  difficult  to  understand  in  what  sense  this  is  applicable  to 
the  preceding  part  of  the  discourse.  The  apostles,  dazzled  by  the 
glory  which  was  promised  to  them,  might  find  it  difficult  to  believe 
that  poor  sinners  like  them  should  one  day  be  the  judges  of  all  men, 
without  distinction  of  rich  or  poor,  of  monarch  or  subject.  Jesus 
Christ  confirmed  them  in  this  faith,  by  informing  them  that  the  or¬ 
der  established  in  this  world  should  be  subverted  in  the  other,  or 
rather  that  to  the  disorder  of  this  there  should  succeed  perfect  and 
eternal  order.  Here  birth  and  fortune  alone  constitute  the  great 
and  the  little  ;  there  ranks  shall  be  regulated  by  merit  alone  :  the 
lowest  of  men,  if  he  has  been  the  most  virtuous,  shall  be  the  first  ; 
and  the  first,  if  he  has  been  the  most  vicious,  shall  be  the  last.  We 


saints,  say  they,  shall  reign  one  thousand  years  upon  the  earth  with  Jesus  Christ,  and 
then  they  shall  have  the  hundred-fold  in  nature.  Thus  did  they  press  this  text 
into  their  service,  in  order  to  support  their  error.  But  is  it,  then,  credible  that  they 
should  have  one  hundred  wives  for  one  which  they  might  have  left  ?  inquired  Saint  Je¬ 
rome  of  these  visionary  meft.  Other  ascetics  understood  the  text  with  reference  to  the 
large  number  of  brethren,  of  sisters,  of  houses  and  possessions,  which  those  acquire  who 
embrace  the  religious  state,  wherein  there  exists  community  of  property.  This  is  a 
pious  illusion.  For,  admitting  that  these  brethren  or  these  sisters  are  more  praisewor¬ 
thy  at  least  than  those  whom  we  may  have  left  in  the  world,  it  must  also  be  allowed 
that  this  wealth  of  houses  and  of  lands  is  not  worth  a  comfortable  house  and  a  good  in¬ 
heritance,  which  one  might  possess  in  his  own  personal  right.  This  hundred-fold  is, 
therefore,  contentment,  which  is  of  such  a  nature,  that  it  surpasses  that  arising  from 
having  a  hundred  mothers,  a  hundred  brethren,  a  hundred  sisters,  a  hundred  houses, 
and  a  hundred  patrimonies.  Jesus  Christ  is  a  substitute  for  all,  or  rather  he  replaces 
them  with  an  immense  addition.  If  any  one,  said  he,  doth  the  will  of  my  Father,  he 
shall  be  my  mother,  my  brother,  and  my  sister.  He  is  to  us  all  that  he  has  said 
we  shall  be  to  him.  Am  I  not  better  to  you,  I  alone,  than  ten  children,  said  El- 
cana  to  the  virtuous  Anna  ?  This  is  nearly  the  same  language  which  the  Saviour  ad¬ 
dresses  to  the  soul  which  has  relinquished  all  for  him  ;  and  the  union  which  he  con¬ 
tracts  with  her  is  so  intimate  and  so  delicious,  that  all  the  connections  of  flesh  and  blood 
are  comparatively  but  misery  and  affliction.  We  are  so  assured  by  those  who  experi¬ 
ence  it,  and  they  alone  can  give  testimony  of  the  fact. 

(1Y)  Persecutions  are  to  this  contentment  what  water  is  when  cast  upon  a  blaz¬ 
ing  furnace.  For  the  moment,  it  abates  the  flame;  but  it  afterwards  renders  it 
more  brisk  and  more  durable.  I  am  filled  with  joy  in  the  midst  of  my  tribulations, 
said  Saint  Paul.  He  was  no  longer  apprehensive  of  losing  this  joy,  since  he  had  expe¬ 
rienced  that  persecution  itself  could  not  deprive  him  of  it,  and  this  assurance  gave  the 
finishing  stroke  to  his  happiness. 


~lr 


364 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  II. 


must  not,  therefore,  be  any  longer  astonished  that  the  highest  seats 
therein  should  be  occupied  by  the  poor,  whilst  the  majority  of  the 
rich  and  the  great,  cast  down  at  their  feet,  shall  grovel  in  the  dust. 
Perhaps  Jesus  Christ  was  also  desirous  to  give  his  disciples  to  under¬ 
stand  that  what  was  promised  was  not  yet  secured  to  them  ;  that 
they  might  still  lose  those  thrones  which  were  prepared  for  them  ; 
and  that,  if  they  drew  this  misfoftune  upon  themselves,  they  should 
one  day  groan  in  despair  at  seeing  them  filled  by  others  who,  sub¬ 
stituted  in  their  stead,  would  be  more  faithful  to  the  grace  which 
called  them  to  these  thrones.  This  sense,  which  comprises  the  great 
mystery  of  the  transfer  and  substitution  of  grace,  was  so  literally 
accomplished  in  Judas,  that  it  is  not  at  all  unlikely  that  the  Saviour 
may  have  had  him  in  yiew  when  he  uttered  this  sentence.  But  these 
same  words  which  formed  the  conclusion  of  the  preceding  discourse, 
served,  at  the  same  time,  as  an  introduction  to  the  following  para¬ 
ble,  wherein  they  express  the  perfect  independence  of  God  in  the 
distribution  of  his  graces.  It  was,  therefore,  immediately  after  hav¬ 
ing  spoken  them  that  Jesus  Christ  continued  thus  : 

(a)  “The  kingdom  of  God  is  like  to  a  householder  (18),  who  went 
out  early  in  the  morning  to  hire  laborers  into  his  vineyard.  Hav¬ 
ing  agreed  with  the  laborers  for  a  penny  a  day,  he  sent  them  into 
his  vineyard  (19).  And  going  out  about  the  third  hour  (20),  he 
saw  others  standing  in  the  market-place  idle,  and  he  said  to  them  : 
Go  you  also  into  my  vineyard,  and  I  will  give  you  what  shall  be 
just,  and  they  went  their  way.  And  again  he  went  out  about  the 
sixth  and  the  ninth  hour,  and  did  in  like  manner.  But  about  the 

( a )  St.  Matthew,  xx.  1-16. 


(18)  The  kingdom  of  God  is  not  like  unto  a  man.  This  fashion  of  speech  signifies 
that  God,  in  the  administration  of  his  kingdom,  which  is  his  Church,  demeans  himself 
nearly  like  a  father  of  a  family,  who,  &c.,  &c.  This  remark  has  already  been  made  else¬ 
where. 

(19)  This  penny  might  weigh  the  eighth  part  of  an  ounce,  and  be  worth  about  fifteen 
sous  of  our  money.  It  was  the  price  of  a  day’s  work. 

(20)  Towards  nine  o’clock  in  the  morning.  The  Jews  reckoned  twelve  hours  in  the 
day,  from  the  rising  till  the  setting  of  the  sun.  These  hours  were  unequal,  according 
to  the  inequality  of  the  days.  They  also  divided  the  day  into  four  parts,  each  of  which 
comprised  three  hours. 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CHEIST. 


eleventh  hour  he  went  out  and  found  others  standing,  and  he  saith 
to  them  :  Why  stand  you  here  all  the  day  idle  ?  They  say  to  him  : 
Because  no  man  hath  hired  us.  He  saith  to  them  :  Go  you  also  into 
my  vineyard.  And,  when  evening  was  come,  the  lord  of  the  vine¬ 
yard  saith  to  his  steward  :  Call  the  laborers,  and  pay  them  their 
hire,  beginning  from  the  last  even  to  the  first.  When,  therefore, 
they  were  come  that  came  about  the  eleventh  hour,  they  received 
every  man  a  penny  (21).  But  when  the  first  also  came,  they 
thought  that  they  should  receive  more  ;  and  they  also  received 
every  man  a  penny,  and  receiving  it,  they  murmured  against  the 
master  of  the  house,  saying  :  These  last  have  worked  but  one  hour, 
and  thou  hast  made  them  equal  to  us,  that  have  borne  the  burden 
of  the  day  and  the  heats.  But  he  answering,  said  to  one  of  them  : 
Friend,  I  do  thee  no  wrong  ;  didst  thou  not  agree  with  me  for  one 
penny  ?  Take  what  is  thine  (22),  and  go  thy  way  ;  I  will  also  give  to 


(21)  The  last  come  were,  therefore,  the  first  paid.  In  the  parable  this  circumstance 
was  necessary,  in*order  that  the  others  might  see  that  these  received  the  same  payment 
as  themselves.  For  if  the  first  had  been  paid  at  the  outset,  they  would  have  withdrawn 
immediateb'-,  and  could  not  have  witnessed  what  took  place  after  their  departure. 
Since  they  do  not  murmur  at  the  payment  being  first  made  to  the  other  class,  it  would 
seem  that  this  species  of  priority  should  not  be  regarded  as  a  favor.  What  matter  to 
them,  in  point  of  fact,  to  be  paid  a  few  minutes  sooner  or  later  ?  I  say  that  this  spe¬ 
cies  of  priority  should  not  be  regarded  as  a  favor,  merely  considering  the  letter  of  the 
parable;  but  not  so  with  reference  to  the  application.  For  the  object  here  is  to  estab¬ 
lish  this  truth,  that  the  last  shall  be  the  first,  and  the  first  shall  be  last.  There 
must  be  some  real  advantage  accruing  to  the  last  which  is  not  enjoyed  by  the  first. 
This  advantage  is  to  be  found  in  the  predilection  which  God  has  signally  shown  to¬ 
wards  the  Gentiles,  who  became,  to  the  exclusion  of  the  Jews,  the  chosen  and  cherish¬ 
ed  people,  and  further  exhibited  in  the  extraordinary  caresses  which  he  lavishes  on  sin¬ 
ners  who,  although  tardily,  return  sincerely  to  him.  Now,  these  are  the  two  applica¬ 
tions  which  are  made  of  this  parable,  as  shall  be  seen  when  continuing  the  perusal  of 
the  text. 

(22)  By  virtue  of  the  agreement.  As  soon  as  they  had  completed  their  engagement, 
the  penny  was  due  to  them  in  justice.  However,  it  was  also  gratuitous,  for  the  house¬ 
holder  might  not  have  entered  into  any  engagement  with  them  ;  he  might  employ  them 
or  pass  them  by  at  his  own  option.  On  the  other  hand,  having  promised  some  wages 
to  those  whom  he  had  called  at  a  late  hour,  he  was  also  indebted  to  them  for  it  in  point 
of  justice.  Thus  justice  in  the  first  class  does  not  exclude  grace,  and  grace  in  the  sec¬ 
ond  class  does  not  exclude  justice.  This  is  the  doctrine  of  Saint  Paul,  who  states  of 
himself  :  By  the  grace  of  God  I  am  what  I  am,  which  does  not  hinder  him  from  stating 
elsewhere  :  There  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of  justice.  Catholic  faith  has  always  recog- 


366  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  n. 

this  last  even  as  to  thee.  Or,  is  it  not  lawful  for  me  to  do  what  I 
will  ?  Is  thy  eye  evil,  because  I  am  good  ?  So  shall  the  last  be 
first,  and  the  first  last;  for  many  are  called,  but  few  chosen  (23).” 

We  can,  therefore,  return  to  God  at  any  period  of  life,  and  that 
merciful  God  is  still  sufficiently  liberal  to  grant  to  those  who  give 
themselves  to  him  in  the  decline  of  their  life  the  same  recompense 
as  to  those  who  have  commenced  serving  him  in  the  vigor  of  life,  or 
even  from  their  earliest  youth.  It  is,  I  say,  the  same  reward,  and 
in  substance  identical,  although  unequal  in  its  degrees,  in  proportion 
to  the  time  which  the  individual  shall-  have  spent  in  his  service  ;  al¬ 
though  it  may  also  happen,  and  the  parable  conveys  this  idea  plain¬ 
ly  enough,  that  those  who  have  commenced  late  do  equal  by  their 
fervor,  or  even  surpass  many  of  those  who  shall  have  toiled  from  the 
morning  of  their  life.  Such  are  the  consoling  truths  which  Jesus 
Christ  in  this  parable  proposes  to  sinners  of  all  ages,  and  the  sense 
in  which  it  is  usually  expounded.  But  how  are  we  to  regard  here 
the  murmurings  of  those  who  came  first  ?  Inasmuch  as  all  are  re¬ 
warded,  they  are  all  just  and  happy  ;  and  it  is  certain  that  in  the 
day  of  retribution,  those  among  the  just  who  shall  have  been  least 
favored,  far  from  reproaching  the  Lord  with  the  inequality  of  his  fa¬ 
vors,  shall,  on  the  contrary,  bless  and  applaud  him  for  his  superabun¬ 
dant  bounty  to  others.  This  reflection,  joined  to  the  surmise  that  so 
considerable  a  part  of  the  parable  cannot  be  a  mere  adjunct  to  it,  or 
merely  ornamental,  warrants  the  application  of  it  to  the  two  races, 
and  the  application  is  quite  correct.  The  J ews,  if  you  compare  peo- 


v/vl 


nized  both  truths  in  the  recompense  of  the  elect.  Protestants,  who  misunderstand  the 
merit  thereof,  have  abused  several  expressions  in  this  parable,  for  the  purpose  of  sus¬ 
taining  their  error,  and  have  distorted  the  sense  of  some  other  passages  which  tell  against 
their  erroneous  doctrine.  This  has  induced  us  to  place  here  this  exposition. 

(23)  All  those  spoken  of  in  the  parable  being  elect,  inasmuch  as  all  received  the 
pence,  we  do  not  further  see  how  this  conclusion  can  refer  to  the  parable.  But  we  can 
very  easily  connect  it  with  those  words  which  go  immediately  before  :  So  shall  the  last 
be  first,  and  the  first  last.  This  sort  of  subversion  may  excite  surprise  :  the  utter  ex¬ 
clusion  of  the  greater  number  of  those  who  are  called  should  surprise  us  much  more. 
Wherefore  the  matter  presents  itself  as  if  Jesus  Christ  said:  You  seem  surprised  at 
hearing  me  state  that  the  first  called  shall  be  sent  to  the  lowest  rank  ;  how  much  more 
should  you  wonder  that,  amongst  this  great  number  of  men  who  have  been  called,  and 
who  shall  yet  be  called,  very  few  shall  have  the  reward. 


(Iff  AP.  XL  VIL  J  OF  OUK  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  db7 

pie  to  people,  had  been  called  from  the  time  of  Abraham,  and  the 
Gentiles  were  only  called  by  the  apostles.  Moreover,  if  we  compare 
man  with  man,  each  Jew  in  particular  had  toiled  all  his  life  in  the 
vineyard  of  the  Lord.  Circumcised  from  his  birth,  he  had  borne 
the  intolerable  yoke  of  the  law  from  that  moment  until  the  day  when 
he  embraced  the  evangelical  law.  Then,  according  to  the  promise, 
he  had  received  in  baptism  both  the  remission  of  his  sins  and  the 
quality  of  child  of  God  and  heir  of  the  heavenly  kingdom.  But  a 
Gentile  wdio  became  converted,  received,  as  well  as  he,  this  precious 
penny  :  a  Gentile,  who  had  been  a  stranger  to  this  alliance,  and  to 
whom  nothing  had  ever  been  promised  ;  and  if  we  consider  what  he 
was  in  himself,  he  was  a  man  who  had  hitherto  lived  without  God, 
without  law,  without  morals,  the  sport  of  his  passions,  the  slave  of 
all  vices,  and  the  worshipper  of  demons.  From  the  midst  of  these 
horrors,  he  opened  his  eyes  to  the  light  of  faith  which  was  presented 
to  him,  and  at  the  same  moment  he  became  equal  to  the  children  of 
the  promise.  We  are  aware  of  the  murmurs  which  arose  amongst 
the  Jews  in  consequence  of  this  equality  which  they  had  never  an¬ 
ticipated,  and  which  they  could  not  behold  without  envy.  Perhaps 
the  discontent  would  have  gone  so  far  as  to  make  them  withdraw 
from  the  Church,  or  to  prevent  their  entering  into  it,  like  the  broth¬ 
er  of  the  prodigal  child,  if  those  two  parables  had  not  prepared  them 
for  this  great  event;  for  both  have  the  same  object,  and  the  antidote 
was  not  more  than  requisite  in  order  to  prevent  the  consequences  of 
the  scandal  which  should  arise  amongst  the  Jews  with  reference  to 
this  subject.  But  if  they  tend  to  the  same  end,  they  do  so  by  dif¬ 
ferent  paths,  as  it  is  easy  to  discern  from  the  different  reasons  which 
they  give  for  this  conduct  of  God.  That  of  the  first  parable  is  the 
paternal  love  which  God  entertains  towards  all  men,  without  except¬ 
ing  those  who  have  wandered  farthest  from  his  holy  ways.  That  of 
the  second  is,  as  we  have  said,  his  perfect  independence  in  the  distri¬ 
bution  of  his  graces,  which  enables  him  to  grant  them  to  whomso¬ 
ever  he  pleases,  and  in  the  measure  that  he  pleases,  without  any 
other  reason  for  the  preference  than  his  own  good  pleasure  ;  or  for 
his  predilection,  but  the  predilection  itself. 

This  occurred  in  that  part  of  Judea  beyond  the  Jordan,  where  we 
have  seen  that  Jesus  then  was.  We  have  previously  said  that  he 


TïTT  *  ; .  y! 

Tl 

II 

1! 

368 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[fart  n 


was  on  his  way  towards  Jerusalem;  but  as  it  was  his  design  not  to 
reach  the  city  until  the  approach  of  the  feast  of  the  Passover,  he  pro¬ 
ceeded  very  slowly,  teaching  on  the  way,  and  curing  the  sick  who 
came  before  him.  It  is  even  apparent  that  he  prolonged  his  sojourn 
in  the  places  in  which  he  had  resolved  to  diffuse  yet  other  lights  and 
graces,  when  an  accident,  which,  however,  was  not  such  to  him  who 
had  foreseen  and  willed  it,  made  him  advance  on  a  sudden  almost  to 
the  walls  of  the  capital.  This  was  the  sickness  and  death  of  Laza¬ 
rus,  whose  resurrection  must  be  regarded  as  one  of  the  most  memo¬ 
rable  events  of  this  history,  not  only  because  it  was  the  greatest  mir¬ 
acle  which  J esus  Christ  performed  during  his  whole  mortal  life,  but, 
moreover,  on  account  of  its  consequences  ;  for  we  may  consider  it  as 
the  proximate  cause  of  the  Saviour’s  death.  Too  plain  to  leave  any 
room  for  their  wicked  subtleties,  this  miracle  drove  his  enemies  to 
despair,  and  to  them  there  now  remained  no  other  course  than  either 
to  adore  him  or  to  crucify  him.  Between  these  two  extremes  envy 
never  hesitated  ;  and  its  characteristic  excess  of  malice  would  suf¬ 
fice  to  make  us  aware  on  which  part  it  decided,  even  if  history  had 
left  us  in  ignorance  of  the  fact. 


CHAPTER  XL VIII. 

RESURRECTION  OF  LAZARUS. - FIRST  CONSULTATION  AGAINST  JESUS  CHRIST. - CAI- 

PHAS  PROPHESIES.—— JESUS  RETIRES  TO  EPHRAIM. 

(a)  “  Now  there  was  a  certain  man  sick,  named  Lazarus,  of  Betha- 
nia,  of  the  town  of  Mary,  and  of  Martha,  her  sister.  Mary  was  she 
that  anointed  the  Lord  with  ointment  (1),  and  wiped  his  feet  with 

(a)  St.  John,  xi.  1-56. 


(1)  Since  Saint  John  designates  her  by  this  trait,  it  must,  therefore,  belong  ex¬ 
clusively  to  one  person,  otherwise  the  sign  would  be  equivocal.  Moreover,  the  Church, 
in  the  Office  of  Saint  Magdalen,  only  makes  one  and  the  same  person  of  her  whom  some 
interpreters  would  fain  make  two,  and  even  three  different  persons.  On  both  sides  it  is 
merely  an  opinion  ;  but  we  may  say  that  the  opinion  of  those  who  multiply  the  Marys 


CHAP.  XLVIII. 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


her  hair,  whose  brother  Lazarus  was  sick.  His  sister,  therefore,  sent 
to  Jesus,  saying:  Lord,  behold,  he  whom  thou  lovest  is  sick (2). 
And  Jesus,  hearing  it,  said  to  them  (3)  :  This  sickness  is  not  unto 
death  (4)  ;  but  for  the  glory  of  God,  that  the  Son  of  God  may  be 
glorified  by  it.  Now  Jesus  loved  Martha,  and  her  sister  Mary,  and 
Lazarus  (5).  When  he  had  heard,  therefore,  that  he  was  sick,  he 
still  remained  in  the  same  place  two  days  ;  then  after  that  he  said  to 
his  disciples  :  Let  us  go  into  Judea  again.  The  disciples  say  to  him  : 


is  neither  grounded  upon  so  decisive  a  reason,  nor  so  respectable  an  authority,  as  the 
reason  we  have  just  advanced,  and  the  authority  we  have  cited. 

(2)  This  is,  according  to  the  fathers,  the  model  of  perfect  prayer.  It  consists  in  the 
simple  expression  of  want,  accompanied  by  a  firm  confidence  in  God.  This  confidence 
is  founded  upon  the  knowledge  which  we  have  of  the  goodness,  of  the  power,  and  of 
the  wisdom  of  God.  By  his  goodness  he  wisheth  well  to  us  ;  by  his  power  he  is  en¬ 
abled  to  do  us  good  ;  by  his  wisdom  he  shall  discern  what  is  most  advantageous  to  us  ; 
a  state  of  things  which  produces  resignation,  happen  what  may,  because  he  knows  bet¬ 
ter  than  we  what  is  necessary  for  us. 

A  truly  faithful  soul,  which  has  not  obtained  from  God  the  particular  favor  which  it 
sought  from  him,  is  only  inclined  to  utter  this  single  expression  :  It  was  not  good  for 
me,  I  was  deceived. 

(3)  Since  he  said  it  to  them,  the  deputation  was,  therefore,  composed  of  several. 

(4)  The  principal  effect  of  death  is  to  cut  off  forever  from  the  society  of  the  living. 
That  of  Lazarus  was  not  to  have  this  effect.  It  is  in  this  sense  that  it  is  said  that  his 
sickness  is  not  unto  death. 

(5)  Jesus  Christ,  as  God,  has  loved  men  from  all  eternity  :  as  man,  he  has  loved  them 
during  time,  and  from  the  instant  of  his  conception,  with  that  supernatural  love  of  char¬ 
ity  which  has  God  alone  for  its  motive  and  its  end.  We  are  not  unaware  that  he  en¬ 
tertained  these  two  sorts  of  love  for  Martha,  for  her  sister  Mary,  and  for  their  brother 
Lazarus  ;  and  that,  too,  with  the  predilection  which  he  entertains  towards  the  saints  and 
the  predestined.  But  as  man,  he  might  entertain,  and  he  did  entertain,  in  point  of  fact, 
various  other  sorts  of  love,  viz.,  natural  love,  founded  upon  kindred,  familiarity,  sym¬ 
pathy,  &c.  ;  love  of  esteem  and  complacency,  founded  upon  upright  inclinations  and 
virtuous  morals  ;  love  of  gratitude,  founded  upon  the  attachment  which  was  evinced 
towards  him.  He  did  not  entertain  these  latter  varieties  of  love  for  all  men,  because 
he  did  not  find  cause  for  them  in  all  men  ;  but  he  might  have  entertained  them  towards 
those  in  whom  he  found  cause  :  such  were  Lazarus  and  his  two  sisters,  towards  whom 
Jesus  Christ  must  have  entertained  the  love  of  complacency,  inasmuch  as  they  were  vir¬ 
tuous  persons,  and  that  of  gratitude,  inasmuch  as  they  did  good  to  him.  We  thus  have 
the  sense  in  which  it  is  here  stated  that  he  loved  them,  that  is  to  say,  that  he  entertain¬ 
ed  a  particular  friendship  for  them.  We  cannot  doubt  that  he  entertained  these  sorts 
of  love  or  friendship,  becàuse  it  is  evident  that  they  are  not  sinful,  and  it  is  a  matter  of 
faith  that  Jesus  Christ  assumed  all  that  belongs  to  human  nature,  with  the  exception 
of  sin. 

24 


370  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  II 

Rabbi,  the  Jews  but  just  now  sought  to  stone  thee  (6)  ;  and  goest 
thou  thither  again  ?  Jesus  answered  :  Are  there  not  twelve  hours 
of  the  day?  If  a  man  walk  in  the  day,  he  stumbleth  not  (7),  be¬ 
cause  he  seeth  the  light  of  this  world  ;  but  if  he  walk  in  the  night, 
he  stumbleth,  because  the  light  is  not  in  him.  These  things  he  said  ; 
and  after  that  he  said  to  them  :  Lazarus,  our  friend,  sleepeth  ;  but  I 
go,  that  I  may  awake  him  out  of  sleep.  His  disciples,  therefore, 
said:  Lord,  if  he  sleep,  he  shall  do  well.  But  Jesus  spoke  of  his 
death,  and  they  thought  that  he  spoke  of  the  repose  of  sleep  ;  then, 
therefore,  Jesus  said  to  them  plainly  :  Lazarus  is  dead,  and  I  am  glad, 
for  your  sake  (8),  that  I  was  not  there  (9),  that  you  may  believe  ; 
but  let  us  go  to  him.  „  Then  Thomas,  who  is  called  Didymus  (10), 
said  to  his  fellow-disciples  :  Let  us  also  go,  that  we  may  die  with 
him  (11).  So  Jesus  came  (12),  and  found  that  he  had  been  four 
days  already  in  the  sepulchre  (13).  Now,  Bethania  was  near  Jeru- 


(6)  But  now.  In  the  text  we  read  nunc.  Fear  rendered  still  present  to  their  mind 
what  had  occurred  about  two  months  before. 

(7)  It  is  a  figurative  mode  of  saying  :  the  time  when  I  have  resolved  to  die  is  not  yet 
come;  until  then  I  have  nothing  to  apprehend..  Thus  it  was  that  Jesus  Christ  sent 
word  to  Herod  :  I  must  walk  to-day,  and  to-morrow,  and  the  following  day,  as  it  is  in 
the  same  sense  that  at  the  time  of  his  passion  he  said  to  those  who  came  to  arrest  him  : 
This  is  your  hour  and  the  power  of  darkness. 

(8)  In  order  that  you  may  be  strengthened  in  faith,  for  they  already  believed. 

(9)  He  was  there  as  God,  but  he  speaks  as  man. 

(10)  This  is  the  Greek  translation  of  the  name  of  Thomas;  for  Thomas  in  Hebrew 
signifies  Twin,  as  Didymus  does  in  Greek. 

(11)  He  spoke  this  sincerely  and  from  his  heart,  and  not  ironically,  as  some  have  very 
injudiciously  asserted.  These  construe  his  words  as  if  he  spoke  thus:  Shall  we  also 
go,  that  we  may  be  stoned  to  death  along  with  him  ?  The  Gospel  does  not  leave  us 
in  ignorance  of  the  faults  of  the  apostles.  The  religious  respect  which  is  due  to  the 
apostles  does  not  permit  us  to  attribute  faults  to  them  of  which  they  were  innocent. 
Much  less  does  it  permit  us  to  exaggerate,  so  as  to  give  a  faulty  character  to  actions  re¬ 
plete  with  strength  and  heroism,  such  as  was  the  resolution  which  Saint  Thomas  exhibited 
upon  this  occasion,  wherein  he  raised  the  courage  of  the  irresolute  and  trembling  disciples. 

(12)  After  two  days’  march.  He  was  not,  therefore,  at  Jericho,  as  some  moderns  as¬ 
sert  ;  for  it  is  improbable  that  he  could  have  taken  two  days  to  accomplish  the  six  or 
seven  hours’  journey  from  Jericho  to  Bethania.  But  what  demonstrates  that  he  had 
come  from  a  greater  distance,  and  even  from  beyond  the  Jordan,  is  this  expression  which 
he  made  use  of  to  his  disciples  :  Let  us  go  into  Judea.  One  was,  of  course,  in  Judea 
when  he  was  in  Jericho. 

(13)  It  follows  from  this  that  Lazarus  had  been  interred  the  very  day  of  his  death, 


CHAP.  XL VIII.] 


OF  OUIi  LOUD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


371 


salem,  about  fifteen  furlongs  off;  and  many  of  the  Jews  were  come 
to  Martha  and  Mary,  to  comfort  them  concerning  their  brother. 
Martha,  therefore,  as  soon  as  she  heard  that  Jesus  was  come,  went  to 
meet  him;  but  Mary  sat  at  home.  Martha  said  to  Jesus:  Lord,  if 
thou  hadst  been  here,  my  brother  had  not  died  (14)  ;  but  now  also 
I  know  that  whatsoever  thou  wilt  ask  of  God,  God  will  give  it  thee. 
Thy  brother  shall  rise  again,  saith  Jesus  to  her.  Martha  said  to  him  : 
I  know  that  he  shall  rise  again  in  the  resurrection,  at  the  last  day. 
Jesus  said  to  her:  I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life  (15)  ;  he  that 
believeth  in  me,  although  he  be  dead,  shall  live  (16)  ;  and  every  one 
that  liveth,  and  believeth  in  me,  shall  not  die  forever.  Believest 
thou  this  ?  Yea,  Lord,  she  saith  to  him,  I  have  believed  that  thou 
art  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  who  art  come  into  this 
world  (17).  And  when  she  had  said  these  things,  she  went,  and 
called  her  sister  Mary  secretly,  saying:  The  Master  is  come,  and 
calleth  for  thee.  She,  as  soon  as  she  heard  this,  riseth  quickly,  and 
cometh  to  him  ;  for  Jesus  was  not  yet  come  into  the  town,  but  he 
was  still  in  that  place  where  Martha  had  met  him. 


which  appears  rather  precipitate.  Perhaps  the  nature  of  his  disease  did  not  allow  of 
keeping  over  the  corpse  ;  or  perhaps  it  might  have  been  on  the  eve  of  the  Sabbath,  a 
reason  which  rendered  it  obligatory,  as  we  know,  to  detach  the  Saviour  from  the  cross, 
and  to  place  him  in  the  sepulchre  immediately  after  he  expired. 

(14)  Imperfect  faith.  Jesus  Christ,  from  a  distance,  might  hinder  him  from  dying, 
as  well  as  if  near;  but  the  discourse  exhibits  calm  moderation.  Saint  Chrysostom,  who 
represents  to  himself  the  cries  and  lamentations  which  would  have  been  uttered  by  other 
women,  if  placed  in  the  same  circumstances  as  the  two  sisters,  gives  them  credit  for  this 
self-restraint. 

(15)  He  raises  Martha  to  higher  notions;  she  thought  she  had  only  to  ask  in  order 
to  obtain.  He  informs  her  that  she  does  not  even  require  to  ask  ;  for  he  who  is  the 
resurrection  and  the  life,  that  is  to  say,  who  is  the  author  and  source  of  both  one  and 
the  other,  does  not  require  to  ask  for  what  he  possesses  and  has  within  himself. 

(16)  Although  he  be  dead,  shall  live,  that  is  to  say,  that  he  shall  recover  life  by  the 
resurrection.  He  who  lives  shall  not  die  forever,  because  he  shall  only  die  in  order  to 
rise  again.  Others  translate,  “  shall  never  die,”  which  is  true  in  the  sense  that  a  death 
which  is  followed  by  a  happy  resurrection  is  merely  a  sleep. 

(1  *7)  It  is  the  confession  of  Saint  Peter.  Martha  has  the  honor  of  being  the  first  wo¬ 
man  whom  we  know  to  have  made  it.  The  entire  faith  is  comprised  therein,  but  this 
faith  was  not  as  yet  entirely  developed..  Martha’s  case  here  resembled  that  of  a  Catho 
lie  who,  when  interrogated  whether  he  believes  such  and  such  an  article  of  faith,  of 
which  he  should  have  merely  a  confused  idea,  would  reply  sincerely,  and  without  eva¬ 
sion  :  I  believe  all  which  the  Church  believes  and  teaches. 


W 

&V 


V 


M 


%\ 


r> 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[.PART  n. 


“The  Jews,  who  were  with  her  (18)  in  the  house,  and  Comforted 
her,  when  they  saw  Mary  that  she  rose  up  speedily,  and  went  out, 
followed  her,  saying:  She  goeth  to  the  sepulchre  to  weep  there. 
When  Mary,  therefore,  was  come  where  Jesus  was,  seeing  him,  she 
fell  down  at  his  feet,  and  saith  to  him  :  Lord,  if  thou  hadst  been 
here,  my  brother  had  not  died.  When  Jesus,  therefore,  saw  her 
weeping,  and  the  Jews  that  were  come  with  her  weeping,  he  groan¬ 
ed  in  the  spirit  (19),  and  troubled  himself,  and  said:  Where  have 
you  laid  him  ?  They  say  to  him  :  Lord,  come  and  see.  And  Jesus 
wept  (20).  The  Jews,  therefore,  said  :  Behold  how  he  loved  him. 
But  some  of  them  said  :  Could  not  he  that  opened  the  eyes  of  the 
man  born  blind,  have  caused  that  this  man  should  not  die  (21)  ?  Je» 
sus,  therefore,  again  groaning  in  himself,  cometh  to  the  sepulchre; 
now,  it  was  a  cave,  and  a  stone  was  laid  over  it.  Jesus  saith:  Take 
away  the  stone  (22).  Martha,  the  sister  of  him  that  was  dead,  saith 
unto  him  :  Lord,  by  this  time  he  stinketh,  for  he  is  now  of  four  days. 
Tesus  saith  to  her:  Did  not  I  say  to  thee,  that  if  thou  wilt  believe, 
thou  shalt  see  the  glory  of  Grod  ?  They  took,  therefore,  the  stone 
away,  and  Jesus  lifting  up  his  eyes,  said:  Father,  I  give  thee  thanks 
that  thou  hast  heard  me  (28).  And  I  knew  that  thou  hearest  me 


(18)  Mary  remained  in  the  company  of  those  who  came  to  pay  compliments  of  con¬ 
dolence.  It  appears  by  this  narrative,  and  by  that  of  the  repast  which  Jesus  Christ 
made  with  the  two  sisters,  that  Martha  occupied  herself  in  the  housekeeping,  and  that 
Mary  did  the  honors  of  the  house,  each  pursuant  to  her  taste  or  capacity. 

(19)  Which  usually  precedes  tears,  especially  in  men  whose  masculine  character 
shrinks  at  first  from  the  emotion  which  produces  tears.  In  us  this  groaning  is  involun¬ 
tary  ;  but  it  was  voluntary  in  the  Man- God  ;  this  is  the  reason  why  it  is  said  that  he 
troubled  himself. 

(20)  To  weep  with  those  who  weep  is,  according  to  Saint  Paul,  a  duty  of  charity 
which  Jesus  Christ  desired  to  fulfil  as  well  as  others.  He  might  also  weep  at  the  sight 
of  human  miseries,  of  which  he  had  so  affecting  an  image  before  his  eyes  ;  and  it  was 
not  unworthy  of  him  to  shed  tears  at  the  death  of  his  friend. 

(21)  Had  he  remained  without  shedding  tears,  these  people  might  have  accused  hit. 
of  hardness  of  heart.  Whatever  course  may  be  taken,  there  are  persons  whose  censure 
can  never  be  eluded.  The  wise  man  acts  as  he  ought,  and  leaves  people  to  speak  as 
they  like. 

(22)  Jesus  Christ  might  miraculously  raise  the  stone,  but  he  did  not  wish  to  do  so: 
1st.  Because  human  means  being  sufficient,  the  miracle  was  useless, 
fetid  odor  from  the  corpse  rendered  indubitable  the  miraculous  event  of  the  resurrection. 

(23)  Therefore  he  had  prayed  for  it,  but  unnecessarily,  as  we  have  already  said,  and 


as 


== 


(S  **.  -  - 


CHAP.  XLVIII.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST  373 

always,  bat  because  of  the  people  who  stand  about,  I  have  said  it, 
that  they  may  believe  that  thou  hast  sent  me.  When  he  had  said 
these  things,  he  cried  with  a  loud  voice  :  Lazarus,  come  forth  !  And 
resentlv  he  that  had  been  dead  came  forth,  bound  feet  and  hands 
with  winding-bands,  and  his  face  was  bound  about  with  a  napkin. 
Jesus  said  to  them  :  Loose  him,  and  let  him  go.  Many,  therefore,  of 
the  Jews  who  were  come  to  Mary  and  Martha,  and  had  seen  the 
things  that  Jesus  did,  believed  in  him  ;  but  some  of  them  went  to 
the  Pharisees,  and  told  them  the  things  that  Jesus  had  done.” 

Did  these  Jews,  who  made  it  their  business  to  report  this  prodigy, 
belong  to  the  great  mass  of  those  who  believed,  or  to  the  small  num¬ 
ber  of  the  unbelievers?  Was  it  reported  by  them  with  the  design 
of  converting  the  Pharisees  to  Jesus  Christ,  or  for  the  purpose  of  ex¬ 
citing  them  still  more  against  him  ?  This  matter  is  very  uncertain, 
and  the  knowledge  thereof  is  of  very  slight  consequence.  If  we  were 
to  judge  it  by  its  effect,  their  intention  could  not  be  otherwise  than 
extremely  bad.  For,  being  more  highly  scandalized  at  this  resur¬ 
rection  than  they  would  have  been  if  they  had  received  information 
that  the  Saviour  had  just  committed  murder,  “  the  chief  priests,  there¬ 
fore,  and  the  Pharisees  gathered  a  council,  and  said  :  What  do  we, 
and  what  are  we  thinking  about  ?  this  man  doth  many  miracles.” 
Let  the  reader  remark  that  they  do  not  here  treat  him  as  a  blasphe¬ 
mer,  nor  as  a  seducer  of  the  people,  nor  as  resisting  the  ordinances 
of  Moses  and  the  authority  of  the  Cæsars  ;  such  language  would  have 
done  very  well  before  the  mob,  who  are  only  capable  of  believing 
what  is  told  them,  and  repeating  what  they  hear.  Whereas  the 
Pharisees  knew  so  well  in  their  own  hearts  that  such  characteristics 
by  no  means  belonged  to  the  Saviour,  that  to  use  such  language  in 
familiar  intercourse  with  each  other,  would  be  exposing  themselves 
to  be  considered  as  silly  as  the  populace  upon  whom  they  sought  to 
palm  these  absurdities.  “For  this  man  does  many  miracles” — be- 


he  might  not  have  made  the  solicitation.  He  had  solicited  it  as  man,  and,  even  in  that 
quality,  he  is  always  heard.  It  was  not  for  himself  that  he  had  asked  it,  but  for  us, 
since  he  returns  thanks  for  our  sake.  He  did  not  require  it  for  himself  ;  but  how  could 
he  want  any  thing  affecting  us  ?  This  can  only  be  explained  by  his  love  ;  but  who  can 
explain  to  us  this  love,  which  makes  him  love  creatures  whom  he  is  not  obliged  to 
love,  and  whom  he  has  so  many  reasons  to  hate  ? 


AV 

V V.  w  ^ 


\i 


k  \ 


a. 


4 


VMltY 
?  •% 


hold  his  crime  !  or,  to  speak  more  accurately,  behold  his  transgres¬ 
sion,  in  the  estimation  of  these  proud  men,  who  saw  with  no  other 
feeling  than  vexation  the  ascendancy  that  such  astounding  works 
gave  him  over  the  public  mind,  and  the  diminution  of  their  own 
credit,  being  the  inevitable  result  of  the  former  !  This  it  is  which 
makes  them  add  :  “  If  we  let  him  alone  so,  all  will  believe  in  him.” 

They  saw  themselves  on  the  point  of  being  abandoned,  and 
left  to  an  ignominious  solitude.  This  was  the  humiliating  infer¬ 
ence  which  they  drew  in  the  depth  of  their  hearts  ;  but  they  would 
have  shrunk  from  expressing  it  by  word  of  mouth.  Here  we  have 
the  reason  why,  instead  of  this  personal  interest  which  they  did  not 
dare  to  avow,  they  alleged  the  interest  of  the  public,  and  the  state 
threatened  with  impending  ruin,  if  an  opposition  were  not  organized 
against  the  progress  of  so  dangerous  a  man,  “  and  the  Romans  [they 
say ]  will  come  and  take  away  our  place  and  nation  (24).” 

It  remained  to  be  said  that  they  must  get  rid  of  him,  and  immo¬ 
late  him  for  the  public  safety  ;  but  this  would  have  pointed  too  dis¬ 
tinctly  to  the  crime  which  they  meditated,  and  on  this  account  they 
could  hardly  pronounce  it.  The  crime  was  desirable  ;  but  it  was  fur¬ 
ther  desirable  to  be  enabled  to  say,  after  it  had  been  committed,  that 
another  was  the  author  thereof,  and  to  cast  all  the  odium  on  him, 
whilst  sharing  with  him  the  profits.  Wherefore  it  seems  that  they 
exchanged  glances,  and  that  by  these  looks  they  mutually  asked  each 
other  for  the  fatal  word,  which  no  one  had  the  boldness  to  utter  ; 
when,  setting  aside  all  delicacy,  and  deriding,  as  it  were,  the  incon¬ 
sistency  of  this  latter  scruple,  “  one  of  them,  named  Caiphas,  being 
the  high  priest  for  that  year,  said  to  them  :  You  know  nothing,  nei¬ 
ther  do  you  consider  that  it  is  expedient  for  you  that  one  man  should 
die  for  the  people,  and  that  the  whole  nation  perish  not.” 


•  (24)  This  is  the  prophecy  of  what  really  occurred  to  them  for  not  having  believed  i' 
Jesus  Christ,  and  for  having  put  him  to  death.  The  just  man  does  not  always  succeed 
the  wicked  fail  much  oftener.  But  the  first,  who  only  employed  legitimate  means,  has 
in  his  favor  the  testimony  of  his  conscience,  and,  instead  of  earthly  goods,  the  hope  of 
heavenly  treasures.  What  a  source  of  consolation  !  The  others  add  to  the  sense  of 
their  misfortune,  remorse  for  the  crimes  which  have  brought  on  their  woe,  and  the  pros¬ 
pect  of  the  eternal  chastisement  which  these  crimes  have  earned  for  them  ;  what  an  ac¬ 
cumulation  of  despair  ! 


«s'-. 


v,  4 


M, 


"Ml 


CHAP.  XL VIII.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


The  mind  of  this  wicked  man  was  utterly  engrossed  by  the  evil 
meaning  conveyed  in  his  own  words,  viz.,  that  we  should  make  no 
scruple  of  sacrificing  an  innocent  victim  to  self-interest  :  a  false  and 
abominable  maxim,  even  if  the  interest  of  a  whole  people  were  at 
stake.  But  his  words  also  contained  a  mysterious  and  profound 
meaning  which  he  did  not  comprehend,  and  of  which  he  had  not 
even  any  notion,  viz.,  that  the  world  could  not  be  saved  otherwise 
than  by  the  death  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  first  of  these  two  meanings 
was  his  own  ;  the  second  was  that  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  had  made 
him  utter  such  words  as  announced  this  great  truth,  at  the  same  time 
that  they  expressed  the  perverse  meaning  which  Caiphas  had  then  in 
his  mind.  Now,  it  is  with  reference  to  this  second  meaning  that  it  is 
said  that  “  this  he  spoke  not  of  himself  ;  but  being  the  high  priest  of 
that  year  (25),  he  prophesied  that  Jesus  should  die  for  the  nation, 
and  not  only  for  the  nation,  but  to  gather  together  in  one  the  chil 
dren  of  God  that  were  dispersed  (26).” 

But  the  murderous  meaning,  which  wms  the  only  one  then  under¬ 
stood,  was  universally  adopted.  “  From  that  day,  therefore,  they 
devised  to  put  Jesus  to  death.”  We  see  by  that  in  wrhat  estimation 
we  should  hold  the  judicial  formality  which  they  appeared  to  observe 
when  they  had  him  in  their  power.  If  they  called  witnesses,  and 
listened  to  them  ;  if  they  subjected  the  Saviour  to  a  species  of  inter¬ 
rogatory,  it  was  all  for  the  purpose  of  blindfolding  the  world,  and  in 
order  that  it  might  be  reported  that  evidence  had  been  heard,  and 
that  the  pretended  criminal  had  been  judicially  examined  ;  for,  in 
reality,  he  was  already  judged  and  condemned  to  death  :  the  sen- 


(25)  Prophecy,  the  gift  of  pronouncing  oracles  in  religious  matters,  is  attached  to 
dignity,  and  not  to  merit.  It  became  the  wisdom  of  God  that  such  should  be  the  case, 
because  we  always  know  where  dignity  exists,  and  we  can  never  have  any  assurance  of 
the  existence  of  virtue.  The  lips  of  the  priest  shall  keep  knowledge,  and  they  shall  seek 
the  law  at  his  mouth,  because  he  is  the  angel  of  the  Lord  of  hosts. — Malachi,  ii.  7. 

(26)  In  order  to  gather  from  all  parts  of  the  earth  into  one  and  the  same  Church  all 
the  children  of  God,  that  is  to  say,  all  those  who  were  to  constitute  it  ;  for  they  were 
not  as  yet  the  children  of  God,  and  they  only  became  such  when  they  received  the  char¬ 
acter  by  baptism.  Jesus  Christ  was  also  to  die  for  those  who  did  not  receive  him, 
since  he  was  to  die  for  all  men.  But  allusion  is  made  here  to  those  only  to  whom  the 
fruits  of  his  death  were  applied. 


.'•nVws* 


tence  had  anticipated  the  trial,  and  all  the  subsequent  deliberations 
only  turned  upon  the  means  of  putting  it  into  execution. 

The  hour  was  approaching,  but  had  not  yet  come.  Jesus,  who,  in 
order  to  exhibit  his  power,  had  just  braved  the  fury  of  his  enemies, 
wished  also  to  give  his  disciples  the  example  of  a  wise  timidity  and 
a  prudent  flight.  Thus  were  alternately  seen  the  divinity  piercing 
the  veil  of  humanity,  and  humanity  shrouding  with  its  weakness  the 
lustre  of  the  divinity.  “  Wherefore  Jesus  walked  no  more  openly 
among  the  Jews  ;  but  he  went  into  a  country  near  the  desert,  unto 
a  city  that  is  called  Ephrern,  and  there  he  abode  with  his  disciples. 
And  the  pasch  of  the  Jews  was  at  hand,  and  many  from  the  country 
went  up  to  Jerusalem  before  the  pasch  to  purify  themselves.  They 
sought,  therefore,  for  Jesus,  and  they  discoursed  one  with  another, 
standing  in  the  temple  :  What  think  you  that  he  is  not  come  to  the 
festival-clay?  And  the  chief  priests  and  the  Pharisees  had  given  a 
commandment,  that  if  any  man  knew  where  he  was,  he  should  tell, 
that  they  might  apprehend  him.” 

_  -  ^ 

CHAPTER  XLIX. 

RETURN  TO  JERUSALEM. - ZEAL  OF  THE  'TWO  DISCIPLES  REPRESSED. - THE  PASSION 

FORETOLD  WITH  ITS  CIRCUMSTANCES. - AMBITIOUS  PRETENSION  OF  THE  CHILDREN 

OF  ZEBEDEE. - MURMURING  OF  THE  OTHER  DISCIPLES,  AND  INSTRUCTIONS  GIVEN 

TO  THEM. 

(«)  “  It  came  to  pass  when  the  days  of  his  assumption  were  accom¬ 
plishing,  that  Jesus,”  surmounting,  by  a  generous  effort,  all  the  repug¬ 
nance  of  nature,  “steadfastly  set  his  face  to  go  to  Jerusalem.  He 
sent  messengers  before  his  face”  to  announce  his  arrival  in  the  places 
through  which  he  should  pass.  “  Going,  they  entered  into  a  city  of 
the  Samaritans,  to  prepare  for  him”  what  was  necessary.  But  “  they 
received  him  not,  because  his  face  was  of  one  going  to  Jerusalem  !” 
Now,  journeying  towards  Jerusalem,  during  the  time  of  the  Passover, 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  II. 


rM  \V\ 


OF  OUR  LOKD  JESUS  CHEIST, 


CHAP.  XLIX. 


was  a  marked  declaration  of  being  a  Jew  and  an  anti-Samaritan, 


“  When  his  disciples,  James  and  John,  had  seen  this,”  unable  to  en¬ 
dure  the  affront  cast  upon  their  Master,  and  burning  with  the  desire 
to  avenge  him  :  “  Lord,  they  said,  wilt  thou  that  we  command  fire  to 
come  down  from  heaven,  and  consume  them  ?”  This  sally  has  given 
rise  to  the  suspicion  that  the  two  disciples  were  amongst  the  number 
of  the  deputation  sent,  and  that  some  personal  anger  may  have  been 
mixed  up  with  their  resentment.  But  their  zeal,  even  supposing 
that  it  had  no  other  object  than  the  glory  of  the  Saviour,  did  not 
meet  his  approbation.  “  Jesus  turning,  rebuked  them,  saying  :  You 
know  not  of  what  spirit  you  are  (1).  The  Son  of  man  came  not  to 
destroy  souls  (2),  but  to  save  ;  and  they  went  into  another  town.” 

(a)  “  They  were  in  the  way  going  up  to  Jerusalem,  and  Jesus  went 
before  them,  and  they  were  astonished,  and  following,  were  afraid.” 
The  animosity  of  the  Jews  made  the  disciples  always  tremble  for 
their  Master  and  for  themselves.  The  conspiracies,  hitherto  abor¬ 
tive,  might  at  length  succeed  ;  and  what  security  had  they  that  they 
might  not  also  become  the  victims?  Such  was  the  subject  of  their 
apprehensions,  which  Jesus  Christ  made  no  attempt  to  dispel.  He 
was  rather  inclined  to  change  apprehension  into  certainty,  at  least 
as  far  as  regarded  himself,  personally,  had  they  been  capable  of  un¬ 
derstanding  him.  For,  (b)  “  taking  unto  him  the  twelve,  he  began 
to  tell  them  the  things  that  should  befall  him  :  Behold,  he  said  to 
them,  we  go  up  to  Jerusalem,  and  all  things  shall  be  accomplished 
which  were  written  by  the  prophets  concerning  the  Son  of  man.  He 

(a)  St.  Mark,  x.  32. 

( b )  St.  Matthew,  xx.  It  ;  St.  Mark,  x.  32-34;  St.  Luke,  xviii.  31. 


(1)  They  did  not  as  yet  know  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel,  which  is  a  spirit  of  meekness, 
and  they  speak  in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  the  old  law,  which  was  a  spirit  of  rigor. 
However,  we  behold  instances  of  severity  under  the  Gospel,  and  of  meekness  under  the 
old  law.  Peter,  by  virtue  of  his  word,  strikes  Ananias  and  Sapphira  dead  at  his  feet. 
Eliseus,  far  from  allowing  harm  to  be  inflicted  upon  the  Syrians  who  came  to  take  him, 
orders  them  to  be  sent  back  safe  and  sound,  after  providing  them  with  food.  This  evin¬ 
ces  that  meekness  is  only  the  predominant  quality  of  the  new  law,  as  rigor  was  that  of 
the.  old  law,  and  that  here  the  general  rale  is  not  without  exception. 

(2)  We  have  in  the  text  :  to  destroy  souls.  This  expression,  in  Scripture,  is  under¬ 
stood  to  refer  to  bodily  as  well  as  spiritual  life.  Jesus  Christ,  who  never  did  aught  but 
good  to  souls  or  bodies,  spoke  it  here  in  both  these  significations. 


* 

d 

m 

I)  (v 
PL 


S\ 


m 


fmV 


imwi'7 


these  things 
the  things  that  were  said.” 


shall  be  betrayed  to  the  chief  priests,  to  the  scribes,  and  ancients. 
They  shall  condemn  him  to  death,  and  deliver  him  to  the  Gentiles. 
They  shall  mock  him  (3),  and  spit  on  him,  and  scourge  him,  and  kill 
him,  and  the  third  day  he  shall  rise  again.” 

We  have,  in  this  prophecy,  the  detailed  history  of  the  passion  of 
the  Saviour,  from  the  betrayal  of  Judas  until  the  resurrection.  The 
terms  thereof  are  clear  and  precise,  and  it  seems  that  it  is  impossible 
to  misunderstand  them.  Yet  the  disciples,  to  whom  Jesus  Christ  re¬ 
peated,  for  the  third  time,  this  prediction,  (a)  “  understood  none  of 
this  word  was  hid  from  them,  and  they  understood  not 
So  true  it  is  that  nothing  is  more  unin¬ 
telligible  than  what  we  do  not  wish  to  understand,  nor  more  incredi¬ 
ble  than  that  which  we  are  not  disposed  to  believe.  But,  although 
they  were  not  then  understood,  these  prophecies  were  not  without 
their  use.  They  were  serviceable  in  diminishing  at  least  the  sur¬ 
prise  and  dejection  of  the  disciples  when  the  event  occurred,  and 
who  knows  but  it  was  this  which  sustained,  or  revived,  the  courage 
of  the  well-beloved  disciple  ?  Moreover,  the  prediction  of  his  death, 
with  so  many  circumstances  which  the  human  mind  could  not  fore¬ 
see,  was  a  certain  proof  that,  on  the  Saviour’s  part,  his  death  was 
perfectly  free  and  voluntary,  and  it  concerned  his  glory  to  place  the 
matter  beyond  all  doubt. 

What  proves  that  the  disciples  had  no  conception  of  the  meaning 
of  their  Master’s  discourse,  is  the  request  which  two  of  the  most  cher¬ 
ished  had  the  boldness  to  make.  Even  at  this  very  juncture,  when 
he  had  just  closed  the  detail  of  his  future  humiliations,  in  a  manner 
so  affecting,  and  so  capable  of  curing  them  of  all  ambition,  (/>)  “  the 
sons  of  Zebedee,  James  and  John,  come  to  him,  saying  :  Master,  we 
desire  that  whatsoever  we  shall  ask  thou  wouldst  do  it  for  us.  He 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xviii.  34. 


(&)  St.  Mark,  x.  35-37  ;  St.  Matthew,  xx.  20-21. 


(3)  They.  The  Gentiles  who  committed  the  greater  part  of  these  cruelties,  although 
in  the  text  this  may  equally  refer  to  the  Jews,  and  with  reason  ;  for  we  may  say  that 
they  did  all  the  evil  which  they  caused  to  be  done.  It  was  they  who  scourged  the  Sa¬ 
viour,  and  who  crucified  him  by  the  hands  of  the  Gentiles.  They  delivered  him  over  to 
the  Gentiles  solely  with  this  intention.  The  crime  of  the  executioner  is  simple  ;  he  is 
only  guilty  of  the  execution.  That  of  the  author  is  double  ;  he  is  guilty  of  the  crime 
which  he  commits  and  of  that  which  he  causes  to  be  committed. 


CHAP.  XLIX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


said  to  them.  :  What  would  you  that  I  should  do  for  you  ?  Grant  to 
us,  they  said,  that  we  may  sit,  one  on  thy  right  hand,  and  the  other 
on  thy  left  (4),  in  thy  glory.”  Another  evangelist  relates  the  trans¬ 
action  in  a  different  way.  “  Then,”  says  he,  that  is  to  say,  immedi¬ 
ately  after  the  prophecy  of  the  passion,  “  came  to  him  the  mother  of 
the  sons  of  Zebedee,  with  her  sons,  adoring,  and  asking  something  of 
him  :  who  said  to  her  :  What  wilt  thou  ?  She  said  to  him  :  Say  that 
these,  my  two  sons,  may  sit,  the  one  on  thy  right  hand,  and  the  oth¬ 
er  on  thy  left,  in  thy  kingdom.” 

The  request  is  precisely  the  same  ;  and  the  two  recitals,  although 
different,  do  not  contradict  each  other  :  the  mother  may  have  repeat¬ 
ed  what  her  children  had  said,  or  the  children  what  the  mother  had 
said  ;  or  else,  what  appears  most  likely,  the  mother  alone  may  have 
spoken,  but  in  her  children’s  name,  for  whom,  as  it  were,  she  plead¬ 
ed  ;  and  one  evangelist  may  have  attributed  to  them  a  request  which 
had  them  alone  for  its  object,  and  which  their  mother  had  only  made 
at  their  suggestion,  or  at  least  with  their  connivance.  In  the  same 
way  the  centurion  is  made  to  utter  the  prayer  which  his  deputies 
made  in  his  name,  praying  for  the  cure  of  his  servant.  However  it 
was,  inasmuch  as  the  request  regarded  the  two  brothers,  it  was  to 
them  that  Jesus  addressed  the  reply  :  (a)  “  You  know  not,  he  said  to 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xx.  22-28;  St.  Mark,  x.  38-41. 


(4)  Jesus  Christ  had  promised,  them  all  that  they  should  be  seated  upon  thrones  to 
judge  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel.  What  an  elevation  for  poor  fishermen,  who  could  not 
have  ventured  to  hope  that  they  should  be  the  first  even  in  their  own  town  !  Never¬ 
theless  these  poor  fishermen  were  not  yet  content.  Being  promised  the  enjoyment  of 
thrones,  each  of  them  wished  to  have  the  first,  and  their  pride  was  humbled  by  the  very 
thought  of  seeing  one  take  precedency  of  the  other.  Ambition  has  no  limits  ;  we  must 
say  this  in  reference  to  all  men  without  exception.  It  always  ascends,  according  to  the 
expression  of  the  Psalmist.  When  it  seems  to  confine  its  pretensions  to  a  middle  rank, 
the  reason  is  because  this  rank  happens  to  be  the  only  one  within  reach.  When  ambi¬ 
tion  finds  itself  placed  in  this  rank,  this  will  merely  be  a  step  to  rise  to  another.  No 
sooner  is  it  raised  to  this,  than  it  turns  its  thoughts  to  the  rank  above.  In  mediocrity, 
we  sigh  after  the  pageantry  and  magnificence  of  the  rich  ;  the  rich  regard  with  an  eye 
of  envy  the  titles  and  the  prerogatives  of  grandeur  ;  the  great  man  would  fain  become  a 
prince  ;  the  prince  aspires  after  sovereignty,  and  the  sovereign  to  universal  monarchy. 
The  objects  are  different  according  to  the  different  positions  :  ambition  is  ever  the  same, 
as  strong  in  a  villager  who  wishes  to  become  the  chief  man  in  his  village,  as  in  Cæsar 
desiring  to  rule  the  Roman  Empire. 


380 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  II. 

them,  wliat  you  ask.  Can  you  drink  of  the  chalice  (5)  that  I  shall 
drink  (6),  or  be  baptized  wherewith  I  am  baptized?  We  can  (7), 
they  say  to  him.  My  chalice,  indeed,  lie  saith  to  them,  you  shall 
drink  (8),  and  with  the  baptism  wherewith  I  am  baptized  you  shall 
be  baptized.  But  to  sit  on  my  right  hand  or  on  my  left  is  not  mine 
to  give,  but  to  them  for  whom  it  is  prepared  by  my  Father  (9).” 

But  pride  ever  meets  pride  in  its  way.  If,  amongst  the  apos 
ties,  some  sought  to  be  the  first,  others  did  not  wish  to  be  thus  dis¬ 
tanced.  There  was  not  one  of  them  who  did  not  deem  himself  of- 


(5)  The  chalice  and  baptism  signify  the  passion  of  the  Saviour  :  he  elsewhere  makes 
use  of  these  two  terms  in  order  to  express  the  same  thing.  It  appears  by  divers 
texts  in  Scripture,  that  the  word  chalice  was  much  used  for  the  purpose  of  signifying 
sufferings.  It  is  a  metaphor  drawn  from  a  bitter  potion  which  an  individual  might  be 
obliged  to  quaff'.  The  word  baptism,  in  the  figurative  sense,  is  more  circumscribed  ;  it 
is  seldom  appropriated  to  any  thing  but  the  passion,  in  which  Jesus  Christ  was,  as  it 
were,  bathed  in  the  flood  of  his  own  blood.  Some  understand  by  the  chalice  the  death 
of  Jesus  Christ,  and  by  the  baptism  the  assemblage  of  torments  which  he  endured  in 
every  part  of  his  sacred  body. 

(6)  If  we  suffer  with  Jesus  Christ,  says  Saint  Paul,  we  shall  be  glorified  with  him.  It 
is  in  this  sense  above  all  others  that  they  did  not  know  what  they  asked.  So  great  a 
glory  could  not  be  conferred  through  favor;  it  could  only  be  the  reward  of  merit.  The- 
aspirant  should  either  purchase  it  at  the  price  of  his  blood,  or  otherwise  renounce  it. 

(7)  That  is  to  say,  we  are  disposed  to  do  so  ;  for  it  is  not  certain  that  they  as  yet  had 
the  courage.  It  is  always  praiseworthy  and  salutary  to  make  good  resolutions,  but  still 
we  can  place  no  confidence  except  in  tried  virtue.  What  doth  he  know  that  hath  not 
been  tried? — Eccles.  xxxiv.  9. 

(8)  We  read  of  the  martyrdom  of  Saint  James  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  Saint 
John  died  a  natm-al  death.  But  if  martyrdom  did  not  await  him,  he  awaited  martyr¬ 
dom.  We  know  that  Domitian  caused  him  to  be  plunged  into  a  cauldron  of  boiling  oil. 
He  came  forth  from  it  more  fresh  and  more  vigorous  than'  ever  ;  but  transported  subse¬ 
quently  to  the  island  of  Patmos,  he  there  suffered  the  rigors  of  a  distressing  , exile.  The 
Church  recognizes  several  other  martyrs  who  have  not  suffered  any  greater  pains  than 
he  did. 

(9)  Besides  that  these  places  shall  only  be  adjudged  to  merit,  a  special  choice  on  the 
part  of  God  is  necessary,  in  order  to  be  called  to  this  merit  to  which  they  shall  be  ad¬ 
judged.  From  all  eternity  this  choice  is  made  and  recorded  in  the  councils  of  the  Most 
High.  The  Son  and  the  Holy  Ghost  have  no  less  a  part  in  it  than  the  Father.  How¬ 
ever,  Jesus  Christ  attributes  it  more  particularly  to  the  Father,  who,  in  the  Trinity,  is 
the  first  principle,  as  if  to  give  to  understand  that,  if  it  were  possible  that  any  inequality 
could  exist  between  the  divine  persons,  it  is  that  which  should  be  highest  and  most  ab¬ 
solute  in  the  Divinity  that  should  dispose  of  these  places.  We  may  judge,  therefore, 
how  silly  it  was  to  hope  that  these  could  be  obtained  through  favor,  or  through  the  so¬ 
licitations  of  a  woman. 


' 


■ 


,  1  • 


■ , 


}•  ÿ-;' 


. 


- 

.  V 


+p'’ 


fended  by  this  ambitious  pretension,  and  “hearing  it,  the  ten  were 
moved  with  indignation  against  the  two  brothers,  James  and  John.” 
This  furnished  an  occasion  for  the  Saviour  to  give  to  them  all  the  ad¬ 
mirable  lesson  which  we  are  about  to  see.  “  He  called  them  to  him, 
and  saith  to  them  :  You  know  that  the  princes  of  the  Gentiles  lord 
it  over  them  ;  and  they  that  are  the  greater  exercise  power  over 
them.  It  shall  not  be  so  among  you  :  but  whosoever  will  be  the 
greater  among  you,  let  him  be  your  minister,  and  he  that  will  be 
first  among  you,  shall  be  your  servant  ;  even  as  the  Son  of  man  is 
not  come  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister,  and  to  give  his  life 
a  redemption  for  many.” 

Jesus  had  already  stated  more  than  once  that  we  must  become 
little  in  order  to  become  great,  and  that  by  humility  alone  can  we 
attain  lasting  elevation.  This  lesson,  which  is  found  repeated  in  the 
words  which  he  has  just  pronounced,  is  not  the  only  lesson  here  in¬ 
culcated.  He  also  presents  therein  the  sole  motive  which  can  make 
authority  the  object  of  legitimate  desire,  viz.,  serving  our  fellow-men  ; 
and  the  noblest  use  which  can  be  made  of  authority,  is  to  ex¬ 
haust  our  energies,  and,  if  it  be  necessary,  to  sacrifice  ourselves  ut¬ 
terly  and  entirely  for  those  whom  we  have  a  right  to  command. 
Such  is  the  authority  which  a  tender  mother  exercises  over  her  lit¬ 
tle  child,  which  may  be  regarded  at  the  same  time  as  the  highest 
of  all  earthly  authorities,  and  the  most  obedient  of  all  servitudes. 
Nothing,  perhaps,  could  furnish  a  better  illustration  than  this  com¬ 
parison,  had  not  the  Saviour  made  us  sensible  of  it  by  another 
much  more  affecting  and  more  persuasive  example,  viz.,  his  own. 
From  his  earliest  infancy,  during  which  the  state  of  weakness 
which  he  had  chosen  to  assume  required  him  to  accept  the  ser¬ 
vices  of  his  mother,  we  always  behold  him  obeying,  and  never  com¬ 
manding,  always  serving,  and  never  served.  His  time,  his  cares,  his 
strength,  his  repose,  his  glory,  his  blood,  and  his  life — -all,  without 
exception,  were  lavished  for  the  benefit  of  mankind.  During  the 
three  years  which  he  passed  with  his  disciples,  there  can  be  no  doubt 
but  that  he  refused  their  services,  and  tendered  them  his  own.  Al¬ 
though  the  evangelists  furnish  us  with  no  details  on  this  subject,  they 
yet  say  enough  to  give  us  to  understand  that  such  was  the  case.  If  the 
washing  of  the  feet  is  one  of  the  most  signal  acts,  it  is  far  from  being 


CHAP.  XLIX.J 


OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


381 


A' 


Û 


A 


i\ 


rAli 


a  S 


w 


fsT"^ 

V  " 


the  only  one  ;  and  are  not  all  the  details  comprised  in  that  single  as¬ 
sertion,  which  the  Saviour  was  only  enabled  to  advance,  because  his 
conduct  was  the  sensible  and  perpetual  proof  thereof?  I  am  “not 
come  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister.”  What  the  holy  Pope 
Saint  Clement  relates  of  his  master,  the  apostle  Saint  Peter,  may  find 
a  suitable  place  here.  He  says  that,  when  the  holy  apostle  beheld 
any  one  asleep,  the  tears  immediately  started  to  his  eyes.  When 
they  inquired  from  him  the  reason,  he  replied,  that  this  object  recall¬ 
ed  to  him  the  remembrance  of  his  dear  Master,  who,  whilst  they  all 
were  asleep,  watched  for  all  ;  and  if  it  so  happened  that  any  of  them 
uncovered  himself  whilst  sleeping,  or  tossed  his  poor  bed,  he  careful¬ 
ly  covered  him  again,  and  replaced  what  had  been  disturbed.  This 
one  instance  will  suffice  to  show  his  usual  manner  of  treating  his  dis¬ 
ciples,  and  will  make  us  thoroughly  acquainted  with  that  maternal 
authority,  which  it  is  lawful  to  desire,  as  it  is  also  lawful,  for  a  wo¬ 
man  to  desire  to  have  children,  in  order  that  she  may  have  persons 
to  love  as  much,  and  more  than  herself,  and  upon  whom  she  may 
lavish  her  affections,  her  cares,  her  attentions,  her  health,  and  some¬ 
times  her  life.  It  is  thus,  I  say,  that  it  is  lawful  to  desire  authority, 
because  such  a  desire  springs  from  the  pure  motive  of  charity.  This 
is,  to  the  letter,  desiring,  not  the  pageantry,  but  the  (a)  “  good  work 
of  the  episcopacy” — the  only  thing  which  charity  allows  us  to  desire 
therein,  because  “  charity  is  not  ambitious  ;”  whereas  the  desires  of 
ambition  point  exclusively  towards  the  titles  and  prerogatives  of  au¬ 
thority,  because  ambition  is  any  thing  but  charitable. 

(a)  St.  Paul,  I.  Tim.  iii.  1. 


\V  1/a 


rar  ~  vni]  — *[ — p  w 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST 


CHAP.  L. 


(1)  Further  on  we  shall  find  them  murmuring,  although  with  as  little  success,  because 
the  Saviour  takes  up  his  abode  with  a  publican.  There  are  two  classes  of  people  with 
whose  notions  we  do  not  on  a  single  occasion  find  Jesus  Christ  coinciding,  viz.,  those  who 
censure  and  those  who  rebuke  others.  The  reason  is,  that  nothing  is  less  conformable  to 
his  benignity  than  the  malignity  of  the  first,  nor  to  his  meekness  than  the  harshness  of 
the  second. 

(2)  If,  as  they  commanded  him,  he  had  ceased  to  cry  out,  perhaps  the  Saviour  would 
not  have  approached  him,  and  he  might  have  remained  blind.  Those  who  wish  to  ap¬ 
proach  God  will  not  reach  him,  if  they  do  not  begin  by  despising  the  remonstrances  of 
worldlings. 


«T/ 


PASSAGE  THROUGH  JERICHO. - A  BLIND  MAN  RESTORED  TO  SIGHT. - ZACHEUS.- 

ABLE  OF  THE  TEN  POUNDS. - SIGHT  RESTORED  TO  TWO  BLIND  MEN. 


IMS 


CHAPTER  L. 


-PAR- 


Ephrem,  whither  the  Saviour  retired  after  the  resurrection  of  Laz¬ 
arus,  is  placed  by  geographers  northeast  of  Jerusalem,  on  the  fron¬ 
tiers  of  Judea  and  Samaria,  or,  according  to  the  more  ancient  author¬ 
ities,  on  the  confines  of  the  tribes  of  Ephraim  and  of  Benjamin.  In 
proceeding  thence  to  the  capital,  one  could  not  pass  through  Jericho 
without  turning  aside  towards  the  east.  The  nature  of  the  roads,  or 
the  necessity  of  finding  accommodation,  might  indeed  render  this  im¬ 
perative  ;  but,  supposing  that  none  of  these  reasons  existed,  the  great 
things  which  Jesus  had  to  do  and  to  say  in  Jericho  were  a  sufficient 
reason  for  him  to  prolong  his  journey  in  order  to  go  thither.  He 
therefore  took  his  way  through  that  city,  and  the  moment  he  set 
foot  upon  its  territory,  he  began  to  display  his  Almighty  goodness. 
(a)  “  It  came  to  pass,  when  he  drew  nigh  Jericho,  that  a  certain  blind 
man  sat  by  the  wayside,  begging.  And  when  he  heard  the  multi¬ 
tude  passing  by,  he  asked  what  this  meant.  They  told  him  that  Je¬ 
sus  of  Nazareth  was  passing  by;  and  he  cried  out,  saying:  Jesus, 
Son  of  David,  have  mercy  on  me.  They  that  went  before  rebuked 
him  (1),  that  he  should  hold  his  peace  ;  but  he  cried  out  much  more  : 
Son  of  David,  have  mercy  on  me.  Jesus  standing,  commanded  him 
to  be  brought  unto  him  (2)-;  and  when  he  was  come  near,  he  asked 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xviii.  35-43. 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


PART  II. 


him  :  What  wilt  thou  that  I  do  to  thee  (3)  ?  Lord,  he  said,  that  I 
may  see.  Receive  thy  sight,  Jesus  said  to  him  ;  thy  faith  hath  made 
thee  whole.  And  immediately  he  saw  and  followed  him,  glorifying 
God  ;  and  all  the  people,  when  they  saw  it,  gave  praise  to  God.” 

“  And  entering  in,  Jesus  walked  through  Jericho”  with  the  accu¬ 
mulating  throng  which  the  cure  of  the  blind  man  had  gathered 
around  him.  “  And  behold,  there  was  a  man  named  Zacheus,  who 
was  the  chief  of  the  publicans,  and  he  was  rich.  He  sought  to  see 
Jesus,  who  he  was,  and  he  could  not  for  the  crowd,  because  he  was 
low  of  stature.  And  running  before,  he  climbed  up  into  a  sycamore 
tree,  that  he  might  see  him  (4)  ;  for  Jesus  was  to  pass  that  way. 
When  Jesus  was  come  to  the  place,  looking  up,  he  saw  him,  and  said 
to  him  :  Zacheus,  make  haste  and  come  down,  for  this  day  I  must 
abide  in  thy  house.  Zacheus  made  haste  and  came  down,  and  re¬ 
ceived  him  with  joy.  And  when  all  saw  it,  they  murmured,  crying 
that  he  was  gone  to  be  a  guest  with  a  man  that  was  a  sinner.”  Lit¬ 
tle  they  knew  that,  by  the  invisible  operation  of  grace,  he  whom 
they  thought  a  sinner  was  already  a  saint.  “  But  Zacheus  stand¬ 
ing,  said  to  the  Lord  :  Behold,  Lord,  the  half  of  my  goods  I  give  to 
the  poor  (5)  ;  and  if  I  have  wronged  any  man  of  any  thing,  I  restore 


(3)  A  mother  knows  perfectly  well  the  wants  of  her  son  ;  she  wishes,  notwithstanding, 
that  he  should  declare  them  to  her.  She  does  so  not  only  in  order  that  he  may  recognize 
her  authority,  but  moreover  that  she  may  have  the  pleasure  of  hearing  him  lisp  his  de¬ 
sires,  of  seeing  him  testify  his  confidence  ;  she  does  so  to  excite  and  foster  his  gratitude 
by  the  facility  she  evinces  to  comply  with  his  wishes.  She  loves  him  and  wishes  to  be 
loved  by  him  :  behold  the  motives,  which  are  also  those  of  God,  when  he  requires  that 
we  should  express  to  him  our  wants,  which  he  knows  better  than  we  do  ourselves. 

(4)  The  case  of  Zacheus  is  nearly  like  that  of  the  blind  man.  When  the  crowd  hin¬ 
dered  the  first  from  seeing  the  Saviour,  he  did  not  cease  to  desire  it,  as  the  blind  man 
did  not  cease  to  cry  out,  although  it  appeared  he  was  not  heard  at  the  outset.  The 
latter  heeded  not  the  reproofs  addressed  to  him  by  those  who  sought  to  silence  him  ; 
and  Zacheus  did  not  hesitate  to  ascend  the  sycamore— a  proceeding  which  must  have 
appeared  highly  strange  in  a  man  of  his  station,  and  which  might  easily  have  excited  the 
ridicule  of  the  populace.  Perseverance  in  desire,  despite  of  obstacles,  and  never  troub¬ 
ling  themselves  as  to  what  will  people  say?  caused  the  salvation  of  both  one  and  the 
other. 

(5)  That  is  to  say,  I  shall  give  ;  according  to  the  common  interpretation,  which  we 
follow.  But  there  are  many  who  understand  it  in  the  present  sense.  According  to 
them,  Zacheus,  in  order  to  reply  to  the  murmuring  of  the  Jews,  makes  known,  by  stat¬ 
ing  what  he  was  accustomed  to  do,  that  he  is  not  so  great  a  sinner  as  they  allege.  In 


s 


K 


I 


S. 


him  (6)  four-fold  (v).  desus  said  V  him  ;  This  day  is  salvation  come 
to  this  house  (8),  because  he  also  is  a  son  of  Abraham  (9);  for  the 
Son  of  man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save  that  which  w  as  lost.” 

An  event  so  marvellous  seemed  to  presage  great  things,  and  the 
minds  of  all,  and  especially  of  the  disciples,  were  wonderfully  excited 
in  expectation  of  what  might  follow.  Jesus  still  labored  to  disabuse 
them  of  the  false  and  flattering  ideas  which  they  found  it  so  difficult 


point  of  fact,  a  man  who  is  in  the  habit  of  giving  to  the  poor  the  half  of  his  wealth,  and 
of  making  a  four-fold  reparation  for  the  wrongs  he  may  commit  through  mistake  (for  a 
man  so  just  and  so  charitable  cannot  otherwise  do  wrong)  ;  this  man,  I  say,  has  decided¬ 
ly  a  right  to  be  reckoned  a  good  man  ;  therefore  Jesus  Christ  could  not  in  this  supposi¬ 
tion  add  that  the  day  was  to  that  house  a  day  of  salvation.  It  is  this  reflection  which 
has  induced  the  majority  of  interpreters  to  regard  his  words  as  the  declaration  of 
what  he  proposed  to  do  in  future,  and  not  of  what  he  had  hitherto  done.  However,  it 
was  not  absolutely  impossible  that,  with  so  much  probity  and  charity,  Zacheus  may  not 
have  been  in  a  state  of  grace.  Firstly,  it  is  evident  that  he  would  not  have  been  in  that 
state  if  he  were  a  Gentile,  as  some  assert,  although  it  is  much  more  likely  that  he  was  a 
Jew  ;  but,  moreover,  might  he  not,  he  who  was  rich  and  a  publican,  allow  himself  some 
forbidden  pleasure  ?  But  there  is  something  further.  Faith  in  Jesus  Christ  was  thence¬ 
forth  necessary,  at  least  to  those  who  had  had  the  advantage  of  hearing  his  discourses 
and  seeing  his  miracles.  By  conferring  it  upon  Zacheus,  Jesus  Christ  conferred,  there- 
o’$e,  upon  him,  what  to  him  had  become  a  necessity  in  order  to  secure  salvation,  and  in 
this  sense  he  might  still  say  that  that  day  was  to  his  house  a  day  of  salvation.  Thus 
Saint  Peter  might  say  it  to  the  centurion  Cornelius,  although  the  latter  was  addicted  to 
all  sorts  of  good  works  before  the  holy  apostle  came  to  visit  him.  Such  are  the 
principal  reasons  upon  which  these  two  expositions  are  grounded.  Those  who  may  wish 
to  see  these  reasons  more  developed,  with  others  which  we  do  not  mention,  will  find 
them  in  V Eclaircissement  sur  le  discours  de  Zachée  à  Jésus-  Christ,  par  M.  l’abbé  de 
Saint  Réal. 

(6)  Restitution,  of  all  proofs  of  conversion  the  most  necessary,  the  least  equivocal,  and 
would  to  God  that  we  could  not  add,  the  most  rare  ! 

(V)  If  Zacheus  reckoned  correctly,  as  we  must  presume  was  the  case  with  a  man  of 
his  avocations,  it  follows  from  his  discourse  that  at  least  seven-eighths  of  his  wealth  le¬ 
gitimately  belonged  to  him.  We  see  by  that,  that  this  publican  could  not  be  termed  a 
public  defrauder. 

(8)  Like  master  like  house  is  the  usual  course  of  things.  There  can  be  no  doubt  but 
that  Zacheus,  who  apparently  had  scandalized  his  house,  was  subsequently  instrumental 
in  sanctifying  it.  The  obligation  of  laboring  to  accomplish  this  was  not  more  stringent 
upon  him  than  that  of  restoring  unjustly  acquired  wealth. 

(9)  A  son  of  Abraham,  although  a  publican,  supposing  that  he  was  a  Jew.  This  is 
in  answer  to  the  prejudice  against  the  publicans,  whom  the  Jews  seemed  no  longer  to 
recognize  as  brethren.  A  son  of  Abraham  according  to  the  spirit,  supposing  that  he 
were  a  Gentile,  which  should  have  convinced  them  that  a  man  is  much  more  the  son  of 
Abraham  by  faith  than  by  blood. 

25 


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THE 

to  get  over.  Nothing  is  clearer,  after  the  event,  than  the  mysteri¬ 
ous  prophecy  which  he  is  about  to  make  to  them  ;  and  it  was  not  at 
all  impossible,  even  before  its  fulfilment,  to  see  its  tendency,  and 
that  the  reign  of  Christ  was  neither  so  near  as  they  imagined,  nor 
such  as  they  figured  it  to  themselves.  But  those  who  did  not  then 
comprehend  it,  saw,  in  the  course  of  a  little  time,  that  nothing  had 
happened  which  the  Saviour  had  not  foretold  ;  and  the  information, 
which  at  first  failed  to  enlighten  them,  was  subsequently  efficacious 
in  strengthening  their  faith  ;  for  no  word  of  J esus  Christ  was  useless, 
and  that  divine  seed  has  never  failed  to  produce  its  fruit  sooner  or 
later.  “As  [therefore]  they  were  hearing  these  things,  he  added 
and  spoke  a  parable,  because  he  was  nigh  to  Jerusalem,  and  because 
they  thought  that  the  kingdom  of  God  should  immediately  be  mani¬ 
fested  :  he  said,  therefore  :  A  certain  nobleman  went  into  a  far  coun¬ 
try,  to  receive  for  himself  a  kingdom,  and  to  return.  And  calling 
his  ten  servants,  he  gave  them  ten  pounds  (10),  and  said  to  them  : 
Trade  till  I  come.  But  his  citizens  hated  him,  and  they  sent  an  em¬ 
bassage  after  him,  saying:  We  will  not  have  this  man  to  reign  over 
us  (11).  And  it  came  to  pass  that  he  returned,  having  received  the 

(10)  The  Latin  version  has  it  decern  minas,  but  as  there  is  no  such  coin  known  in  our 
times,  we  find  it  translated  ten  pounds  in  the  Douay  version. 

(11)  It  appears,  from  the  manner  in  which  this  declaration  is  framed,  that  it  was  not 
to  him  that  the  deputation  was  sent  ;  for  if  it  had  been  sent  to  him,  the  deputies  would 
have  been  instructed  to  say  :  We  will  not  have  you  for  our  king,  and  not,  We  will  not 
have  this  man  to  reign  over  us.  To  whom,  therefore,  was  the  embassy  addressed  ?  To 
the  prince  from  whose  hands  this  man  was  to  receive  the  crown  ;  for  the  country  over 
which  he  was  to  rule  as  king  was  that  from  which  he  departed.  In  a  word,  he  went 
not  to  seek  a  distant  conquest,  but  regal  sway  over  his  own  country.  By  means  of  this 
explanation  we  can  understand  the  historical  cast  of  the  parable  ;  and  without  it  we  are 
utterly  at  a  loss  to  know  what  it  means.  Now  this  figure,  under  cover  of  which  Jesus 
Christ  proposes  the  parable,  was  quite  familiar  to  the  Jews.  Their  princes  usually  went 
to  Rome  to  petition  for  the  investiture  of  the  States  over  which  they  were  to  exercise 
kingly  authority.  Herod  the  Great  had  proceeded  thither;  after  him  Archelaus  and 
other  princes  of  his  race  went  there  on  the  same  account.  Let  us  at  present  suppose 
that  one  of  them,  having  proceeded  there  with  this  design,  a  part  of  the  nation  should 
send  a  deputation  to  the  emperor,  for  the  purpose  of  declaring  that  they  do  not  wish  him 
to  rule  over  them  ;  that,  notwithstanding  this  declaration,  the  candidate  prevails  ;  that  he 
returns,  and  that  he  revenges  himself  upon  those  who  had  opposed  his  pretensions  ;  then 
we  shall  no  longer  find  any  difficulty  in  understanding  the  literal  sense  of  the  parable. 
We  should  further  remark,  that  he  who  returns  with  the  quality  of  king  is  not  termed 
king  at  his  departure,  but  only  a  nobleman,  a  man  of  quality,  homo  nobilis. 


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(12)  It  is  true  that,  in  order  to  make  this  money  productive,  it  was  necessaiy  to  ex¬ 
pose  it  to  some  risk.  However,  this  risk  was  not  a  valid  reason  for  leaving  it  idle. 
Wherefore,  speaking  in  a  general  way,  we  are  bound  to  make  available  the  talent  which 
God  confides  to  us  for  the  public  good,  although  some  danger  may  be  encountered  in  so 
doing.  If  a  contrary  course  were  adopted,  there  would  be  no  longer  any  preachers,  nor 
confessors,  nor  pastors  ;  except,  however,  the  cases  wherein  an  individual  might  discern 
a  proximate  occasion  of  losing  his  soul.  Then  he  must  prefer  his  own  salvation  to  that 
of  the  entire  world,  and  this  would  be  the  occasion  for  applying  that  maxim  of  the  Sa¬ 
viour  :  What  doth  it  avail  a  man  to  gain — even  for  God — the  whole  world,  if  he  lose  his 
own  soul? 

(13)  We  do  not  find  that  the  owner  required  any  thing  frôîh  those  to  whom  he  had 
confided  nothing.  We  have  seen  with  what  more  than  royal  magnificence  he  rewarded 
the  toil  and  industry  of  those  who  profited  by  what  was  intrusted  to  them.  He  was  not, 
therefore,  of  such  a  character  as  the  bad  servant  dared  to  represent  him,  and  the  latter 
calumniates  him  for  the  purpose  of  his  own  justification.  The  same  course  of  proceed¬ 
ing  is  observable  in  bad  Christians,  who  refuse  to  render  to  God  what  they  owe  to  him, 
because  God,  say  they,  exacts  more  than  can  be  paid  him.  If  they  speak  truth,  God 
is  a  tyrant  ;  but  if  they  speak  falsehood,  they  are  impious  men,  who  add  blasphemy  to 
prevarication.  But  it  does  not  occur  to  them,  and  they  should  here  remark  it,  that  this 
criminal  apology  only  serves  to  render  them  inexcusable.  For  if  God  be,  according  to 
them,  so  severe  that  he  exacts  from  us  more  than  we  can  do,  why  have  they  not  done  at 
least  what  they  could  ?  If  he  shall  punish  (horrible  idea  !)  those  who  do  not  perform 
what  is  impossible,  how  will  he  treat  those  who  shall  have  omitted  what  is  possible  ? 
This  regards  those  who  do  nothing  because  of  the  alleged  impossibility  of  doing  all. 
The  number  is  but  too  great,  and  we  very  often  hear  this  error  retailed,  which  is, 
without  contradiction,  the  most  pernicious  of  all  others,  and  the  most  destructive  of  good 
morals.  A  relaxation  in  morals  produces  but  partial  disorder  ;  but  if  morality  be  push- 
id  to  extremes,  so  as  to  be  thought  impracticable,  it  engenders  all  sorts  of  disorders. 


CHAP.  L.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  387 

kingdom,  and  lie  commanded  liis  servants  to  be  called,  to  whom  he 
had  given  the  money,  that  he  might  know  how  much  every  man 
had  gained  by  trading.  And  the  first  came,  saying:  Lord,  thy 
pound  hath  gained  ten  pounds.  He  said  to  him:  Well  done,  thou 
good  servant  ;  because  thou  hast  been  faithful  in  a  little,  thou  shalt 
have  power  over  ten  cities.  And  the  second  came,  saying:  Lord, 
thy  pound  hath  gained  five  pounds.  Be  thou  also,  he  said  to  him, 
over  five  cities.  Another  came,  saying:  Lord,  behold,  here  is  thy 
pound,  which  I  have  kept  laid  up  in  a  napkin  (12),  for  I  feared  thee, 
because  thou  art  an  austere  man:  thou  takest  up  what  thou  didst 
not  lay  down  (13),  and  thou'  reapest  that  which  thou  didst  not  sow. 
Thou  wicked  servant,  he  saith  to  him,  out  of  thy  own  mouth  I  judge 
thee.  Thou  knewest  that  I  was  an  austere  man,  taking  up  what  I 
laid  not  down,  and  reaping  that  which  I  did  not  sow.  Why,  then, 


\A!i  b///d 


9, 

V# 


\ 


didst  thou  not  give  my  money  into  the  bank  (14),  that  at  my  com¬ 
ing  I  might  have  exacted  it  with  usury  ?  And  he  said  to  them  that 
stood  by  :  Take  the  pound  away  from  him,  and  give  it  to  him  that 
hath  ten  pounds.  They  said  to  him  :  Lord,  he  hath  ten  pounds  (15). 
But  I  say  to  you,  that  to  every  one  that  hath  shall  be  given,  and  he 
shall  abound  ;  and  from  him  that  hath  not,  even  that  which  he  hath 
shall  be  taken  from  him.  xYs  for  those  my  enemies,  who  would  not 
have  me  reign  over  them,  bring  them  hither,  and  kill  them  before 


me. 


Jesus  was  shortly  to  depart  from  this  world,  in  order  to  receive 
from  the  hands  of  his  Father  the  sovereign  dominion  which  he  is 
eternally  to  exercise  over  the  whole  earth.  The  Jews,  who  were  to 
have  been  his  first  subjects,  but  who,  on  the  contrary,  were  to  be¬ 
come  his  murderers,  should,  after  his  departure,  fill  up  the  meas¬ 
ure  of  their  crimes  by  persisting  in  their  refusal  to  have  him  reign 
over  them.  His  apostles,  and  the  first  faithful  whom  they  put  to 
death,  should  be,  as  it  were,  the  deputies  whom  they  sent  to  heav¬ 
en  to  declare  that  their  resolution  was  taken,  and  that  they  would 
not  receive  him  as  their  king.  On  a  future  day  he  should  return  in 
all  his  glory,  and  with  all  the  power  which  belongs  to  supreme  au¬ 
thority  ;  then  citing  to  his  tribunal  these  hardened  culprits,  he  would 
force  them  at  last  to  recognize  his  rights,  and  to  confess  their  per¬ 
fidy,  and  deliver  them  over  to  the  executioners  of  his  eternal  ven¬ 
geance.  This  day  is  that  of  the  last  judgment,  which  day  was  to  be 
prefigured  by  one  other  day  yet  to  come.  That  other  day  was  when, 
delivered  up  to  the  Romans,  who  were  to  be  the  first  avengers  of  the 


(14)  Is  it  necessary  to  observe  that  Jesus  Christ  does  not  here  praise  the  art  of  making 
money  available  by  laying  it  out  at  interest,  but  merely  the  industry  of  those  who  have 
done  so  ?  In  the  same  way  as  in  another  place,  he  proposes  for  an  example,  not  the 
fraud,  but  the  adroitness  of  the  unfaithful  steward. 

(15)  Since  the  ten  pounds  were  still  his  own,  the  master  left  him,  therefore,  sole 
owner  of  them,  which  makes  it  evident  that,  when  he  had  made  his  servants  work, 
he  did  so  for  their  profit,  and  not  for  his  own.  The  same  thing  occurs  on  the  part  of 
God  with  reference  to  us.  He -leaves  us  all  the  profit  of  the  good  which  we  perform, 
and  only  reserves  the  glory  for  himself.  Woe  to  him  who  would  usurp  this  share  which 
belongs  to  God  !  he  would  thereby  lose  the  whole  profit  ;  and,  instead  of  that  glory,  the 
object  of  his  silly  ambition,  he  would  only  have  the  shame  of  not  having  known  hojv  to 
discern  what  belongs  to  God  and  what  to  himself. 


Vi 


M 


M 


>- 


Ufa, 


disowned  and  outraged  Messiah,  millions  of  these  wretches  were  to 
perish  by  fire  and  sword.  Behold  the  principal  object  of  this  pro¬ 
phetic  parable.  We  have  said  that,  even  previous  to  the  event,  the 
meaning  of  the  parable  was  very  plain,  because  we  here  see  clearly 
the  departure  of  this  king — figurative  of  the  Messiah — for  a  foreign 
land,  his  long  absence  and  his  return  signalized  by  chastisements, 
which  an  obstinate  rebellion  had  so  justly  deserved.  The  account 
rendered  by  his  servants,  although  it  occupies  so  prominent  a  posi¬ 
tion  in  the  parable,  is  not,  therefore,  an  integral  part  thereof.  That 
is  true;  but  this  portion  is  not,  therefore,  the  less  useful.  We  have 
in  it  instruction  for  Christians,  together  with  instruction  for  the  Jews. 
Jesus  Christ,  who  spoke  of  judgment,  wished  to  avail  himself  of  this 
opportunity  to  inform  us  that  his  justice  will  not  confine  itself  to  the 
wreaking  of  vengeance  upon  those  who  have  denied  him,  but  that  it 
will  also  require  from  those  who  have  recognized  him  an  exact  ac¬ 
count  of  the  goods  which  have  been  confided  to  them.  On  the 
same  occasion  he  further  informs  us  how  munificently  he  shall  re¬ 
ward  those  who  have  made  these  goods  available,  and  with  what  se¬ 
verity  he  shall  treat  those  who  have  not  derived  any  profit  there¬ 
from.  What,  then,  doth  he  reserve  for  those  who  shall  have  dissi¬ 
pated  and  destroyed  them  ? 

The  following  account  bears  so  close  a  resemblance  to  another 
which  has  just  been  noticed,  that  they  are  thought,  with  some  rea¬ 
son,  to  be  one  and  the  same  narrative.  Every  thing  is  similar  in 
both,  with  the  exception  of  two  circumstances.  The  first  speaks  only 
of  one  blind  man  cured,  and  the  second  mentions  two.  Jesus  Christ 
meets  the  first  blind  man  before  his  entry  into  J ericho,  and  the  cure 
of  the  two  others  is  placed  at  his  departure  from  that  city.  This 
latter  difference  is  what  chiefly  makes  it  questionable  whether  these 
were  not,  in  point  of  fact,  two  different  miracles,  the  more  so  as  it 
was  not  absolutely  impossible  that  the  same  circumstances  should  be 
found  in  one  as  in  the  other.  However  it  may  be,  as  nothing  should 
be  lost  where  all  is  so  precious,  we  would  rather  expose  ourselves  to 
the  chance  of  a  repetition  than  to  that  of  an  omission,  (a)  “  And 
having  said  these  things,  he  went  before,  going  up  to  Jerusalem. 
When  they  went  out  from  Jericho,  a  great  multitude  followed  him 
[a)  St.  Luke,  xix.  28  ;  St.  Matthew,  xx.  29-34  ;  St.  Mark,  x.  46. 


390 


TIIE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PARI  II. 


Two  blind  men  [one  of  whom  was]  Bartimeus  the  blind  man,  the 
son  of  Timeus,  sitting  by  the  wayside,  heard  that  Jesus  passed  by, 
and  they  cried  out,  saying  :  O  Lord,  thou  Son  of  David,  have  mercy 
on  us.  The  multitude  rebuked  them  that  they  should  hold  their 
peace  ;  but  they  cried  out  the  more  :  O  Lord,  thou  Son  of  David, 
have  mercy  on  us.  Jesus  stood,  and  called  them,  and  said  :  What 
will  ye  that  I  do  to  ye  ?  They  say  to  him  :  Lord,  that  our  eyes  be 
opened.  And  Jesus  having  compassion  on  them,  touched  their  eyes. 
Immediately  they  saw,  and  followed  him.” 


CHAPTER  LI. 

MARY  POURS  PRECIOUS  OINTMENT  OVER  JESUS  CHRI8T. - MURMURING  OF  JUDAS  AND 

THE  APOSTLES. - DESIGN  OF  KILLING  LAZARUS. - TRIUMPHANT  ENTRY  INTO  JERU¬ 
SALEM. - VEXATION  OF  THE  PHARISEES. 

In  the  mean  time  the  day  was  approaching  when  the  Lamb  of 
God  was  to  wash  out  with  his  blood  the  sins  of  the  world,  and  that 
innocent  victim  advanced  towards  the  altar  whereon  he  was  to  be 
immolated  by  the  hands  of  sinners.  Continuing  his  journey  towards 
Jerusalem,  he  ( a )  “  came  to  Bethania,  where  Lazarus  had  been  dead, 
whom  Jesus  raised  to  life.”  This  small  town  which  lay  upon  his 
road  was  only  a  little  more  than  one  league  from  the  capital.  Je¬ 
sus  arrived  there  “  six  days  before  the  pasch  (1),”  not  including  the 

(a)  St.  John,  xii.  1-6  ;  St.  Mark,  xiv.  3  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  7. 


(l)  Saint  Matthew,  before  he  commences  the  following  narrative,  represents  Jesus 
Christ  as  saying  to  his  disciples  :  You  know  that  after  two  days  shall  be  the  pasch. 
Some  have  sought  to  infer  from  thence  that  there  were  two  anointings — one  occurring 
two  days  before  the  passover,  and  the  other  six  days  previous,  as  Saint  John  expressly 
states.  When  Saint  Matthew  sets  about  relating  the  betrayal  by  Judas,  which  was 
planned,  in  point  of  fact,  two  days  before  the  passover,  he  takes  up  previously  the 
narrative  of  the  anointing  which  suggested  the  design  to  the  traitor.  We  can  con¬ 
ceive  that  he  might  have  done  this,  although  this  fact  occurred  four  days  before. 
Lastly,  there  are  certain  circumstances  which  prove  these  two  to  be  one  and  the 
same  occurrence.  These  are  principally,  the  murmurings  of  Judas  and  the  disciples, 


CHAP.  LI.J 


day  of  his  arrival,  nor  that  of  the  passover.  Hence  it  was  on  a 
Friday;  and  as  he  only  arrived  towards  evening,  when  the  re¬ 
pose  of  the  Sabbath  had  already  commenced,  this  was  a  reason  for 
his  tarrying  there.  Those  who  loved  him  joyfully  availed  them¬ 
selves  of  this  occasion  to  manifest  the  tender  attachment  which  they 
entertained  towards  his  person.  “They  made  him  a  supper  there  in 
the  house  of  Simon  the  leper  (2).”  Apparently  this  was  one  of  those 
public  entertainments  at  which  women  were  not  allowed  to  be  pres¬ 
ent.  Thus,  “  Martha  served,  but  Lazarus  was  one  of  them  that  were 
at  table  with  him.”  As  for  Mary,  she  again  chose  the  better  part, 
and  testified  her  love  in  a  manner  that  was  peculiar  to  herself.  “  She 
took  a  pound  of  ointment  of  right  spikenard  (3),  of  great  price,  and 
anointed  the  feet  of  Jesus,  and  wiped  his  feet  with  her  hair  ;  and 


and  the  Saviour’s  answer,  which  are  in  both  instances  exactly  the  same.  What  proba¬ 
bility  is  there  that  the  disciples  would  have  repeated,  four  days  subsequently,  that  which 
had  drawn  down  upon  them  a  reprimand  so  severe,  and  which  they  could  not  have  so 
soon  forgotten  ? 

(2)  It  is  thought  that  this  is  the  same  individual  as  Simon  the  Pharisee,  at  whose 
house  this  sinful  woman,  who,  as  we  have  said,  was  no  other  than  Mary,  watered  with 
her  tears  the  feet  of  the  Saviour.  He  is  termed  Simon  the  leper,  perhaps  because,  in 
point  of  fact,  he  had  had  the  leprosy,  and  that  Jesus  Christ  had  cured  him  of  it  ;  for  he 
was  not  then  laboring  under  it,  since  he  was  allowed  to  eat  in  their  company.  Or,  per¬ 
haps  this  may  have  been  a  family  name,  derived  from  the  fact  of  some  one  of  his  ances¬ 
tors  having  been  a  leper,  as  we  find  amongst  ourselves  people  denominated  the  red-haired, 
the  blind-eyed,  the  hump-backed,  the  deaf,  without  having  themselves  any  of  these  cor¬ 
poral  blemishes.  This  fashion  of  speech,  they  made  him  a  supper  there,  has  occasioned 
the  question  to  fee  mooted,  whether  it  was  Simon  who  was  at  the  expense  of  providing  it. 
Most  probably  it  was  he,  although  several  doubt  whether  it  was  not  Lazarus  rather,  and 
his  two  sisters,  or  even  the  inhabitants  of  Bethania,  who  were  singularly  attached  to  the 
Saviour,  and  this  latter  supposition  is  not  impossible.  In  this  case  we  should  say  that 
they  had  selected  the  house  of  Simon  the  leper  as  being  the  most  suitable,  and  that  ap¬ 
parently  because  it  was  the  most  spacious. 

(3)  In  the  text,  pistici.  This  word,  which  is  derived  from  the  Greek,  appears,  in  its 
proper  meaning,  to  signify  faithful  :  here  it  means  pure  ointment,  which  does  not  de¬ 
ceive,  because  it  is  not  adulterated  ;  for  every  precious  liquor  is  liable  to  be  adulterated. 
It  is  in  this  sense  that  the  Latin  authors  sometimes  term  it  pure  and  genuine  ointment — ■ 
nardum  purum  et  sincerum.  Saint  Mark  makes  use  of  the  term  spicati,  which  signifies 
ointment  extracted  from  the  ear,  because  the  best  ointment,  in  point  of  fact,  was  extract¬ 
ed  from  the  ear  of  this  plant,  the  quality  of  that  extracted  from  the  leaves  being  very  in¬ 
ferior.  The  word  “excellent"  expresses  all  this  in  French.  The  Douay  version  trans¬ 
lates  it  “  riyht  spikenard.” 


I 


fïïïïTn, 


392 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[.PART  n. 


breaking  the  alabaster  box  (4),  she  poured  it  out  upon  his  head  (5) 
as  he  was  at  table,  and  the  house  was  filled  with  the  odor  of  the  oint¬ 
ment.  Then  one  of  his  disciples,  Judas  Iscariot,  he  that  was  about 
to  betray  him,  said  :  Why  was  not  this  ointment  sold  for  three  hun¬ 
dred  pence,  and  given  to  the  poor  ?  Now  he  said  this,  not  because 
he  cared  for  the  poor,  but  because  he  was  a  thief,  and  having  the 
purse,  carried  the  things  that  were  put  therein.”  However,  the  rea¬ 
son  was  specious,  and  the  disciples,  who  believed  it  to  be  sincere, 
were  induced  by  a  spirit  of  charity  to  make  the  same  objection. 
(a)  “  There  were  some  had  indignation  within  themselves,”  after  his 
example,  “  and  said,”  like  him  :  “  Why  was  this  waste  of  the  oint¬ 
ment  made  ?  For  this  ointment  might  have  been  sold  for  more  than 
three  hundred  pence,  and  given  to  the  poor  ;  and  they  murmured 
against  her.” 

She  acted  right,  and  they  spoke  wrongfully.  “And  Jesus  know¬ 
ing  it,”  wished  at  the  same  time  to  instruct  them  and  to  defend  her. 
Thus,  without  waiting  to  unmask  the  hypocrisy  of  the  traitor,  whose 
reputation  he  carefully  screened  until  the  very  end,  he  contented 
himself  with  refuting  the  reason  which  Judas  had  first  advanced,  and 
by  which  the  others  had  allowed  themselves  to  be  hurried  away. 
He  “  said  to  them,”  therefore,  addressing  his  speech  to  all  :  “  Why 
do  you  trouble  this  woman  ?  She  hath  wrought  a  good  work  upon 
me  (6).  For  the  poor  you  have  always  with  you,  and  whensoever 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xiv.  4-9;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  10-12. 


(4)  This  vase  was  of  alabaster  :  to  break  it  so  as  to  pour  out  the  very  last  drop  was 
the  highest  honor  of  the  kind  which  could  be  tendered. 

(5)  Saint  Matthew  and  Saint  Mark  speak  only  of  the  anointing  of  the  head,  and  Saint 
John  speaks  only  of  that  of  the  feet:  the  first  anointing  was  in  use,  and  not  the  second. 
Mary  performed  both  ;  but  the  two  evangelists  only  state  what  was  usually  done,  and 
the  third  what  was  peculiar  to  this  saintly  woman,  and  what  appears  to  have  been  spe¬ 
cially  the  result  of  her  devotion. 

(6)  There  are  times  wherein  even  the  sacred  vases  must  be  sold  in  order  to  feed  the 
poor  :  such  are  times  of  famine.  In  ordinary  times  it  is  always  good,  and  sometimes 
even  better,  to  make  one’s  pious  gifts  subservient  to  the  honoring  of  Jesus  Christ  by  the 
decoration  of  his  altars.  We  know  that  every  one  does  not  entertain  this  opinion;  but 
it  is  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  contrary  opinion  has  Judas  for  its  author. 

If  it  be  true,  as  every  one  admits,  that  the  decorum  and  splendor  of  external  worship 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


you  will  you  may  do  them  good;  but  me  you  have  not  always. 
What  she  had  she  hath  done  ;  for  she,  in  pouring  this  ointment  upon 
my  body,  hath  done  it  for  my  burial  (7)  ;  she  is  come  beforehand  to 
anoint  my  body  for  the  burial.  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  wheresoever 
this  Gospel  shall  be  preached  in  the  whole  world,  that  also  which 
she  hath  done  shall  be  told  for  a  memorial  of  her  (8).” 

The  prophecy  is  fulfilled,  and  the  fame  of  this  action  has  resound¬ 
ed  to  the  very  extremities  of  the  earth.  Those  who  censured  it  at 
first  have  been  themselves  its  heralds.  By  consigning  it  in  after 
times  to  the  holy  books,  they  have  immortalized  its  memory.  All 
ages  have  known  and  shall  know  it  :  the  most  eloquent  tongues  have 
eulogized  and  shall  eulogize  it,  even  until  the  end  of  time.  The  more 
inconsiderable  the  thing  may  appear  in  itself,  the  more  miraculous  is 
the  accomplishment  of  the  prophecy  which  promises  her  this  daz¬ 
zling  and  eternal  glory  ;  and  it  is  with  reason  that  this  accomplish- 


serves  to  foster  and  to  augment  piety,  we  must  infer  from  thence  that  to  contribute  there¬ 
to  is  giving  spiritual  alms. 

(7)  We  read  in  Saint  John,  “Let  her  alone,  that  she  may  keep  it  against  the  day  of 
my  burial,”  which  can  only  be  understood  in  this  manner  :  Do  not  be  displeased  at  her 
having  kept  this  perfume  for  my  burial  ;  for  Jesus  Christ  could  not  say  that  they  should 
let  her  retain  for  a  future  purpose  what  he  then  approved  of  her  pouring  out.  This 
sense  which  we  give  to  the  words  of  Saint  John  is  the  sense  of  the  two  other  evangel¬ 
ists,  Saint  Matthew  and  Saint  Mark,  and  it  is  by  reference  to  them  that  we  explain  the 
passage.  The  Saviour  says  that  Mary  had  kept  this  perfume  for  his  burial,  inasmuch  as 
he  was  upon  the  point  of  dying.  He  knew  that  after  his  death  she  would  wish  to  em¬ 
balm  him,  but  that  she  should  be  prevented  from  doing  so  by  his  resurrection.  Now, 
he  wished  that  she  should  have  the  consolation  of  having  rendered  this  duty  to  him  be¬ 
fore  his  death,  since  she  could  not  do  it  afterwards  :  it  is  thus  that  she  has  embalmed 
his  body  beforehand.  It  is  thought  that  this  idea  was  suggested  to  her  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  but  we  are  ignorant  whether  the  Holy  Ghost  had  also  revealed  to  her  the  entire 
mystery. 

(8)  The  most  vaunted  exploits  of  heroes  have  never  been  celebrated  so  highly  nor  yet 
so  universally  as  this  action  of  Mary.  The  glory  which  she  reaps  from  it  upon  earth  is 
but  the  shadow  of  that  which  she  shall  eternally  reap  in  heaven.  Thus  shall  be  honored 
whom  the  King  of  Glory  hath  a  mind  to  honor  (Esther,  vi.).  But  he  shall  only  wish  to 
honor  what  shall  have  been  done  for  his  glory  :  all  the  rest  shall  be  only  cause  of  r6- 
pioof.  The  lustre  of  brilliant  talents,  of  valor,  and  of  conquests  shall  be  buried  in  the 
darkness  of  the  abyss.  To  the  darkness  of  an  obscure  but  innocent  life  shall  succeed  a 
glory  more  dazzling  than  the  stars  of  the  firmament.  Such  is  the  object  of  the  ambition 
of  the  saints,  wherefore  they  may  be  regarded  as  the  most  ambitious,  whilst  at  the  same 
time  they  are  the  most  humble  of  men. 


vV- 


■ai  A 


ép 


394 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  H. 


ment  lias  been  regarded  as  one  of  the  best  proofs  of  the  truth  of  re¬ 
ligion. 

We  have  this  proof,  which  the  Jews  had  not.  They  had  another, 
which  we  likewise  have,  but  which  was  much  more  striking  for  them 
than  for  us,  inasmuch  as  we  are  always  much  more  struck  by  what 
we  see  :  that  was  the  resurrection  of  Lazarus,  which  occurred  iu  a 
place  and  at  a  time  which  served  to  heighten  the  lustre  of  this  mira¬ 
cle.  It  took  place,  as  it  were,  at  the  very  gates  of  Jerusalem,  and  at 
a  time  when  the  approach  of  the  passover  had  attracted  to  that  great 
city  an  innumerable  multitude  of  Jews,  of  all  nations  under  the  sun 
How  ardently  must  they  have  desired  to  see  a  man  resuscitated  with¬ 
in  a  few  days  !  and  how  much  must  this  desire  have  been  increased 
by  the  news  which  had  just  been  spread  abroad,  that  the  author  of 
this  miracle  had  reached  Bethania,  and  that  a  person  might  with 
ease  see  these  two  such  wonderful  men  speak  and  eat  together  ! 
(a)  “  A  great  multitude,  therefore,  of  the  Jews  knew  that  he  was 
there  ;  and  they  came  not  for  Jesus’  sake  only,  but  that  they  might 
see  Lazarus,  whom  he  had  raised  from  the  dead.” 

This  sight  produced  the  effect  which  might  be  expected,  viz.,  it 
brought  conviction  to  every  mind.  Those  whose  hearts  were  good 
yielded  at  once  to  the  evidence  before  them,  and  became  faithful. 
Those  whose  hearts  were  wicked  and  hardened  recognized  the  truth, 
in  the  only  way  by  which  the  wicked  do  recognize  truth  which  is 
odious  to  them,  to  wit,  by  an  accumulation  of  rage,  and  a  new  series 
of  crimes.  They  decided  upon  annihilating  evidence  which  they 
could  not  contest;  and  in  order  that  not  a  single  vestige  thereof 
should  remain  upon  the  earth,  after  having  resolved,  as  we  have  said, 
upon  the  death  of  Jesus,  “  the  chief  priests  thought  to  kill  Lazarus 
also,  because  many  of  the  Jews,  by  reason  of  him,  went  away,  and 
believed  in  Jesus.” 

The  most  brilliant  day  of  the  Saviour’s  mortal  life,  that  day  on 
which  he  was  to  be  publicly  acknowledged  as  the  Messiah  and  as  the 
King  of  Israel,  was  at  last  arrived.  It  concerned  his  glory  that  the 
bulk  of  the  people  should  proceed  so  far  as  that  recognition  ;  and  if, 
in  the  end,  that  same  majority  should  repudiate  him,  the  nation,  whilst 
acting  thus,  must  stand  forth  in  glaring  opposition  to  itself.  For  he 

(a)  St.  John,  xii.  9. 


km 

r-jîfi 

ati-  in 


CHAP.  LI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


must  have  given  sufficient  proofs  to  make  himself  known,  inasmuch 
as  they  had  already  recognized  him  without  any  other  motive  than 
the  conviction  of  what  he  was.  The  minds  of  the  people  were  dis¬ 
posed  towards  this  demonstration,  not  by  emissaries  sent  to  canvass 
the  masses,  and  to  solicit  their  suffrages  ;  Jesus  did  not  employ  a  sin¬ 
gle  one  of  those  means,  all  of  which  were  employed  against  him  :  his 
virtues,  his  doctrine,  and  still  more,  his  miracles,  spoke  alone  in  his 
favor;  above  all,  the  resurrection  of  Lazarus,  a  recent  occurrence, 
which  they  had  actually  before  their  eyes.  Such  were  his  cre¬ 
dentials,  and  the  proximate  causes  of  his  triumph.  But  let  no  one 
expect  to  find  here  the  pomp  which  is  usual  in  princely  triumphs. 
All  here  is  suitable  to  the  character  of  him  who  said  of  himself  that 
he  was  meek  and  humble  of  heart.  His  enemies  could  not  reason¬ 
ably  conclude  from  thence  that  he  aspired  to  royalty,  for  kings  are 
seldom  seen  entering  a  city  in  such  a  way  as  he  entered  Jerusalem. 
We  must  observe,  notwithstanding,  that,  according  to  the  customs 
of  the  time  and  the  country,  this  equipage  was  not,  as  it  might  seem 
to  us,  odd  and  ridiculous  ;  it  was  merely  simple  and  modest.  Its  sim¬ 
plicity  added  new  lustre  to  the  Saviour’s  glory,  by  showing  that  the 
extraordinary  honors  which  he  received  were  not  extorted,  and,  as 
it  were,  forced  by  the  awe-inspiring  brilliancy  which  surrounds  the 
kings  of  the  earth,  but  that  they  were  tendered  solely  by  the  high 
esteem  and  the  profound  veneration  which  his  works  and  his  doc¬ 
trines  had  inspired. 

The  repose  of  the  Sabbath  had  obliged  Jesus  to  spend  the  whole 
day  in  Bethania.  (a)  “  The  next  day,”  which  was  the  first  day  of  the 
week,  he  proceeded  on  his  journey  with  the  whole  of  his  retinue. 
( b )  “  When  they  drew  nigh  to  Jerusalem,  and  were  come  to  Beth- 
phage,  unto  Mount  Olivet,  Jesus  sent  two  of  his  disciples,  saying  to 
them  :  Go  ye  into  the  village  that  is  over  against  you,  and  immedi¬ 
ately  at  your  coming  in  thither  you  shall  find  an  ass  tied,  and  a  colt 
with  her,  upon  which  no  man  yet  hath  sat.  Loose  him,  and  bring 
him  to  me.  And  if  any  man  shall  ask  you  :  Why  do  you  loose  him  ? 
you  shall  say  thus  unto  him  :  Because  the  Lord  hath  need  of  his  ser¬ 
vice  ;  and  immediately  he  will  let  him  come  hither.” 

(а)  St.  John,  xii.  12. 

(б)  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  1-5  ;  St.  Mark,  xi.  2,  3  ;  St.  Luke,  xix.  31. 


%  J 


'v 


"f  •'«)  >ï\ni  ]  |  "'vj  '«! 


He  spoke  as  a  propliet  and  commanded  as  a  master.  By  this 
trait,  and  some  others  which  seemed  to  escape  from  him,  we  see  that 
his  divinity  disclosed  itself  even  in  the  smallest  actions.  The  accom¬ 
plishment  of  the  prophecies  was  a  still  more  certain  proof  of  this  ; 
“  for  all  this  was  done  that  (9)  it  might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken 
by  the  prophet  (10),  saying:  Tell  ye  the  daughter  of  Zion:  behold, 


(9)  The  prophecy  was  not  the  cause  of  the  action,  but  the  action  was  the  cause  of  the 
prophecy— that  is  to  say,  that  Jesus  Christ  did  not  perform  the  act,  because  the  per¬ 
formance  thereof  had  been  foretold,  but  the  act  had  been  foretold,  because  he  was  to 
perform  it.  However,  inasmuch  as  it  had  been  foretold,  Jesus  Christ  could  not  fail  to 
perform  it,  and  in  this  manner  the  prediction  became  in  its  turn  the  cause  of  the  action. 
But  we  see  that  it  was  merely  the  cause  of  an  action  already  resolved  and  decided  upon, 
which  could  scarcely,  with  any  propriety,  be  termed  a  cause.  But  if  the  action  is  the 
cause  of  the  prophecy,  it  is  not  the  action,  but  the  prophecy  which,  by  its  accomplish¬ 
ment,  becomes  a  proof  of  religion.  What  here  proves,  therefore,  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the 
true  Messiah,  is  not  the  fact  of  his  having  entered  Jerusalem  mounted  upon  an  ass, 
but  his  having  accomplished  the  prophecy  which  announced  that  the  Messiah  should  so 
enter  into  Jerusalem. 

The  Jews  themselves  acknowledge  that  this  prophecy  regards  the  Messiah.  But 
could  it  not  be  said  that  a  false  Messiah  might  easily  appropriate  this  designation  to  him¬ 
self,  and  that,  consequently,  it  proves  nothing  in  favor  of  Jesus  Christ?  Here  are  solu¬ 
tions  which  may  be  given  to  this  objection  :  1st.  Although  several  false  Messiahs  may 
have  appeared,  still  it  never  did  occur  that  any  one  of  them  entered  Jerusalem  in  the 
manner  which  had  been  foretold,  and  in  which  Jesus  Christ  entered  there.  It  is,  there¬ 
fore,  evident,  from  the  event,  that  this  prophecy  applies  to  Jesus  Christ,  to  the  exclusion 
of  all  others.  It  proves,  therefore,  for  him,  and  for  him  alone,  concludes  Saint  Chrysos¬ 
tom,  whose  reasoning  this  is.  2d.  It  is  not  each  prophecy  taken  separately,  but  the  con¬ 
currence  of  all  the  prophecies,  which  demonstrates  that  Jesus  Christ  is  truly  the  Mes¬ 
siah.  Thus,  even  although  each  in  particular  should  prove  nothing,  still  they  all  prove,  be¬ 
cause  the  whole  contribute  to  the  proof  of  the  whole,  as  weights  which,  taken  separately, 
might  not  incline  the  balance,  if  united  must  turn  the  scale.  3d.  Besides  the  proof  which 
results  from  the  aggregate,  there  are  prophecies  which  prove  by  themselves,  inasmuch  as 
imposition  could  never  adapt  itself  to  them.  Such  are,  for  example,  the  principal  cir¬ 
cumstances  of  the  Saviour’s  passion,  described  as  exactly  by  the  prophets  as  by  the  evan¬ 
gelists— his  flagellation,  his  crucifixion,  his  thirst  quenched  with  vinegar  and  gall,  his 
clothes  being  divided,  and  the  casting  lots  for  his  tunic  ;  his  side  pierced  ;  his  bones  be¬ 
ing  entirely  preserved,  whilst  they  broke  those  of  his  fellow-sufferers.  It  never  occurs 
to  any  one’s  mind  that  Jesus  Christ  could  have  entered  into  an  understanding  with  his 
executioners  respecting  what  they  were  to  make  him  undergo. 

(10)  We  read  these  words  in  the  ninth  chapter  of  the  prophet  Zachary:  “Rejoice 
greatly,  O  daughter  of  Zion:  shout  for  joy,  0  daughter  of  Jerusalem.  Behold,  thy  king 
will  come  to  thee,  the  just  and  Saviour.  He  is  poor,  and  riding  upon  an  ass,  and  upon 
a  colt  the  foal  of  an  ass.”  This  version  is  that  of  the  Vulgate.  Saint  Matthew  has  fol¬ 
lowed  that  of  the  Septuagint  ;  he  has  omitted  some  words  which  make  no  difference  in 


» 


j  *■  ■■  wm 


CHAP.  LI.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  By? 

thy  king  cometh  to  thee,  meek,  and  sitting  upon  an  ass,  and  a  colt, 
the  foal  of  her  that  is  used  to  the  yoke.  The  disciples  went  their 
way,  and  did  as  Jesus  commanded  them.  They  found  the  colt,  as  he 
had  said  unto  them,  tied  before  the  gate  without,  in  the  meeting  of 
the  two  ways,  and  they  loose  him.  As  they  were  loosing  the  colt, 
the  owners  thereof  said  unto  them  :  Why  loose  you  the  colt  ?  They 
said  as  Jesus  had  commanded  them  :  Because  the  Lord  hath  need  of 
him  ;  and  they  .let  him  go  with  them.  They  brought  the  ass  and  the 
colt  to  Jesus,  and  laid  their  garments  upon  them,  and  made  him  sit 
thereon  (11).  And  Jesus  sat  upon  it,  as  it  is  written:  Fear  not, 
daughter  of  Sion  ;  behold  thy  king  cometh,  sitting  on  an  ass’s  colt. 
These  things  the  disciples  did  not  know  at  the  first  ;  but  when  Jesus 
was  glorified,  then  they  remembered  that  these  things  were  written 
of  him,  and  that  they  had  done  these  things  to  him.” 

In  proportion  as  Jesus  approached  the  capitol,  he  diffused 
there  a  secret  virtue,  which  moved  all  hearts,  and  attracted  them 


the  sense,  and  the  mansuetus,  full  of  meekness,  instead  of  pauper,  is  taken  from  the  Sep- 
tuagint.  The  two  Hebrew  words  having  these  meanings  do  highly  resemble  each  other, 
and  they  have  the  same  origin.  We  remark  in  reference  to  this,  that  humble  meekness 
usually  accompanies  poverty.  If  the  remark  be  just,  those  whom  riches  would  have  ren¬ 
dered  haughty  and  insolent,  gain  more  than  they  lose  by  not  having  them. 

(11)  We  read  in  the  Greek:  laid  their  garments  upon  them,  and  made  him  sit  there¬ 
on — that  is  to  say,  upon  both  animals,  although  that  may  also  signify  on  the  garments 
with  which  they  had  covered  them.  Saint  Matthew  is  the  only  one  of  the  four  evangel¬ 
ists  who  speaks  of  the  ass  having  the  colt  ;  which  is  the  cause  why  the  majority  of  inter¬ 
preters  believe  that  he  only  rode  upon  the  colt.  However,  when  the  Saviour  sends  to 
get  them,  he  makes  the  two  disciples  say  that  the  Lord  hath  need  of  them  ;  the  disci¬ 
ples  spread  their  garments  upon  both  ;  and,  what  is  still  more  decisive,  the  prophet  Zach¬ 
ary  said,  in  formal  terms,  that  he  conies  riding  upon  an  ass,  and  upon  a  colt  the  foal  of 
an  ass.  Thus  the  letter  seems  to  signify  clearly  that,  in  point  of  fact,  he  sat  upon  both,  • 
not  at  the  same  time  and  conjointly  (this  absurd  notion  has  never  occurred  to  any  one), 
hut  successively — that  is  to  say,  that  he  made  a  part  of  the  journey  upon  the  ass,  and 
that  when  approaching  towards  Jerusalem  he  ascended  the  colt,  upon  which  he  made 
his  entry  ;  and  thus  we  have  the  reason  why  three  evangelists  have  spoken  of  the  colt 
only.  There  is  nothing  in  this  either  impossible  or  absurd,  and  the  literal  sense  should 
always  be  preserved,  when  we  can  retain  it  without  wounding  either  reason  or  piety. 

The  fathers  have  found  here  a  mystical  sense.  The  ass  who  carries  the  yoke  repre¬ 
sents,  according  to  them,  the  Jewish  nation;  and  the  colt  yet  unbroken  is  figurative  of 
the  Gentile  people.  The  figure  would  be  even  more  just  if  Jesus  Christ,  who  announced 
the  Gospel  to  the  Jews  before  announcing  it  to  the  Gentiles,  had  been  seated  first  upon 
the  ass,  and  then  upon  the  colt. 


398 


THE  HTbTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


•[part  II. 


towards  him.  (a)  “  A  great  multitude  that  was  come  to  the  festi¬ 
val-day,  when  they  had  heard  that  Jesus  was  come  to  Jerusalem, 
took  branches  of  palm-trees,  and  went  forth  to  meet  him,  and  cried, 
Hosanna  (12),  blessed  be  he  who  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord, 
the  king  of  Israel.  As  he  went,  many  spread,  their  garments  under¬ 
neath  in  the  way  ;  others  cut  down  boughs  from  the  trees,  and  strew¬ 
ed  them  in  the  way.  When  he  was  now  coming  near  the  descent 
of  Mount  Olivet,  the  whole  multitude  of  his  disciples  began  with 
joy  to  praise  God  with  a  loud  voice,  for  all  the  mighty  works  they 
had  seen,  saying  :  Blessed  be  the  king  who  cometh  in  the  name  of 
the  Lord.  Peace  in  heaven,  and  glory  on  high.  And  the  multi¬ 
tudes  that  went  before  and  that  followed  cried,  saying  :  Hosanna  to 
the  Son  of  David  :  Blessed  is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord  ;  blessed  be  the  kingdom  of  our  father  (13)  David  that  com¬ 
eth.  Hosanna  in  the  highest.”  It  is  further  stated,  as  the  principal 
cause  of  such  lively  and  universal  joy,  that  ( b )  “the  multitude,  there¬ 
fore,  gave  testimony  which  was  with  him  when  he  called  Lazarus  out 
of  the  grave,  and  raised  him  from  the  dead  ;  for  which  reason,  also, 
the  people  came  to  meet  him,  because  they  heard  that  he  had  done 
this  miracle.” 

His  enemies  also  spoke,  but  for  the  purpose  of  expressing  the  vexa¬ 
tion  which  this  spectacle  caused  them,  and  the  despair  to  which  they 
were  reduced.  “  The  Pharisees,  therefore,  said  amongst  themselves  : 
Do  you  see  that  we  prevail  nothing  ?  Behold,  the  whole  world  is 
gone  after  him.”  Doubtless  they  had  never  so  earnestly  desired  to 
lay  their  hands  upon  him,  and  immolate  him  to  their  furious  jeal¬ 
ousy  ;  but  they  felt  how  very  dangerous  it  would  be  to  execute  this 

(a)  St.  John,  xii.  12,  13  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  8,  9  ;  St.  Luke,  xix.  37  ;  St.  Mark,  xi.  10. 

(b)  St.  John,  xii.  17-19. 


(12)  This  Hebrew  word  signifies,  save  him,  or  preserve  him:  it  is  sung  immediately 
before  the  canon  of  the  mass.  It  there  conveys  the  expression  of  the  joy  we  feel  in  the 
near  approach  of  the  Saviour  to  our  altars,  and  is  a  fervent  profession  of  our  faith  in  the 
real  presence. 

(13)  It  is  clear,  from  these  words,  that  they  then  recognized  him  for  the  Messiah.  Five 
days  after,  they  cried  out  :  Do  not  release  him  ;  but  release  to  us  Barabbas.  As  to  him, 
crucify  him.  Such  is  the  multitude.  Are  those  who  depend  upon  its  favor,  or  who  1'ear 
its  censure,  more  rational  than  they  ? 


r'4\VW^ 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


<r 


project  in  the  midst  of  that  vast  multitude,  transported  with  admi¬ 
ration  and  joy.  Wherefore,  whilst  awaiting  a  more  favorable  occa¬ 
sion,  (a)  “  some  of  the  Pharisees  from  amongst  the  multitude  said  to 
him,”  in  a  tone  where  contempt  mingled  with  vexation:  “Master, 
rebuke  thy  disciples.”  He  alone,  in  point  of  fact,  had  the  power  to 
do  so  ;  but  this  was  the  moment  wherein  he  wished  to  be  glorified  ; 
and  when  the  Creator  wishes  that  his  creatures  should  render  testi¬ 
mony  to  his  greatness,  no  created  power  is  able  to  stifle  their  voice, 
as  Jesus  informed  them  in  this  short  and  energetic  answer:  “I  say 
to  you,  that  if  they  shall  hold  their  peace,  the  stones  will  cry 
out  (14).” 


CHAPTER  LII. 

C  HEIST  WEEPS  OVEE  JEEUSALEM. - THE  ACCUESED  FIG-TEEE. - SELLEES  DEI  VEN  OUT 

OF  THE  TEMPLE. - FAITH  OMNIPOTENT. - THE  GEAIN  OF  WHEAT. - JESUS  IS  TEOUB- 

LED. - A  VOICE  FEOM  HEAVEN. 

In  the  midst  of  the  acclamations  of  his  disciples,  and  the  maledic¬ 
tions  of  his  envious  foes,  more  flattering  still  than  the  felicitations  of 
his  friends,  if  Jesus  at  first  felt  a  sensible  joy,  it  soon  gave  way  to 
sadness.  The  conqueror  blended  his  sighs  with  the  public  acclama¬ 
tions,  and  bedewed  with  his  tears  the  branches  which  they  had  strew¬ 
ed  beneath  his  feet.  (£)  “When  he  drew  near,  seeing  the  city,  he 
wept  over  it.”  The  cause  of  this  was  well  worthy  of  such  a  heart  as 
his.  Jerusalem  must  perish,  and  perish  on  account  of  its  crimes, 
which  it  was  now  going  to  consummate  by  the  most  atrocious  of 
all  deeds.  After  having  stained  itself  with  the  blood  of  its  Mes¬ 
siah,  the  queen  of  cities  was  henceforward  to  be  no  more  than  a  heap 
of  ashes,  soaked  with  the  blood  of  its  citizens.  The  foul  deed  was 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xix.  39,  40. 


(b)  St.  Luke,  xix.  41-44. 


(14)  They  held  their  peace  five  days  after,  when  at  the  time  of  his  passion  and  death 
they  abandoned  him,  and  fled.  But  the  stones  then  spoke  out,  and,  by  splitting  asun¬ 
der,  they  published,  in  their  own  language,  the  divinity  of  the  Saviour. 


I* 


\ 


£\. 


(S 


'ÜM 


& 


[part  II-. 

about  to  be  perpetrated  in  a  few  days,  the  chastisement  was  only  de¬ 
ferred  for  some  years  ;  both  one  and  the  other  were  as  vividly  present 
to  the  Saviour  as  if  he  had  them  actually  before  his  eyes.  What  an 
object  for  a  Saviour-God  !  And  with  how  deep  sorrow  did  he  then 
address  to  this  unfortunate  city  these  sad  and  pathetic  words  :  “  If 
thou  also  hadst  known,  and  that  in  this  thy  day,  the  things  that  are 
to  thy  peace  !  but  now  they  are  hidden  from  thy  eyes  *  for  the  days 
shall  come  upon  thee,  and  thy  enemies  shall  cast  a  trench  about 
thee  (1),  and  compass  thee  round,  and  straiten  thee  on  every  side, 
and  beat  thee  flat  to  the  ground,  and  thy  children  who  are  in  thee, 
and  they  shall  not  leave  in  thee  a  stone  upon  a  stone,  because  thou 
hast  not  known  the  time  of  thy  visitation.” 

After  this  prophecy,  which  would  have  been  no  more  than  a 
menace,  if,  after  the  example  of  Ninive,  Jerusalem  had  tried  to 
prevent  the  result,  Jesus  found  himself  at  the  term  of  his  journey. 
(a)  “  When  he  was  come  into  J erusalem,  the  whole  city  was  moved, 
saying  :  Who  is  this  ?  And  the  people  said  :  This  is  Jesus  the 
prophet,  from  Nazareth,  of  Galilee.  He  went  into  the  temple,  and 
having  viewed  all  things  round  about,”  as  a  master,  who,  returning 
to  his  house,  examines  whether  all  is  in  order,  “.  when  now  the  even¬ 
tide  was  come,”  and  that  this  was  not  the  hour  to  correct  the  abuses 
which  were  committed  therein,  he  postponed  it  until  the  following 
day,  and  “  went  out  to  Bethania  with  the  twelve”  apostles. 

There  is  every  reason  for  believing  that  he  passed  the  night  there 
in  prayer  and  fasting  ;  for  ( b )  “  the  next  day,  in  the  morning,  when 
they  came  out  from  Bethania,  he  was  hungry,  and  seeing  afar  off  a 
fig-tree  having  leaves,  he  came,  if  perhaps  he  might  find  any  thing 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  10-11  ;  St. 
Mark,  xi.  11. 


(6)  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  18  ;  St. 
Mark,  xi.  12—18. 


(1)  These  days  came  thirty-eight  years  after  the  prediction.  Those  who  have  read  in 
Josephus  the  history  of  the  capture  of  Jerusalem,  will  recognize  in  this  prophecy  that 
line  of  circumvallation  which  Titus  caused  to  be  drawn  around  its  walls  in  order  to  block¬ 
ade  it— that  wall  which  he  erected  three  days  after,  by  his  whole  army  hemming  it  in  so 
closely  that  nothing  could  any  longer  either  enter  or  go  out  from  the  city  ;  so  that  it  was 
consequently  reduced  to  that  horrible  famine  which  caused  mothers  to  eat  their  own 
children  :  lastly  came  the  destruction  of  the  city,  and  the  universal  massacre  of  its  in¬ 
habitants. 


w  ■  'ii'Wf  t  rwiii| 


fx 
f  A 


li 


\ 


Ik 


CHAP.  LII.] 

on  it  (2)  ;  and  when  he  came  to  it,  he  found  nothing  but  leaves  only, 
for  it  was  not  the  season  of  figs.  And  Jesus  saith  to  it  :  May  no 
man  hereafter  eat  fruit  of  thee  (3)  any  more,  forever  ;  and  his  disci¬ 
ples  heard  it.  And  they  came  to  Jerusalem.  When  Jesus  was  en¬ 
tered  into  the  temple,  he  began  to  cast  out  them  that  sold  and 
bought  in  the  temple  (4),  and  overthrew  the  tables  of  the  money 
changers,  and  the  chairs  of  them  that  sold  doves.  And  he  suffered 
not  that  any  man  should  carry  a  vessel  through  the  temple  ;  and  he 
taught,  saying  to  them  :  Is  it  not  written  :  My  house  shall  be  called 
the  house  of  prayer  to  all  nations  ?  But  you  have  made  it  a  den  of 
thieves.”  He  made  use  of  this  term  on  account  of  the  frauds  which 
were  perpetrated  in  the  course  of  their  traffic.  “  Which,  when  the 
chief  priests  and  the  scribes,”  those  who  authorized  this  abuse,  be¬ 
cause  they  shared  in  the  profits,  “  had  heard,  they  sought  how  they 
might  destroy  him,”  without  exposing  themselves  ;  “  for  they  feared 
him,  because  the  whole  multitude  was  in  admiration  at  his  doctrine.” 
(a)  In  the  mean  time  “  there  came  to  him  the  blind,  and  the  lame, 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  14-16. 


(2)  He  knew  that  there  was  nothing  on  it  ;  but  in  the  distance  he  did  not  see  this  with 
the  eyes  of  his  body,  and  it  was  for  the  purpose  of  so  seeing  it  that  he  drew  near,  thus 
conforming  himself  to  our  way  of  acting. 

(3)  This  malediction  fell  upon  the  synagogue,  the  whole  of  whose  religion  consisted  in 
ceremonies  and  words,  figured  by  the  leaves,  whereas  it  was  sterile  in  fruits,  which  are 
the  works  of  justice  and  of  charity.  This  was  not  the  season  for  fruit,  and  it  is  not  by 
the  display  of  leaves  that  the  fig-tree  represents  the  synagogue,  but  only  by  its  barren¬ 
ness.  Those  who  content  themselves  with  honoring  God  with  their  lips,  but  whose  hearts 
are  far  from  him,  who  love — that  is  to  say,  who  have  charity  of  the  tongue,  and  in  words, 
but  who  have  it  not  by  works  and  in  reality — such  persons  should  entertain  no  doubt  that 
this  malediction  regards  them.  The  reader  may  remember  what  we  have  said  in  page 
3 1 8  of  this  Part,  that  what  is  stated  in  Scripture  with  reference  to  a  whole  nation  is  ap¬ 
plicable  to  an  individual,  as  also  that  what  is  stated  of  an  individual  is  sometimes  appli¬ 
cable  to  a  whole  nation. 

(4)  See  Part  I.,  chap,  vi.,  page  52,  and  the  notes  appended  thereto.  We  have  here, 
moreover,  the  prohibition  against  carrying  vessels  through  the  temple  ;  an  abuse  too  or¬ 
dinary  in  such  of  our  churches  as  have  several  entrances.  It  is  surprising  that  this  should 
be  tolerated  after  Jesus  Christ  has  so  expressly  forbidden  it.  Were  a  person  to  carry 
nothing  through,  it  would  still  be  an  act  of  irreverence  to  use  the  churches  like  a  public 
road,  unless  he  passed  through  with  an  air  of  composure,  in  a  sedate  and  decorous  man¬ 
ner,  pausing  to  adore,  and,  if  he  has  time,  to  pray.  What  otherwise  is  a  scandal,  be¬ 
comes  thus  an  act  of  religion,  which  honors  God  and  edifies  men. 

26 


f  »/iipff  — j  j'  TTg 


402 


niE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 


in  the  temple  ;  and  he  healed  them.  And  the  chief  priests  and 
scribes  seeing  the  wonderful  things  which  he  did,  and  the  children 
crying  in  the  temple,  Hosanna  to  the  Son  of  David,  were  moved 
with  indignation,  and  said  to  him  :  Hearest  thou  what  these  say  ? 
Jesus  said  to  them:  Yea,  have  you  never  read,  out  of  the  mouths  of 
infants  and  of  sucklings  thou  hast  perfected  praise  ?” 

It  is  very  commonly  believed  that  children  at  the  breast  miracu¬ 
lously  mingled  their  voices  here,  and  that  they  articulated  the  same 
words.  But,  even  independently  of  the  miracle,  the  Saviour’s  an¬ 
swer  was  sufficiently  justified  by  itself.  It  approved  of  what  was 
good,  without  laying  himself  open  to  the  malice  of  those  who  sought 
to  ensnare  him.  For  could  they  impute  to  him  as  a  crime  that  he  did 
not  impose  silence  upon  those  to  whom  God  gave  the  gift  of  speech  ? 

(a)  “  When  evening  was  come,  Jesus  leaving  them,  went  forth  out 
of  the  city  into  Bethania,  and  remained  there.  When  they  passed 
by  in  the  morning,  they  saw  the  fig-tree  dried  up  from  the  roots  ; 
the  disciples  seeing  it,  wondered,  saying  :  How  is  it  presently  with¬ 
ered  away  ?  Peter,  remembering,  said  to  him  :  Rabbi,  behold  the 
fig-tree,  which  thou  didst  curse,  is  withered  away  (5).”  Jesus  did 
not  then  think  it  expedient  to  explain  this  mystery.  Fie  contented 
himself  with  recalling  to  their  minds  the  instruction  which  he  had 
already  given  to  them  on  faith  and  on  prayer.  He  “  said  to  them  : 
Amen,  I  say  to  you,  if  you  shall  have  faith,  and  stagger  not  (6),  not 
only  this  of  the  fig-tree  shall  you  do,  but  also  if  you  shall  say  to  this 
mountain,  Take  up  and  cast  thyself  into  the  sea,  and  shall  not  stag¬ 
ger  in  his  heart,  but  believeth  that  whatsoever  he  saith  shall  be  done, 
it  shall  be  done  unto  him.  Therefore  I  say  unto  you,  all  things  what¬ 
soever  you  ask  when  you  pray,  believe  that  you  shall  receive  (7 ), 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xi.  19-26  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  20-22. 


(5)  I  have  seen  the  wicked  highly  exalted,  and  lifted  up  like  the  cedars  of  Lebanus. 
And  I  passed  by,  and  lo,  he  was  not.— (Ps.  xxxvi.  35,  36.)  Thus  we  see  the  fortunate 
sinner  pass  in  a  moment  from  the  midst  of  glory  and  of  pleasures  into  the  shades  and 
horror  of  death.  Those  who  reflect  upon  the  judgments  of  the  Lord  say,  then,  like  Saint 
Peter  :  Behold  the  fig-tree,  which  thou  didst  curse,  is  withered  away. 

(6)  See  note  5,  page  239,  Part  I.,  chap.  xxxi. 

(7)  See  note  27,  page  136,  Part  I.,  chap.  xvii.  ;  also  pages  302  and  303,  Part  II.,  and 
note  1,  page  350,  Part  II. 


w 


■jgii'f  ' 


i©  a  ©  a  a  o  o  a  ■ 


I  m, 

fe#’ 


P 

Ik 


* 


ii  I 


0HA1\  LII, 


OF  OUK  LOUD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


403 


and  they  shall  come  unto  you  ;  and  when  you  shall  stand  to  pray, 
forgive,  if  you  have  aught  against  any  man,  that  your  Father  (8) 
also,  who  is  in  heaven,  may  forgive  you  your  sins.  But  if  you  will 
not  forgive,  neither  will  your  Father  that  is  in  heaven  forgive  you 
your  sins.” 

(a)  “  Jesus  was  teaching  daily  in  the  temple.  And  the  chief 
priests,  and  the  scribes,  and  the  rulers  of  the  people  sought  to  de¬ 
stroy  him  ;  and  they  found  not  what  to  do  to  him  :  for  all  the  peo¬ 
ple  were  very  attentive  to  hear  him.  Now,  there  were  certain  Gen¬ 
tiles  among  them,  who  came  up  to  adore  on  the  festival-day.  These 
came  to  Philip,  who  was  of  Bethsaicla,  of  Galilee,  and  desired  him, 
saying  :  Sir,  we  would  see  Jesus.”  This  canton  of  Galilee  bordered 
on  the  Gentile  district,  which  gave  rise  to  the  notion  that  these 
were  acquaintances  of  Philip,  and  that  it  was  on  this  account  they 
addressed  themselves  to  him  :  “  Philip  cometli,  and  telletk  Andrew,” 
who  was  from  the  same  city.  Jesus  had  already  declared  that  “he 
was  sent  only  to  the  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel,  who  were  lost.” — 
“  Again,  Andrew  and  Philip,”  not  daring  to  present  Gentiles  to  him, 
without  previously  ascertaining  whether  he  chose  to  receive  them, 
went  and  “told  Jesus.”  We  have  every  reason  to  believe  that  he 
was  willing  to  admit  them  into  his  presence,  although  the  Scripture 
does  not  formally  say  so  ;  because  this  small  number  of  Gentiles 
constituted  in  his  sight,  as  it  were,  the  first  fruits  of  Gentilism,  which 
was  soon  to  be  followed  by  a  rich  harvest.  Hence,  transported  with 
holy  joy,  he  replied  to  the  two  disciples,  and  to  all  those  within 
hearing  :  “  The  hour  is  come  that  the  Son  of  man  should  be  glori¬ 
fied.” 

This  hour  was  that  of  his  death,  which  was  only  a  few  days  dis¬ 
tant.  That  death  was  to  attract  all  the  people  of  the  earth  to  the 
knowledge  and  love  of  him,  as  he  himself  soon  after  stated.  But  it 
must  then  have  appeared  a  thing  incredible,  that  death,  wherein  all 
human  glory  is  eclipsed,  should  be  to  him  the  source  of  such  won¬ 
drous  glory.  He,  therefore,  most  impressively  repeats  this  truth, 


404 


THE  HISTOKY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  II. 

and  explains  it  by  a  natural  comparison,  which  he  immediately  adds  : 
“  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to- you,  unless  the  grain  of  wheat  falling  into 
the  ground  die,  itself  remaineth  alone  ;  but  if  it  die,  it  bringeth  forth 
much  fruit.” 

Thus  Jesus,  descended  from  heaven  to  the  earth,  would  have  en¬ 
joyed,  even  if  he  had  not  suffered  death,  all  the  rights  and  preroga¬ 
tives  attached  to  the  quality  of  Man-God.  This  precious  wheat 
never  lost  its  properties  or  its  excellence  ;  but  it  would  have  remain¬ 
ed  unproductive  ;  and  that  long  and.  lasting  posterity,  which  was 
promised  to  him  by  the  divine  oracles,  was  only  promised  upon  con¬ 
dition  that  he  would  (a)  lay  down  his  life  for  the  expiation  of  sin. 
It  was  to  be  the  same  with  those  who  should  believe  in  him,  and  more 
especially  his  first  disciples.  The  death  which  they  were  to  suffer  for 
his  sake  would  be  fruitful  even  as  his  ;  and  the  astonishing  multipli¬ 
cation  which  was  to  follow  should  force  their  astonished  executioners 
to  exclaim  that  the  blood  of  martyrs  is  the  seed  of  Christians  :  a  pow¬ 
erful  motive  for  not  fearing  death,  but  rather  desiring  it,  since  its 
effects  are  to  be  so  admirable.  This  motive  is,  after  the  glory  of 
God,  the  only  one  which  Jesus  Christ  had  or  could  have  had  ;  but 
not  so  with  the  rest  of  men.  With  reference  to  them,  all  is  at  stake, 
inasmuch  as  the  question  is  of  their  eternal  salvation,  which  they  se¬ 
cure  by  dying  for  the  cause  of  God,  and  which  they  renounce  if  they 
refuse,  when  called  upon,  to  sacrifice  to  him  this  short  and  miserable 
life.  Those  to  whom  the  Saviour  spoke  were  then  more  susceptible 
of  this  interested  motive  than  of  a  charity  as  generous  as  his  own.  It 
is  on  that  account  that  he  proposes  it  to  them,  by  repeating  to  them, 
on  this  occasion,  that  maxim  which  he  had  already  tauçrht  them  : 
(5)  “  He  that  loveth  his  life  shall  lose  it,  and  he  that  hateth  his  life 
in  this  world,  keepeth  it  unto  life  everlasting.” 

To  this  principal  reason  the  Saviour  adds  two  other  motives,  very 
proper  to  excite  their  emulation  and  to  sustain  their  courage.  One 
is  the  example  which  he  gives  them  ;  the  other  is  the  reward  which 
he  reserves  for  them.  If  the  road  be  rough,  he  will  walk  before 
them  :  if  the  end  be  inconceivable  glory,  he  will  share  it  with  them. 
This  is  what  he  declares  to  them  in  the  following  words  :  “  If  any 
man  minister  to  me,  let  him  follow  me  ;  and  where  I  am,  there  also 
(a)  Isiali,  liii.  10.  (b)  St.  John,  xii.  25. 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CHEIST. 


405 


CHAP.  LII.] 

shall  my  minister  be.  If  any  man  minister  to  me,  him  will  my  Father 
honor.” 

It  may  strike  us  that  no  answer  could  be  made  to  the  example  of 
a  God.  But  are  excuses  ever  wanting  to  our  cowardice  ?  It  might 
say,  further,  that  human  weakness  cannot  be  compared  to  the 
strength  of  a  God,  and  that  what  is  easy  to  one  is  impossible  to  the 
other  ;  that  a  divine  model  is,  therefore,  more  to  be  admired  than 
followed.  Jesus  Christ  deprives  us  of  even  this  last  excuse,  by  mak¬ 
ing  it  apparent,  in  his  person,  that  it  was  humanity,  with  all  its 
weakness,  that  was  about  to  be  exposed  to  the  shafts  of  death.  At 
this  moment,  whilst  he  surveyed  death  with  a  steady  eye,  he  suffer¬ 
ed  the  apprehension  to  agitate  his  great  soul,  and  to  make  him  feel, 
as  it  were,  a  foretaste  of  the  agony  which  he  was  to  suffer  when  re¬ 
garding  it  face  to  face  in  the  garden  of  Olives.  We  see  here  a 
miniature  representation  of  that  doleful  scene,  in  those  words  which 
express  at  the  same  time  his  emotion,  his  prayer,  and  his  resigna¬ 
tion:  “Now  is  my  soul  troubled;  and  what  shall  I  say?  Father, 
save  me  from  this  hour.  But  for  this  cause  I  came  unto  this  hour.” 
Do  not,  therefore,  spare  me  ;  and,  since  you  must  be  glorified  by  my 
death,  whatever  it  may  cost  me,  “  Father,  glorify  thy  name.” 

Jesus,  whom  we  have  already  heard  saying  to  his  Father,  “  I  know 
that  thou  hearest  me  always,”  could  not  fail  to  be  heard  on  this  oc¬ 
casion.  It  is  true  that  he  could  not  obtain  both  these  requests,  which 
are  contradictory,  one  being  for  death,  and  the  other  that  he  might 
not  die.  But  the  latter  was  only  conditional  ;  and  it  was  not  heard  : 
the  other,  which  was  absolute,  was  heard,  for  at  that  instant  “  a  voice, 
therefore,  came  from  heaven  :  I  have  both  glorified  it,  and  will  glo¬ 
rify  it  again.” 

The  Father  had  already  glorified  his  name  by  the  incarnation  of 
his  Son  ;  he  was  to  glorify  it  still  more  by  his  death,  and  this  glory 
was,  at  the  same  time,  the  glory  of  the  Son  inseparable  from  that  of 
the  Father.  This  is  wrhat  was  meant  by  that  heavenly  voice,  whose 
sound  produced  such  a  startling  effect,  that  “  the  multitude,  there¬ 
fore,  that  stood  and  heard,  said  that  it  thundered.”  Those  who 
spoke  thus  had  not  distinguished  the  words,  perhaps  because  they 
were  strangers  who  did  not  understand  the  language  of  the  country, 
in  which  it  is  very  probable  that  the  voice  had  spoken.  Others, 


'fe#‘ 


THE  HISTOEY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PAET  H. 


\ 


L\ 


who  had  understood  the  sense  of  them,  said  :  “  An  angel  spoke  to 
him.”  As  the  Father. speaks  in  his  own  name,  it  is  more  likely  that 
the  voice  was  immediately  from  himself.  But  it  was  not  then  neces¬ 
sary  that  the  people  should  be  made  acquainted  with  this  circum¬ 
stance.  Wherefore,  confining  himself  to  that  which  it  was  more  im¬ 
portant  to  know,  “Jesus  answered:  This  [miraculous]  voice  came 
not  because  of  me,  but  for  your  sakes.” 

He  then  declares  in  what  manner  the  Father  and  the  Son  are 
about  to  be  glorified.  “Now  is  \Jie  said ]  the  judgment  of  the 
world:”  a  judgment  not  of  justice  and  of  rigor,  but  of  mercy  and  of 
grace  ;  since  in  consequence,  “  now  shall  the  prince  of  this  world  be 
cast  out”  (9),  and  the  world,  delivered  from  the  oppression  of  its  ty¬ 
rant,  shall  fall  again  under  the  domination  of  its  legitimate  king. 
The  manner  of  effecting  this  great  revolution  is  that  which  he  has 
already  pointed  out.  For  “  I,”  he  added,  “  if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the 
earth,  will  draw  all  things  to  myself.  Now  this  he  said  signifying 
what  death  he  should  die.” 

Whether  the  term  employed  was  the  popular  expression  for  the 
punishment  of  the  cross — whether  his  discourse  was  longer  and  more 
fully  developed  than  we  have  it  reported  (we  have  already  remark- 


(9)  The  demon  having  become  the  master,  or  rather  the  tyrant  of  men.  Man,  having 
allowed  himself  to  be  drawn  into  sin  by  the  devil,  deserved  to  be  subjected  to  him,  ac¬ 
cording  to  that  maxim  of  the  apostle  Saint  Peter  to  which  we  have  already  referred  :  he 
who  allows  himself  to  be  vanquished,  becomes  the  slave  of  him  who  has  vanquished. 
Not  that  Satan  thereby  deserved  to  become  his  master;  but  God  had  abandoned  guilty 
man  to  Satan,  in  the  same  way  as  human  justice  delivers  criminals  to  the  executioners. 
God  could  deliver  man  from  his  tyranny  without  doing  him  any  injustice,  as  the  prince, 
when  he  grants  a  pardon  to  the  criminal,  does  not  wrong  the  executioner  ;  but  God  wish¬ 
ed  that  the  devil  should  deserve  to  be  deprived  of  his  empire,  even  although  he  had  justly 
acquired  it.  The  devil  has  deserved  this  by  exercising  over  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  the  just 
by  excellence,  the  right  of  death,  which  he  only  possessed  over  sinners.  In  consequence, 
God  has  decreed  that  he  should  forfeit  all  the  rights  which  he  previously  held  over 
mankind.  It  is  this  judgment  passed  against  Satan  in  favor  of  the  world,  which  is  here 
termed  the  judgment  of  the  world. 

The  devil  has  now  no  longer  any  more  power  over  men  than  they  are  willing  to  let 
him  assume  ;  and  those  who,  before  the  coming  of  Jesus  Christ,  emancipated  themselves 
from  his  tyranny,  were  only  enabled  to  do  so  by  virtue  of  the  retrospective  virtue  of  the 
death  of  Jesus  Christ.  This  explains  in  two  words  why  the  devil  has  still  power  over 
men,  although  his  empire  has  been  destroyed  ;  and  why,  even  before  the  destruction  of 
his  empire,  some  men  were  free  from  his  domination. 


kfe# 


ed  that  there  is  ground  for  believing  that  Saint  John  often  gives  no 
more  than  an  abridgment  of  the  Saviour’s  words)  ;  whatever  be  the 
reason,  it  is  certain  that  his  words  were  understood;  for  “the  mul¬ 
titude  answered  him:  We  have  heard  out  of  the  law  that  Christ 
abideth  forever  :  and  how  sayest  thou,  the  Son  of  man  (10)  must  be 
lifted  up  ?  Who  is  this  Son  of  man  ?” 

These  people  spoke  the  truth,  but  not  the  whole  truth.  The 
death  of  Christ  is  not  less  clearly  predicted  than  his  temporal  reign. 
The  Holy  Ghost,  when  he  spoke  to  the  prophets,  had  revealed  to 
them  his  sufferings,  as  well  as  the  glory  which  was  to  succeed  them. 
But  the  Jews,  solicitous  to  gather  from  Scripture  every  thing  which 
was  glorious  to  their  Messiah,  were  ever  unwilling  to  notice  the  hu¬ 
miliations  so  often  predicted  for  him.  It  was  this  blindness  which 
caused  their  incredulity  and  their  reprobation.  Jesus  had  said  suf¬ 
ficient  to  them  on  this  point,  supposing  they  had  been  willing  to  lis¬ 
ten  to  him.  He  did  not  choose  to  repeat  it  to  them  again.  He  ex¬ 
horted  them  in  a  general  way  to  profit  by  present  grace,  because 
they  were  not  to  have  it  long,  and  that  then  they  were  to  be  deliv¬ 
ered  over  to  their  own  reprobate  sense.  He  therefore  said  to  them  : 
“Yet  a  little  while  the  light  is  among  you.  Walk  whilst  you  have 
the  light,  that  the  darkness  overtake  you  not.  He  that  walketh  in 
darkness  knoweth  not  whither  he  goeth.  Whilst  you  have  the 
light,  believe  in  the  light,  that  you  may  be  the  children  of  light. 
These  things  Jesus  spoke  ;  and  he  went  away  and  hid  himself  from 
them.” 


(10)  These  words,  the  Son  of  man,  are  not  found  in  the  discourse  of  the  Saviour,  which 
we  have  just  given.  However,  the  Jews  repeat  the  phrase  as  if  he  had  just  pronounced 
it.  A  convincing  proof  that  Saint  John  does  not  report  all  his  words. 


,  w  vy 

I 


7 


1 


INCREDULITY  OF  THE  JEWS. - THE  TIMID  CONDEMNED  WITH  THE  INCREDULOUS. - 

FROM  WHENCE  CAME  THE  BAPTISM  OF  JOHN. - PARABLE  OF  THE  TWO  SONS. - PAR¬ 

ABLE  OF  THE  VINEYARD  AND  THE  WICKED  HUSBANDMEN. 

During  the  few  days  which  still  remained  to  him,  Jesus  retired 
every  evening  to  Bethania,  where  he  passed  the  night,  and  returned 
in  the  morning  to  Jerusalem.  This  he  did,  lest  his  enemies  should 
anticipate  the  time  he  had  marked  out  to  be  betrayed  into  their 
hands.  He  knew  that  they  dared  not  arrest  him  during  the  day, 
for  fear  of  raising  an  insurrection  amongst  that  portion  of  the  people 
who  were  attached  to  him.  The  night  was  more  favorable  to  their 
designs  ;  and  it  was,  therefore,  under  cover  of  the  darkness  that  they 
did  lay  hold  of  him  ;  for  once  they  had  formed  the  resolution  of  ar¬ 
resting  him,  nothing  could  induce  them  to  lay  it  aside.  Their  ha¬ 
tred  had  caused  their  incredulity,  and  their  incredulity  increased 
with  their  hatred,  (a)  “  And  whereas  he  had  done  so  many  mira¬ 
cles  before  them,  they  believed  not  in  him,  that  the  saying  of  Isaias 
the  prophet  might  be  fulfilled  (1)  :  Lord,  who  hath  believed  our 
hearing  ?  And  to  whom  hath  the  arm  of  the  Lord  been  revealed  ? 

(a)  St.  John,  xii.  37— 50. 


(1)  The  Jews  were  not  incredulous  because  Isaias  had  foretold  their  incredulity;  but 
Isaias  had  foretold  that  they  would  be  incredulous  because  they  were  to  be  so.  The 
same  case  occurs  here  as  in  prescience,  which  is  not  the  cause  of  the  events  which  are  to 
occur  :  on  the  contrary,  the  events  which  are  to  happen  are  the  causes  of  the  foreknowl¬ 
edge.  We  have  already  noticed  how  it  frequently  occurs  in  Scripture  that  the  particle 
that  (“  ut”)  signifies,  not  that  one  thing  has  been  the  cause  of  the  other,  but  that  one  has 
occurred  after  the  other  :  hoc  post  hoc,  and  not  hoc  propter  hoc.  Heretics  have,  notwith¬ 
standing,  construed  that  (“ut”)  to  the  very  rigor  of  the  letter,  and  have  maintained,  con¬ 
sequently,  that  the  prophecy  of  Isaias  was  the  cause  of  the  incredulity  of  the  Jews  ;  that, 
by  not  believing,  they  had  insured  the  truth  of  the  Divine  oracles.  These  men  had  only 
one  step  more  to  take,  viz.,  to  assert  that,  by  rendering  this  sort  of  service  to  God,  they 
performed  a  laudable  and  meritorious  work  ;  nay,  they  even  went  beyond  this  step.  There 
is  no  extravagance  which  men  do  not  make  even  Scripture  put  forward,  when  they  wish 
to  explain  it  by  private  judgment,  and  not  according  to  the  sense  of  the  Church. 


7/t 


a  a  a  a  a  o  a  < 


CHAP.  Lm.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  409 

Therefore  they  could  not  believe,  because  Isaias  said  again  :  He  hath 
blinded  their  eyes,  and  hardened  their  hearts  (2),  that  they  should 
not  see  with  their  eyes,  nor  understand  with  their  heart,  and  be  con¬ 
verted,  and  I  should  heal  them.  These  things  said  Isaias  (3),  wdien 
he  saw  his  glory,  and  spoke  of  him.  However,  many  of  the  chief 
men  also  believed  in  him  ;  but  because  of  the  Pharisees,  they  did 
not  confess  him  (4),  that  they  might  not  be  cast  out  of  the  syna¬ 
gogue:  for  they  loved  the  glory  of  men  more  than  the  glory  of  • 
God.” 

The  latter  had  but  too  justly  merited  their  condemnation,  which 
is  found  expressed  in  these  last  words.  Their  case  was  one  of  those 
where  dissimulation  is  equivalent  to  infidelity,  and  where  not  to  con¬ 
fess  the  faith  is  to  deny  it.  We  may  remember  what  the  Pharisees 
said  when  speaking  of  the  Saviour  :  “  Hath  any  one  of  the  rulers 
believed  in  him  ?”  So  that,  by  not  declaring  themselves,  these  ru¬ 
lers  of  the  nation  authorized  this  reproach.  Whereas,  if  they  bad 
declared  themselves,  who  knows  but  the  great,  emboldened  by  many 
of  their  equals — and  the  lower  classes,  with  whom  the  example  of 
the  great  has  at  all  times  so  much  weight— might  have  declared  them¬ 
selves  in  greater  numbers,  and  with  more  intrepidity  ?  Who  knows 
but  the  priests  and  the  Pharisees,  seeing  the  Saviour’s  party  strength- 


(2)  God  does  not  either  blind  or  harden  directly  ;  but  he  does  so  by  withdrawing  his 
lights  and  his  graces.  The  consequence  is,  that  man  can  no  longer  either  see  or  hear  in 
matters  regarding  his  salvation  ;  which  inability  is  asserted  by  some  to  be  an  absolute 
impossibility,  and  by  others,  whose  opinion  is  more  generally  followed,  to  be  of  extreme 
difficulty.  We  must,  however,  believe  that  the  blindness  and  hardness  of  man’s  heart 
are  exclusively  his  own  fault.  According  to  this  expression  of  the  wise  man  (  Wis.  ii. 
21),  their  own  malice  blinded  them  ;  and  that  of  Saint  Augustin,  God  doth  not  abandon 
unless  he  be  abandoned. 

(3)  These  words  are  read  in  the  sixth  chapter  of  Isaias.  We  find  in  the  same  chap¬ 
ter  the  wondrous  vision  which  this  prophet  had.  He  not  only  saw  therein  the  Divine 
Essence,  but  the  Trinity  of  persons  was  also  revealed  to  him,  because  it  is  here  stated 
that  he  saw  the  glory  of  the  Son  ;  and  Saint  Paul  (Acts,  xxviii.)  makes  the  Holy  Ghost 
address  to  him  the  words  which  we  have  just  read.  No  text  proves  more  clearly  than 
this  the  Divinity  of  the  Saviour  ;  for  it  is  said  on  one  side  that  Isaias  saw  his  glory,  and 
on  the  other  hand  we  read  in  Isaias  the  whole  glory  which  this  prophet  saw — “  the 
Lord  sitting  upon  a  throne  high  and  elevated,  and  the  Seraphim  cried  one  to  another, 
and  said  :  Holy,  holy,  holy,  the  Lord  God  of  Hosts  ;  and  the  earth  is  full  of  his  glory.” 

(4)  With  reference  to  the  obligation  of  externally  professing  the  religion  of  which  we 
approve  in  our  heart,  see  note  1,  Part  I.  chap,  xxvii.  p.  210. 


410  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  [PART  II. 

enecl  by  tbe  number  and  by  the  quality  of  his  disciples,  would  have 
abandoned  the  design  of  destroying  him,  from  the  little  proba¬ 
bility  they  would  have  had  of  success  ?  Who  knows  even  but  the 
mass  of  the  nation  would  at  last  have  acknowledged  its  Messiah,  and 
thereby  prevented  its  own  ruin  and  reprobation  ?  What  crimes  and 
disasters  could  not  these  chief  men  have  prevented,  if  they  had  not 
allowed  themselves  to  be  governed  by  a  cowardly  human  respect  ? 
Hence  let  no  one  be  surprised  at  finding  here  their  condemnation, 
and  learning  that  their  eternal  lot  shall  be  in  “the  pool  burning 
with  fire  and  brimstone,”  where  Saint  John  places  “the  fearful” 
along  with  the  “  unbelieving”  (Apoc.  xxi.  8). 

Yet,  in  order  to  let  them  know  how  very  unreasonable  was  this 
criminal  timidity,  and,  moreover,  to  give  them  an  example  of  cour¬ 
age,  “  Jesus  raising  his  voice,  cried  and  said  :  He  that  believeth  in 
me  doth  not  believe  in  me  (5),  but  in  him  that  sent  me.”  Where¬ 
fore,  then,  blush  to  believe,  since  no  one  is  ashamed  to  believe  in 
God,  and  this  act  is  tantamount  to  so  believing.  But  this  reason 
was  much  more  forcible  with  regard  to  Jesus  Christ  than  any  of  the 
other  ambassadors  of  God.  The  latter  were,  in  point  of  fact,  only 
messengers,  whom  men  were,  notwithstanding,  bound  to  believe  as 
they  would  God  himself,  when  these  envoys  had  proved  by  mira¬ 
cles  the  truth  of  their  mission.  But  Jesus  Christ  being  of  the  same 
nature  as  God,  to  believe  in  him  was  believing  in  God  himself,  and 
not  merely  a  man  who  spoke  in  the  name  and  on  the  part  of  God. 
This  is  the  meaning  of  that  short  expression  which  the  Saviour  im¬ 
mediately  added  :  “  And  he  that  seeth  me,  seeth  him  that  sent 
me  (6).” 

He  afterwards  says  :  “  I  am  come  a  light  unto  the  world,  thaf 
whosoever  believeth  in  me  may  not  remain  in  darkness  ;”  that  is  to 
say,  in  order  that  he  may  be  enlightened,  for  so  this  expression  is 
commonly  understood.  But  here,  where  the  Saviour  instructs  those 


(5)  Doth  not  believe  in  me  alone.  This  fashion  of  speech  is  much  used  in  the  sacred 
language. 

(6)  He  seeth  the  Father  when  he  seeth  Jesus  Christ,  because  he  seeth  him  who  has 
the  Divine  nature,  which  is  common  to  him  with  the  Father.  He  did  not  see  Divinity 
itself,  which  is,  of  course,  imperceptible  to  the  eyes  of  the  body  ;  but  he  saw  him  who 
is  God,  and  who  is  one  and  the  same  with  God. 


P 


wlio  feared  to  allow  their  faith  to  become  manifest,  does  he  not  also 
wish  to  make  them  sensible  of  the  natural  opposition  existing  be¬ 
tween  this  luminous  faith  which  they  have  received,  and  the  dark¬ 
ness  with  which  they  were  anxious  to  cover  it  ? 

The  remainder  of  the  discourse  regards  the  incredulous.  “  If  any 
man,”  said  Jesus  to  them,  “  hear  my  words,  and  keep  them  not,  I  do 
not  judge  him  ;  for  I  came  not  to  judge  the  world,  but  to  save  the 
world.  He  that  despiseth  me,  and  receiveth  not  my  words,  hath 
one  that  judgeth  him.  The  word  that  I  have  spoken  (7),  the  same 
shall  judge  him  on  the  last  day,  for  I  have  not  spoken  of  myself  ; 
but  the  Father  who  sent  me,  he  gave  me  commandment  what  I 
should  say,  and  what  I  should  speak,  and  I  know  that  his  command¬ 
ment  is  life  everlasting.  The  things,  therefore,  that  I  speak  even  as 
the  Father  said  unto  me,  so  do  I  speak.” 


(7)  It  is  here  said  that  the  Word  shall  judge,  as  we  say  sometimes  that  the  law  con¬ 
demns.  It  is  easy  to  understand  that  it  is  not  the  law  which  pronounces  the  sentence  ; 
but  it  dictates  it,  as  it  were,  by  declaring  that  such  an  action  is  worthy  of,  or  shall  be 
punished  with,  such  a  penalty.  It  is  like  the  major  proposition  of  a  syllogism,  to 
which  the  judge,  after  the  information,  subjoins  the  minor:  such  a  man  has  committed 
this  act.  Whence  this  consequence  necessarily  follows  :  this  man  has  incurred  such  a 
penalty.  Thus,  this  expression  of  the  Saviour,  the  word  that  I  have  spoken,  the  same 
shall  judge  him  ;  far  from  excluding  the  person  of  the  judge,  supposes  it  on  the  contra¬ 
ry,  because  there  could  be  no  judgment  if  there  were  not,  besides  the  law,  some  person 
to  apply  it  to  such  an  act  and  to  such  a  party.  This  Word  which  shall  judge  the  un¬ 
believing  Jews  is  the  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ,  inasmuch  as  it  was  accompanied  by  mira¬ 
cles  which  confirmed  its  truth.  These  miracles,  proving  as  they  do  that  this  preaching 
is  from  God,  shall  equally  prove  that  those  who  have  rejected  it  have  resisted  God  him¬ 
self  ;  such  is  the  signification  of  the  Saviour’s  entire  discourse. 

This  same  word  shall  also  judge  those  who  have  had  faith,  but  who  have,  neverthe¬ 
less,  sinned  against  the  moral  precepts.  The  voluptuous  shall  be  judged  by  the  follow¬ 
ing  :  whosoever  shall  look  on  a  woman,  to  lust  after  her,  hath  already  committed  adul¬ 
tery  in  his  heart  ;  and  the  vindictive  by  this  other  :  love  your  enemies,  do  good  to  those 
who  hate  you,  pray  for  those  who  persecute  and  calumniate  you.  The  avaricious  shall 
be  judged  by  this  short  and  comprehensive  precept  :  you  cannot  serve  God  and  mam¬ 
mon  ;  and  if  they  have  failed  in  charity  towards  the  poor,  the  following  shall  also  be  set 
forth  against  them  :  the  good  which  you  have  failed  to  perform  towards  the  least  of  my 
brethren,  you  have  failed  to  perform  towards  me.  The  ambitious  shall  be  confounded 
by  these  words  :  if  you  do  not  become  as  little  children,  you  shall  not  enter  into  the 
kingdom  of  Heaven  ;  and  to  those  who  are  abusive  in  their  language,  these  words  shall 
be  repeated  :  whoever  shall  say  to  his  brother,  thou  fool  !  shall  be  in  danger  of  hell-fire. 
Let  each  one,  therefore,  judge  himself  now  by  these  words,  for  the  heavens  and  the  earth 
shall  pass  away,  but  these  words  shall  not  pass  away. 


srrm- 


m 


Ü  I 


412 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


•[part  n. 

Still  his  enemies  sought  incessantly  to  quarrel  with  him  ;  and  as 
they  could  detect  nothing  reprehensible  in  his  actions,  unless  per¬ 
haps  that  they  were  too  virtuous,  they  sought  to  find  fault  with  him 
on  the  subject  of  his  mission,  (a)  “On  one  of  the  days”  which 
elapsed  between  his  entry  into  Jerusalem  and  his  passion,  “  as  he 
was  teaching  the  people  in  the  temple,  and  preaching  the  Gospel, 
the  chief  priests  and  the  scribes,  with  the  ancients,  met  together, 
and  spoke  to  him,  saying  :  Tell  us  by  what  authority  dost  thou  these 
things  ?  or  who  is  he  that  hath  given  thee  this  authority  ?” 

He  had  so  often  said  that  he  acted  in  the  name  of  his  Father, 
that  they  ought  no  longer  to  have  feigned  ignorance  on  that  head. 
Moreover,  it  was  so  evident  that  he  who  gave  sight  to  the  blind,  and 
raised  the  dead,  must  have  spoken  and  acted  in  the  name  of  God 
alone,  that  nothing:  was  more  unreasonable  than  to  ask  him  such  a 
question.  They  were,  therefore,  unworthy  of  receiving  an  answer. 
Such  is  the  meaning  of  the  question  which  the  Saviour  put  to  them, 
which,  at  the  same  time  that  it  confounded  them,  placed  before  their 
eyes  another  proof  of  the  divinity  of  his  mission,  to  which  it  is  very 
likely  that  they  then  paid  no  attention,  (b)  He,  “  answering,  said 
to  them  :  I  will  also  ask  you  one  word,  which  if  you  shall  tell  me,  I 
will  also  tell  you  by  what  authority  I  do  these  things.  The  bap¬ 
tism  of  John,  whence  was  it?  From  heaven,  or  from  men?  An¬ 
swer  me.  But  they  thought  within  themselves,  saying  :  If  we  say 
from  heaven,  he  will  say  to  us  :  Why,  then,  did  you  not  believe  him  ? 
But  if  we  shall  say  from  men,  we  are  afraid  of  the  people  ;  the  whole 
people  will  stone  us,  for  they  are  persuaded  that  John  was  a  proph¬ 
et.  [Therefore]  answering  Jesus,  they  said:  We  know  not  whence 
it  was  (8).  And  Jesus  said  to  them  :  Neither  do  I  tell  you  by  what 
authority  I  do  these  things  (9).” 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xx.  1,  2. 

(b)  St.  Luke,  xx.  3-8  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  24-26  ;  St.  Mark,  xi.  30-33. 


(8)  They  were  forced  to  give  this  answer,  if  they  did  not  choose  to  retract,  or  to  run 
the  risk  of  being  stoned.  Nothing  but  extreme  necessity  can  make  learned  doctors  say  : 
We  hioio  not. 

(9)  He  would  have  told  it,  if  they  had  answered  with  sincerity  ;  but  we  have  seen 
that  the  answer  which  they  gave  was  not  the  true  one,  but  such  as  they  thought  best 
calculated  to  lead  them  out  of  the  difficulty  ;  its  truth  or  falsehood  concerned  them  but 


CHAP.  Lin.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  413 

At  bottom,  they  were  persuaded  that  the  mission  of  John  was  di¬ 
vine  ;  for  the  word  “  baptism”  comprises  here  the  entire  mission  of 
John,  designated  by  its  most  remarkable  constituent.  They  did 
not,  therefore,  any  more  than  the  people,  entertain  a  doubt  but  that 
John  was  a  prophet  ;  but  they  had  refused  to  listen  to  him,  because 
of  their  inordinate  pride.  These  proud  men  could  not  endure  other 
teachers  than  themselves  in  Israel,  and  this  also  was  the  reason  of 
their  implacable  enmity  towards  the  Saviour.  But  their  corruption 
was  a  still  greater  cause  of  their  indocility.  They  were  very  willing 
to  be  devout,  provided  that  it  interfered  not  with  their  inter¬ 
est  or  their  passions.  Numberless  prayers  and  observances,  with 
little  or  no  morality,  this  was  the  whole  of  their  religion.  Now, 
John  the  Baptist,  who  unceasingly  laid  before  their  eyes  the  princi¬ 
pal  duties  of  justice  and  of  charity,  and  required  that  they  who  had 
failed  in  their  performance  should  justify  themselves  by  the  confes¬ 
sion  of  their  crimes  and  by  a  public  profession  of  penance — a  preach¬ 
er  of  this  character  could  not  be  favorably  heard  by  them.  But 
what  other  inference  could  be  drawn  from  this,  except  that  they 
were  audacious  hypocrites,  who  were  equally  regardless  of  God  and 
of  man,  more  wicked  than  declared  sinners,  because  they  added  false¬ 
hood  to  malice  ;  and  more  incorrigible,  because,  whilst  setting  them¬ 
selves  forward  as  just  men,  they  were  very  far  from  acknowledging 
that  they  were  sinners  ?  Hence  Jesus  Christ  had  but  too  much  rea¬ 
son  for  addressing  them  in  the  following  manner,  continuing  what 
he  had  been  saying  : 

(a)  “  But  what  think  you  ?”  said  he  to  them,  in  order  to  render 
them  attentive,  and  because  he  wished  to  draw  their  condemnation 
from  their  own  lips.  “  A  certain  man  had  two  sons  ;  and  coming  to 
the  first,  he  said  :  Son,  go  work  to-day  in  my  vineyard.  He  answer¬ 
ing,  said  :  I  will  not  ;  but  afterwards  being  moved  with  repentance, 
he  went.  And  coming  to  the  other,  the  father  said  in  like  manner. 
He  answering,  said  :  I  go,  sir  ;  and  he  went  not.  Which  of  the  two 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  28-32. 


little.  An  habitual  disposition  to  frame  our  language  so  as  to  redound  to  our  own  ad> 
vantage,  without  regard  to  truth,  is,  even  when  we  do  speak  the  truth,  defiling  ourselves 
with  the  guilt  of  falsehood. 


c%r< 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


•[part  II. 


£\ 


did  the  father’s  will  ?  They  say  to  him  :  The  first  (10)  not  under¬ 
standing  as  yet  the  drift  of  the  Saviour’s  words.  Thereupon  “  Jesus 
saith  to  them:  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  that  the  publicans  (11)  and  the 
harlots  shall  go  into  the  kingdom  of  God  before  you.  For  John 
came  to  you  in  the  way  of  justice,  and  you  did  not  believe  him  ;  but 
the  publicans  and  harlots  believed  him  :  but  you,  seeing  it,  do  not 
even  afterwards  repent,  that  you  might  believe  him.” 

But,  not  content  with  having  rejected  the  precursor  of  the  Mes¬ 
siah,  they  had  come  to  the  resolution  (and  were  on  the  point  of  car¬ 
rying  it  out)  to  make  away  with  the  Messiah  himself.  The  preced¬ 
ing  parable  was  meant  to  reproach  them  with  the  first  of  these  two 
crimes  ;  the  following  is  meant  to  set  before  their  eyes  all  the  horror 
of  the  second  crime,  and  the  fearful  chastisements  which  it  must  ne¬ 
cessarily  entail  upon  them.  The  Saviour  had  hitherto  addressed  him¬ 
self  to  the  chief  priests  and  scribes  only,  because  it  was  they  alone, 
generally  speaking,  who  had  been  indocile  to  the  preaching  of  John. 
But  the  multitude  was  also  to  be  involved  in  the  crime  of  his  death. 
Hence  it  was  that,  directing  his  discourse  to  the  whole  of  his  audi¬ 
tory,  (a)  “  he  began  to  speak  this  parable  :  A  certain  householder 
planted  a  vineyard  (12).  \He\  made  a  hedge  round  about  it,  and 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xx.  9,  11,  13-15;  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  33,  34-40;  St.  Mark,  xii.  6. 


(10)  God,  who  knoweth  our  frame,  and  remembereth  that  we  are  dust  (Psalms,  c.  iv.), 
easily  forgives  the  first  moment  of  resistance,  when  at  the  second  moment,  which  is  that 
of  reflection,  we  acknowledge  our  fault,  and  return  lo  our  duty. 

(11)  An  extraordinary  profession  of  piety  seems  like  saying  to  God  that  one  is  dis¬ 
posed  to  do  all  that  he  wishes  :  a  scandalous  profession  of  libertinism  seems  to  say  to 
him,  on  the  contrary,  that  the  individual  has  shaken  off  his  yoke,  and  is  resolved  to  obey 
him  no  longer.  It  is  in  this  sense  that  the  publicans  are  represented  by  the  first  of  the 
two  sons,  and  the  Pharisees  by  the  second.  The  first,  from  the  moment  when  he  repented, 
becomes  better  than  the  second,  and  the  second  was  already  worse  than  the  first,  if,  at 
the  time  when  he  respectfully  promised  to  obey,  he  was  already  disposed  to  do  nothing 
of  the  kind. 

(12)  God  is  the  householder;  the  synagogue  is  the  vineyard.  Several  mystical  mean¬ 
ings  are  given  to  the  hedge,  the  press,  and  the  tower.  It  is  very  probable  that  Jesus 
Christ  only  wished  to  convey  that  God  had  spared  nothing  which  was  necessary,  in  or¬ 
der  that  his  vineyard  should  fructify,  according  to  this  expression  of  Isaias  :  What  could 
I  do  icith  my  vineyard ,  that  I  have  not  done  to  it  ?  The  outraged  and  massacred  ser¬ 
vants  are  the  prophets  down  to  John  the  Baptist,  inclusive.  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son 
who  is  here  stated  to  have  been  put  to  death  outside  of  the  vineyard,  that  is  to  say,  out- 


is  — 'Ar 


CHAP.  Lin.] 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CHEIST. 


dug  in  it  a  press,  and  built  a  tower.  [He]  let  it  out  to  husbandmen, 
and  went  abroad  into  a  strange  country  for  a  long  time.  At  the 
season  when  the  time  of  the  fruits  drew  nigh,  he  sent  to  the  hus¬ 
bandmen  a  servant  to  receive  of  the  husbandmen  of  the  fruits  of  the 
vineyard;  who,  having  laid  hands  upon  him,  beat  him,  and  sent 
him  away  empty.  Again  he  sent  another  servant,  and  they  beat 
him  also,  and  stoned  him,  and  they  wounded  him  in  the  head,  and, 
treating  him  reproachfully,  sent  him  away  empty.  And  again  he 
sent  the  third,  and  they  wounded  him  also,  and  cast  him  out,  and 
him  they  killed.  Again  he  sent  other  servants,,  more  than  the  for¬ 
mer,  of  whom  some  they  beat  and  others  they  killed.  Then  the 
lord  of  the  vineyard  said  :  What  shall  I  do  ?  I  will  send  my  be¬ 
loved  son;  it  may  be  (13),  when  they  see  him,  they  will  reverence 
him.  Therefore,  having  yet  one  son,  most  dear  to  him,  he  also  sent 
him  to  them  last  of  all,  saying:  They  will  reverence  my  son.  But 
the  husbandmen  seeing  the  son,  they  thought  within  themselves, 
saying  one  to  the  other  :  This  is  the  heir  ;  come,  let  us  kill  him,  that 
the  inheritance  may  be  ours.  So,  casting  him  out  of  the  vineyard, 
they  killed  him.  When,  therefore,  the  lord  of  the  vineyard  shall 
come,  what  shall  he  do  to  these  husbandmen  ?  They  say  to  him  : 
He  will  bring  these  evil  men  to  an  evil  end,  and  will  let  out  his 
vineyard  to  other  husbandmen,  that  they  shall  render  him  the  fruit 
in  due  season.” 

Thus,  without  knowing  it,  they  pronounced  the  sentence  of  their 
own  condemnation.  As  they  still  did  not  perceive  that  the  matter 
concerned  themselves,  they  gave  way  to  that  natural  sense  of  equity 
which  is  felt  by  all  men  when  they  have  no  interest  in  being  unjust. 
But  Jesus,  taking  up  their  decision,  said  :  (a)  “  He  will  come  and 
will  destroy  tho-se  husbandmen,  and  will  give  the  vineyard  to 
others.”  The  manner  in  which  he  pronounced  these  words  made 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xii.  9  ;  St.  Luke,  xx.  16,  17  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxi.  42-46. 

side  the  inclosure  of  the  walls  of  Jerusalem,  in  order  that  this  circumstance  of  his  pas¬ 
sion  should  be  found  to  have  been  foretold  like  the  others. 

(13)  This  man  said  it  may  be,  because  a  man  is  ignorant  of  what  may  occur  to  him. 
When  God  says  so,  it  is  not  from  ignorance  :  he  merely  expresses  the  possibility,  found¬ 
ed  on  the  free-will  of  man,  who  may  or  may  not  do  so.  See  note  4,  page  63,  chap.  ix. 
Part  I. 


lb#' 


1  1 

m  .  li 

III 

(T[ 


Tffiri  -j  j  |  'i'v) 


"I 


.[part  il 

them  at  last  sensible  that  they  were  merely  a  confirmation  of  the 
sentence  which  they  had  pronounced  against  themselves,  and  speak¬ 
ing  in  the  sudden  fear  with  which  they  were  seized,  “  God  forbid  ! 
they  hearing,  said  to  him.  But  he  looking  on  them,  said  :  What  is 
this,  then,  that  is  written  ?  Have  you  never  read  in  the  Scriptures  : 
The  stone  which  the  builders  rejected  (14),  the  same  is  become  the 
head  of  the  corner  (15)  ?  By  the  Lord  has  this  been  done  (16),  and 
it  is  wonderful  in  our  eyes.” 

It  is  well  understood,  even  if  He  had  not  expressly  said  so,  that 
he  was  the  corner-stone  which,  blinded  by  their  malice,  these  igno¬ 
rant  builders  rejected.  “Therefore,”  he  presently  added,  “I  say 
unto  you  that  the  kingdom  of  God  shall  be  taken  from  you  (17), 
and  shall  be  given  to  a  nation  yielding  the  fruits  thereof.  Whoso¬ 
ever  shall  fall  on  this  stone  shall  be  broken  ;  but  on  whomsoever  it 
shall  fall,  it  shall  grind  him  to  powder  (18).  When  the  chief  priests 
and  Pharisees  had  heard  his  parables,  they  knew  that  he  spoke  of 
them,  and  seeking  to  lay  hands  on  him,  they  feared  the  people,  be¬ 
cause  they  held  him  as  a  prophet.” 


(14)  These  words  are  taken  from  the  11 7th  Psalm.  Even  the  Jews  understood  them 
as  having  reference  to  the  Messiah  ;  this  is  the  reason  why  they  can  make  no  answer. 

(15)  Jesus  is  elsewhere  styled  the  foundation-stone.  He  is  also  termed  the  key  of 
the  arch.  He  is,  in  point  of  fact,  all  that  is  signified  by  these  different  expressions. 
Here  he  is  the  corner-stone,  because  he  joins  two  walls  previously  divided,  making  of 
the  two  but  one  single  edifice,  viz.,  he  combines  the  two  people,  Jew  and  Gentile,  so 
that  they  are  but  one  and  the  same  people. 

(16)  Rejected  by  men,  this  stone  is  placed  by  the  hand  of  God.  The  heavenly  Jeru¬ 
salem  shall  be  built  almost  entirely  of  the  stones  which  are  the  refuse  of  the  world — the 
disciples  who  follow  their  Master. 

(17)  Heaven  and  the  Church  are  styled  in  Scripture  the  kingdom  of  God.  It  is 
taken  in  both  these  senses  from  the  fall  of  the  Synagogue  ;  the  Synagogue  is  no  longer 
the  true  Church  which  gives  children  to  God,  and  heaven  is  irrevocably  closed  against  it. 

(18)  Those  who  strike  against  a  large  stone  do  not  hurt  the  stone;  they  hurt  them¬ 
selves  ;  if  this  stone  falls  from  above  on  any  one,  it  crushes  him.  The  Jews,  by  their 
opposition  to  Jesus  Christ,  have  not  injured  him,  but  themselves  alone  ;  for  they  have 
injured  themselves  in  their  spiritual  welfare,  since  they  have  deserved  to  be  no  longer 
the  people  of  God,  and  in  their  temporal  welfare,  by  the  frightful  calamities  which  were 
the  effect  and  the  chastisement  of  their  crime.  Behold  them  already  bruised  by  the 
stone  ;  but  on  the  last  day,  when  Jesus  Christ  shall  pronounce  against  them  the  sentence 
of  eternal  reprobation,  then  it  is  that  the  stone  shall  fall  upon  them  with  its  whole  weight, 
and  crush  them  into  powder. 


w 


£\. 


CHAP.  LTV.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


CHAPTER  LIY. 

parable  of  the  marriage  feast. — obligation  of  paying  the  tribute. — the 

RESURRECTION  PROVED. - THE  FIRST  COMMANDMENT  OF  THE  LAW  IS,  THE  LOVE  OF 

GOD  AND  OUR  NEIGHBOR. - THE  MESSIAH  IS  THE  SON  OF  DAVID,  AND  YET  HIS  LORD. 

The  actual  dispositions  of  the  rulers  of  the  Jewish  nation,  the 
crime  which  they  meditated  and  which  they  were  on  the  point  of 
perpetrating,  and  the  vengeance  which  the  Lord  was  subsequently 
to  wreak  upon  them,  constitute  the  principal  part  of  what  the  read¬ 
er  has  just  perused.  The  sequel  contains  the  history  of  what  was 
to  occur  immediately  after  the  Saviour’s  death.  We  here  see  his 
Gospel  preached,  and  once  more  rejected  by  the  Jews,  whether  in 
consequence  of  their  ancient  prejudices,  or  from  an  excessive  attach¬ 
ment  to  the  goods  of  the  earth,  from  which  those  who  obey  his  law 
must  be  entirely  detached.  Several  of  his  ministers  are  cruelly  put 
to  death  :  others,  called  the  Gentiles  (who  are  sent  in  place  of  the 
first),  throng  in  crowds  to  form  for  Jesus  Christ  a  Church  so  numer¬ 
ous  and  so  flourishing  that  it  indemnifies  him  a  hundred  times  over 
for  the  loss  of  the  obdurate  Synagogue.  But,  lest  these  new-comers 
might  fancy  that,  by  recognizing  him  for  the  Messiah,  they  had 
finally  secured  their  salvation,  he  introduced,  by  way  of  episode,  the 
parable  of  a  man  who  had  not  the  nuptial  robe,  in  order  to  teach 
them  that  faith  alone  does  not  save,  and  that  they  might  expect  to 
be  condemned  with  the  incredulous,  if  they  did  not  take  care  to 
preserve  the  innocence  which  they  received  in  baptism,  or  if,  after 
having  lost  it,  they  do  not  regain  it  by  sincere  repentance,  (a)  “Je¬ 
sus  spoke  to  them  again  in  parables,  saying  :  The  kingdom  of  heav¬ 
en  is  like  to  a  man  being  a  king  (1),  who  made  a  marriage  for  his 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  1-14. 


(1)  The  parable  of  the  great  supper,  which  we  have  already  seen,  page  327,  Part  IL, 
bears  so  close  a  resemblance  to  this,  that  some  have  thought,  and  with  great  probability, 
that  it  was  the  same  parable  spoken  but  once  by  the  Saviour,  and  related  by  two  evan¬ 
gelists,  with  the  same  circumstances,  more  or  less  varied.  Without  going  into  detail,  we 

27 


418 


TTIE  inSTOKT  OF  THE  LIFE 


[fart  n. 

son  (2)  ;  and  he  sent  his  servants  to  call  them  that  were  invited  to 
the  marriage  ;  and  they  would  not  come.  Again  he  sent  other  ser¬ 
vants,  saying:  Tell  them  that  were  invited:  Behold,  I  have  pre¬ 
pared  my  dinner:  my  beeves  and  fatlings  are  killed.  All  things 
are  ready  :  come  ye  to  the  wedding.  But  they  neglected,  and  went 
their  ways,  one  to  his  farm,  and  another  to  his  merchandise.  And 
the  rest  laid  hands  on  his  servants,  and  having  treated  them  contu- 
meliously,  put  them  to  death.  When  the  king  had  heard  of  it,  he 
was  angry,  and  sending  his  armies,  he  destroyed  those  murderers, 
and  burnt  their  city.  Then  he  saith  to  his  servants  :  The  wedding 
indeed  is  ready  ;  but  they  that  were  invited  were  not  worthy  ;  go 
ye,  therefore,  into  the  highways,  and  as  many  as  you  shall  find, 
invite  to  the  wedding.  His  servants  going  out  into  the  high¬ 
ways,  gathered  together  all  that  they  found,  both  bad  and  good, 
and  the  wedding  was  filled  with  guests.  The  king  went  in  to  see 
the  guests;  he  saw  there  a  man  who  had  not  on  a  wedding-gar¬ 
ment  ;  and  he  saith  to  him  :  Friend,  how  earnest  thou  in  hither,  not 
having  a  wedding-garment  ?  But  he  was  silent  (3).  Then  the  king 
said  to  the  waiters  :  Bind  his  hands  and  feet,  and  cast  him  into  the 
exterior  darkness  ;  there  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth. 
For  many  are  called,  but  few  are  chosen.” 


agree  that  these  circumstances  are  not  in  reality  essential  ;  that  in  point  of  fact  the  sub¬ 
stance  is  the  same  ;  that  the  sense  of  the  two  parables  is  also  the  same,  inasmuch  as,  on 
both  sides,  it  is  evidently  the  Church  formed  of  Gentiles  after  the  obstinate  refusal  of 
the  Jews  to  enter  into  it.  However,  it  appears  certain  that  Jesus  Christ  spoke  them  at 
different  times  and  in  different  places,  and  it  is  highly  probable  that  the  two  parables 
were  marked,  when  he  uttered  them,  by  the  same  difference  which  we  find  them  to  have 
in  the  sacred  writers. 

(2)  God  is  the  king,  Jesus  Christ  is  the  bridegroom,  and  the  Church  is  his  spouse. 
The  servants  are  the  preachers  of  the  Gospel.  The  guests  first  invited  are  the  Jews,  as 
we  have  said  ;  and  the  second  are  the  Gentiles,  who  embrace  the  faith.  They  are  the 
principal  portion  of  the  Church,  which  is  the  consort  ;  but  they  only  compose  it  collec¬ 
tively  ;  and,  taken  separately,  they  do  not  constitute  a  necessary  part,  because  there  is 
not  one  amongst  them  which  the  Church  may  not  lose  without  ceasing  to  be  the  Church. 
Witness  the  man  who  had  not  the  nuptial  garment,  whose  expulsion  deprived  the 
Church  of  none  of  her  integrity. 

(3)  If  he  be  silent,  how  can  he  justify  himself?  if  his  hands  are  tied,  how  can  he  re¬ 
sist  ?  acd  :f  his  feet  are  also  tied,  how  can  he  escape  by  flight  ?  This  is  said  in  order  to 
make  manifest  the  inevitable  effect  of  God’s  judgments  ;  for,  in  short,  there  can  be  only 
three  ways  of  securing  one’s  self — apology,  resistance,  or  flight. 


\ 


l4 


24 


% 


But  (a)  “  tlien  the  Pharisees,”  who  could  not  now  prevail  by  force, 
had  recourse  to  artifice:  “going,  [they]  consulted  amongst  ..the in- 
selves  how  to  ensnare  him  in  his  speech.  And  being  upon  the 
watch,  they  sent  spies,  who  should  feign  themselves  just.”  These 
emissaries  were  “  some  of  the  Pharisees,  and  their  disciples  with  the 
Herodians.”  We  have  said  that  this  was  in  order  to  ensnare  him 
in  his  speech,  “  that  they  might  deliver  him  up  to  the  authority  and 
power  of  the  governor.”  Seeing  in  him  but  an  ordinary  man,  they 
held  out  to  him  the  only  lure  by  which  all  men  are  caught,  which 
is  that  of  praise  ;  and  as  they  seemed  to  desire  that  he  would  speak 
to  ^  them  frankly  and  freely,  they  affected  to  praise  him  more  espe¬ 
cially  for  his  freedom  and  his  candor.  “  Who  coming,  say  to  him  : 
Master,  we  know  that  thou  art  a  true  speaker,  and  carest  not  for 
any  man.  For  thou  regardest  not  the  person  of  men,  but  teachest 
the  way  of  God  in  truth  (4).  Tell  us,  therefore,  what  dost  thou 
think,  is  it  lawful  to  give  tribute  to  Cesar,  or  not  ?” 

The  question  was  as  captious  as  it  could  possibly  be  ;  for  he  must 
either  have  answered  yes  or  no,  supposing  that  he  wished  to  give 
any  answer  ;  and  whatever  way  he  answered,  the  snare  appeared 
inevitable.  If  he  authorized  the  tribute,  besides  that  he  could  no 
longer  give  himself  out  to  be  the  Messiah,  who,  according  to  the 
common  belief,  was  to  emancipate  the  nation  from  every  species 
of  slavery,  they  might  also  avail  themselves  of  his  reply  in  order 
to  render  him  odious  to  the  people,  who  held  this  tribute  in  hor¬ 
ror.  Or,  if  he  denied  the  obligation  of  paying  it,  they  would  then 
denounce  him  at  once  to  the  governor,  who  would  cause  him  to  be 
punished  as  a  rebel.  The  trick  was,  therefore,  skilfully  devised. 
But  of  what  avail  is  subtlety  against  truth,  and  trickery  against  wis¬ 
dom  ?  (Z>)  “  Jesus,  knowing  their  wickedness,  said:  Why  do  you 

tempt  me,  ye  hypocrites  ?  Shew  me  the  coin  of  the  tribute.  They 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  15  ;  St.  Luke,  xx.  20  ;  St.  Mark,  xii.  13. 

(b)  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  18-21.  ' 

(4)  This  testimony  which  they  rendered  to  Jesus  Christ  was  true,  and,  therefore,  hon¬ 
orable  to  him.  If  given  by  well-meaning  persons,  it  would  have  deserved  acknowledg¬ 
ment  and  reward  from  the  Saviour  ;  but  being  thus  spoken,  it  was  as  criminal  as  the 
blackest  calumny  could  have  been.  We  here  see  what  a  difference  the  intention  makes 
in  the  same  action. 


II 

fa** 


25 


offered  him  a  penny.  Jesus  saith  to  them  :  Whose  image  and  in¬ 
scription  is  this  ?  They  say  to  him  :  Cesar’s.  Then  he  saith  to  them . 
Render,  therefore,  to  Cesar  the  things  that  are  Cesar’s  ;  and  to  God, 
the  things  that  are  God’s  (5).” 

This  reply  is  unanswerable.  For  since  the  current  coin  of  the 
country  was  stamped  with  Cesar’s  image,  they  therefore  acknowl¬ 
edged  Cesar  for  their  sovereign,  and  were  consequently  bound  to 
pay  him  tribute.  To  contest  this  would  be  acting  in  contradiction 
to  themselves.  On  the  other  hand,  if  they  had  pretended  that  the 
domination  of  Cesar  was  a  yoke  imposed  by  force,  and  which  they 
had  a  right  to  shake  off  at  any  time  if  they  found  themselves  able, 
they  themselves  would  thereby  avow  those  rebellious  principles 
which  were  really  cherished  in  their  hearts,  and  they  would  find 
themselves  caught  in  a  snare  which  they  had  laid  for  the  Saviour. 
They  remained,  therefore,  confused  and  silent,  for  (a)  “  they  could 
not  reprehend  his  word  before  the  people,”  nor  yet  before  the  gov¬ 
ernor  :  “  and  hearing  this,  they  wondered,  and  leaving  him,  went 
their  ways.” 

It  seems  that  after  this  victory  they  ventured  not  again  to  engage 
in  dispute  with  him.  Nevertheless,  though  the  Pharisees  were  si¬ 
lenced,  there  were  others  who  still  had  the  temerity  to  address  him. 
The  intention  of  the  latter,  however,  was  not  so  perverse  as  that  of 
the  former.  They  were  not  seeking  to  ruin  the  Saviour,  as  it  is  easy 
to  see  by  the  question  which  they  put  to  him.  What,  then,  was  their 
object  ?  To  puzzle  him,  who  answered  so  adroitly  the  most  subtle 
and  most  artful  questions.  There  is  every  reason  for  thinking  that 
such  was  their  design  ;  and  their  hope  of  succeeding  therein  was 
founded  upon  the  difficulty  of  the  problem  which  they  had  to  pro¬ 
pose  to  him.  They  deemed  this  problem  unanswerable,  and  no  man, 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xx.  26  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  22. 


(5)  Since  God  is  willing  to  make  the  tribute  a  matter  of  religion,  Cesar,  therefore, 
acts  only  in  like  manner  towards  God,  when  he  makes  the  service  of  God  an  affair  of 
State. 

Cesar  cannot  say  that  God  exacts  too  much  from  him,  when  he  requires  this  return  ; 
for,  after  all,  God  is  God,  and  Cesar  is  man. 

We  understand  by  Cesar  all  secular  powers,  and  by  the  tribute  all  the  duties  which 
inferiors  owe  to  them. 


II!!'.. 


; 


b-'M  w 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


CHAP.  LIV, 


m  Tm — 


in  their  opinion,  could  find  a  clue  to  it.  Thenceforward  the  acknowl¬ 
edged  wisdom  of  him  whom  they  were  going  to  puzzle  would  only 
serve  to  accredit  their  system,  and  to  increase  their  triumph.  How¬ 
ever,  this  was  exceedingly  frivolous,  as  are  all  the  reasonings  of  lib¬ 
ertinism,  for  these  people  were  declared  free-thinkers,  decided  ma¬ 
terialists  ;  they  were,  in  a  word,  (a)  “  Sadducees,  who  say  there  is  no 
resurrection,  who  came  to  him  that  day,  and  asked  him:  Master, 
Moses  wrrote  unto  us,  If  any  man’s  brother  die  having  a  wife,  and  he 
leave  no  children  (6),  his  brother  should  take  her  to  wife,  and  raise 
up  issue  to  his  brother.  There  were,  therefore,  seven  brethren  ;  and 
the  first  took  a  wife  and  died,  leaving  no  issue.  The  second  took 
her  to  wife,  and  he  also  died  childless.  The  third,  in  like  manner, 
took  her  ;  and  so  on  to  the  seventh,  and  they  left  no  children,  and 
died.  Last  of  all  the  woman  also  died.  At  the  resurrection,  there¬ 
fore,  when  they  shall  rise  again,  whose  wife  of  the  seven  shall  she 
be  ?  for  all  the  seven  had  her  to  wife.” 

The  difficulty  was,  in  reality,  the  same  for  two  as  for  seven;  but 
the  embarrassment  arising  from  the  seven  husbands  seemed  to  ren¬ 
der  the  resurrection  more  ridiculous,  and  we  know  what  strength 
ridicule  gives  to  objections  of  this  kind.  ( b )  “  Jesus  answering,  saith 
to  them  [gravely]  :  Do  ye  not,  therefore,  err,  because  ye  know  not 
the  Scriptures,  nor  the  power  of  God  ?  For  in  the  resurrection  they 
shall  neither  marry  nor  be  married,  but  shall  be  as  the  angels  of  God 
in  heaven  (7).  The  children  of  this  world  marry  and  are  given  in 

(а)  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  23,  24  ;  St.  Luke,  xx.  28-32  ;  St.  Mark,  xii.  23. 

(б)  St.  Mark,  xii.  24,  25  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  30  ;  St.  Luke,  xx.  34-36. 


(6)  See  Deuteronomy,  xxv.  5.  Brothers  alone  are  there  spoken  of  ;  but  we  see  by 
the  example  of  Booz  that,  when  there  were  no  surviving  brothers,  this  law  obliged  the 
next  of  kin  to  marry  the  widow  of  the  man  who  died  without  children,  and,  upon  his  re¬ 
fusal,  the  next  in  rotation  to  him.  Before  God  had  made  it  an  express  law,  this 
custom  was  already  established  in  the  family  of  the  patriarchs,  and  appears  to  have  ob¬ 
tained  therein  the  force  of  law,  as  we  are  further  informed  by  the  history  of  the  detesta¬ 
ble  children  of  Judas,  Her  and  Onan. 

(7)  That  is  to  say,  that  they  shall  be  pure  as  they  are,  unless  a  person  should  prefer 
to  say  that  they  shall  be  virgins  like  them  :  it  is  only  in  this  point  of  view  that  they  are 
here  compared  to  angels  ;  for  they  shall  have  bodies,  and  the  angels  shall  not  have  them. 
The  angels  have  no  sensible  pleasures,  and  they  shall  have  them.  True  it  is,  that  these 
bodies  shall  have  spiritual  qualities,  agility,  subtilty,  incorruptibility,  but  all  this  shall  not 


422  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  j\PART  Ef. 

marriage  ;  but  they  that  shall  be  accounted  worthy  of  that  world, 
and  of  the  resurrection  from  the  dead,  shall  neither  be  married  nor 
take  wives.  Neither  can  they  die  any  more,  for  they  are  equal  to 
the  angels,  and  are  the  children  of  God,  being  the  children  of  the 
resurrection.” 

This  last  expression  contains  a  very  profound  meaning.  The 
life  received  is  similar  to  that  of  those  who  confer  it.  Mortal  and 
corruptible  parents  confer  a  life  mortal  and  corruptible  like  their 
own.  God,  the  immediate  author  of  the  life  which  men  shall  receive 
by  the  resurrection,  shall  bestow  an  incorruptible  and  immortal  life 
like  unto  his  own.  Wherefore  they  shall  die  no  more,,  because,  be¬ 
ing  children  of  the  resurrection,  they  shall  be  the  children  of  God. 
Thenceforth  marriage  is  no  longer  to  exist,  for  it  was  established  to 
repair  the  work  of  death,  and  its  fruitfulness  is  a  substitute  for  im¬ 
mortality.  The  angels  who  are  immortal  do  not  marry;  neither 
shall  men  marry,  when  they  have  become  immortal  like  them,  and 
that  for  a  similar  reason  ;  such  are  the  reasons  which  the  Saviour 
here  advances,  when,  taking  advantage  of  this  occasion,  he  refines 
the  idea  which  we  should  entertain  of  future  felicity.  In  what  wan¬ 
ton  images  would  not  human  corruption  have  revelled,  if  it  had  been 
abandoned,  on  this  point,  to  itself!  we  may  judge  of  this  from  the 
Paradise  of  Mahomet. 

The  resurrection  remains  still  to  be  proved.  Jesus  proves  it  by 
Scripture,  because  it  was  by  Scripture  that  the  Sadducees  had  at¬ 
tacked  it  ;  and  as  these  heretics  recognized  only  the  five  books  of 
Moses,  he  takes  from  Exodus  the  text  wherewith  he  is  going  to  op¬ 
pose  them.  He  therefore  continues  thus  :  ( a )  “  Concerning  the  res¬ 
urrection  of  the  dead,  have  you  not  read  in  the  books  of  Moses  how 
in  the  bush  God  spoke  to  him,  saying  :  I  am  the  God  of  Abraham, 
the  God  of  Isaac,  and  the  God  of  Jacob  ?  -  He  is  not  the  God  of  the 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xii.  26,  27  ;  St.  Luke,  xx.  38-40;  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  31,  32. 


hinder  them  from  being  real  bodies  ;  and  the  perfect  purity  of  the  pleasures  will  not  in 
any  way  prevent  them  from  being  truly  sensible  pleasures.  We  have  no  knowledge  of 
these  pleasures,  and  it  would  be  impossible  for  us  to  imagine  them  ;  but  our  ignorance 
on  this  point  should  not  prevent  us  from  believing  that  after  the  resurrection  there  must 
be  sensible  pleasures  for  the  elect,  because  it  is  universally  admitted  that  the  repro¬ 
bate  are  to  endure  sensible  pains 


OF  OUE  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


423 


CHAP.  LIV.] 

dead  (8),  but  of  the  living;  for  all  live  to  him.  You,  therefore,  do 
greatly  err,”  he  said  to  them  once  more.  “  And  some  of  the  scribes 
answering,  said  to  him  :  Master,  thou  hast  said  well  ;  and  the  rnulti- 


(8)  Therefore  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  exist;  for  God  is  not  the  God  of  nothing. 
It  is  in  this  that  the  whole  force  of  this  reasoning  seems  to  lie  ;  therefore  they  shall  one 
day  rise  again.  This  second  consequence,  which  is  what  Jesus  Christ  had  to  prove 
against  the  Sadducees,  does  not  appear  so  necessarily  connected  with  the  principle  as  the 
first.  For,  inasmuch  as  God  is  the  God  of  Abraham,  of  Isaac,  and  of  Jacob,  we  may 
then  conclude  that  these  three  patriarchs  exist  as  souls,  and  that  their  souls  have  not 
been  annihilated  by  death  ;  but  it  does  not  follow  that,  when  once  separated  from  their 
bodies,  they  should  one  day  be  reunited  to  these  bodies,  since  there  was  nothing  to 
hinder  God  from  making  this  separation  eternal.  The  answer  we  give  to  this  is, 
that  the  Saviour’s  reasoning  was  peremptory  against  the  Sadducees,  who  did  not  ac¬ 
knowledge  any  spiritual  substance,  and  who  started  from  this  assumption  when  they 
proceeded  to  deny  the  resurrection,  because,  according  to  them,  the  soul  no  longer  exist¬ 
ing,  there  was  no  longer  any  thing  which  could  be  united  to  the  bodies,  whence  they 
concluded  that  the  resurrection  was  a  thing  impossible.  In  this  their  reasoning  was 
false  ;  for,  supposing  that  man  was  merely  a  pure  machine,  God  could  still  raise  up  that 
fallen  and  broken  machine,  and  restore  it  to  its  primitive  state.  The  resurrection  was 
not,  therefore,  impossible,  even  according  to  their  own  principle.  However,  Jesus  Christ 
only  applies  himself  to  deprive  them  of  this  principle,  because,  once  deprived  of  it,  they 
had  no  other  on  which  to  ground  the  consequence  which  they  drew  from  this  erroneous 
assumption;  and  this  is  the  reason  why  they  remained  silent.  Yet,  although  speaking 
with  metaphysical  precision,  the  immortality  of  the  soul  and  the  resurrection  of  the  body 
do  not  appear  to  depend  necessarily  one  upon  the  other,  still  they  did  then  so  depend, 
according  to  the  idea  adopted  by  the  entire  world,  and  the  second  was  inferred 
from  the  first.  This  was  the  manner  of  reasoning  pursued  at  that  time  ;  and  it  is  that 
of  Saint  Paul,  who  proves  the  resurrection  by  a  series  of  reasoning  which  only  appears 
to  tend  towards  proving  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  He  knew  that,  having  once  ad¬ 
mitted  this  truth,  people  would  not  pause  to  cavil  at  the  resurrection,  which  appeared 
to  be  a  necessary  consequence,  or,  at  least,  to  be  no  longer  open  to  any  real  objections. 
Therefore  these  frivolous  objections  were"  not  started  at  that  time,  and  they,  indeed,  are 
not  more  valid  than  the  ridiculous  problem  of  the  Sadducees?  How  reanimate  these 
withered  bones  ?  How  collect  ashes  dispersed  over  all  parts  of  the  earth  ?  And  be¬ 
sides,  if  men  eat  one  another,  as  the  cannibals  do,  or  if  the  substance  of  the  dead 
passes  into  that  of  the  living,  through  the  dead  bodies  which  serve  to  fertilize  the  earth, 
how  classify  all  those  portions  of  bodies  which  are  commingled  one  with  another  ?  Shall 
this  body  have  too  much,  or  that  other  body  too  little  ?  These  difficulties  all  revert  to 
this  reasoning  :  I,  who  am  a  weak,  blind,  impotent  creature,  could  never  get  clear  of  the 
difficulties  which  such  a  state  of  things  seems  to  present  ;  so  neither  can  God  do  it, 
though  he  is  infinite  in  wisdom  and  in  power.  In  restoring  to  us  at  the  resurrection-  the 
same  body  which  we  shall  have  had,  God  will  not  restore  to  us  all  the  matter  which 
shall  have  constituted  a  part  of  this  body  during  the  whole  course  of  our  Ijfe  ;  this  truth, 
if  we  study  it  a  little,  will  furnish  an  answer  to  all  the  difficulties  which  are  raised  against 
the  possibility  of  the  resurrection. 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


424 


[part  n. 


tudes  hearing  it,  were  in  admiration  with  his  doctrine,  and  after  that 
they  durst  not  ask  him  any  more  questions.” 

This  seems  to  allude  to  the  Sadducees,  who  could  make  him  no 
reply;  or,  if  we  wish  to  understand  it  as  having  reference  to  the 
Pharisees,  we  must  take  it  that  they  ceased  for  the  moment  to  inter¬ 
rogate  the  Saviour,  but  that  they  resumed  their  cavilling  very  soon 
after.  For  these  latter,  (a)  “  hearing  that  he  had  silenced  the  Sad¬ 
ducees,  came  together  ;  and  one  of  them,  a  doctor  of  the  law,  that 
had  heard  them  reasoning  together,  seeing  that  Jesus  had  answered 
them  well,  asked  him  :  Master,  which  is  the  great  commandment, 
the  first  commandment  of  all  ?”  It  is  added  that  he  put  this  ques¬ 
tion,  “  tempting  him.”  Did  they  then  suspect  him  of  making  light 
of  the  great  precept  of  the  love  of  God  ?  and  did  they  hope  to  find 
in  his  answer  the  means  of  calumniating  him  on  this  head  ?  The  ap¬ 
probation  which  the  Son  of  God  gave  to  this  man  prevents  us  from 
attributing  to  him  such  perverse  intentions  ;  and  if  it  be  said  that  he 
sought  to  tempt  him,  it  would  seem  as  if  this  meant  to  convey  that 
he  sought  to  test  his  wisdom  ;  that  is  to  say,  there  was  more  incre¬ 
dulity  than  malice  in  him.  ( b )  “Jesus  answered  him  :  The  first  com¬ 
mandment  of  all  is,  Hear,  O  Israel  !  the  Lord  thy  God  is  one  God  ; 
and  thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  thy  whole  heart,  and 
with  thy  whole  soul,  and  with  thy  whole  mind,  and  with  thy  whole 
strength  (9).  This  is  the  greatest  and  the  first  commandment.  And 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  34-36  ;  St. 
Mark,  xii.  28. 


(6)  St.  Mark,  xii.  29-34  ;  St.  Mat¬ 
thew,  xxii.  38-40. 


Supposing  that  a  man  begins  to-day  to  eat  another  man’s  body,  and  that  he  eats  it,  if 
it  were  possible,  even  to  the  very  bones — supposing,  then,  that  God  should  raise  him  up 
with  the  same  body  which  he  had  yesterday  ;  in  this  case  the  man  shall  be  resuscitated 
with  the  same  body  which  he  had  during  his  life,  and  in  this  body  there  will  not  he  an 
atom  of  that  other  body,  though  the  substance  thereof  shall  have  passed  wholly  and  en¬ 
tirely  into  his. 

(9)  See  what  has  been  said  with  reference  to  the  word  of  God  and  the  love  of  our 
neighbor,  in  notes  12  and  13  of  page  299  of  this  Part.  It  still  remains  to  be  explained 
why  it  is  said  that  the  commandment  of  the  love  of  our  neighbor  is  like  to  that  of  the 
love  of  God,  although  the  latter  be  the  first  and  the  greatest  of  all.  The  question  here 
is  not  concerning  natural  affection,  which  is  always  inferior,  and  very  often  contrary  to 
the  love  of  God.  The  only  question  raised  here  is  with  reference  to  the  love  of  charity, 
by  which  an  individual  loves  his  neighbor  in  God,  and  for  God.  I  love  him  because  he 
is  not  only  the  work  and  the  image  of  God,  but  the  child  of  God  ;  because  he  is  the 


rfe# 


the  second  is  like  to  this  :  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself. 
There  is  no  other  commandment  greater  than  these.  On  these  two 
commandments  dependeth  the  whole  law  and  the  prophets.  The 
Scribe  said  to  him  :  Well,  Master,  thou  hast  said  in  truth  that  there 
is  one  God,  and  there  is  no  other  besides  him  ;  that  he  should  be 
loved  with  the  whole  heart,  with  the  whole  understanding,  with  the 
whole  soul,  and  with  the  whole  strength  ;  and  to  love  one’s  neighbor 
as  one’s  self  is  a  greater  thing  than  all  holocausts  and  sacrifices.  Je¬ 
sus,  seeing  that  he  had  answered  wisely,  said  to  him  :  Thou  art  not 
far  from  the  kingdom  of  God.” 

After  having  satisfied  all  their  demands,  the  Saviour  wished  to 
question  them  in  his  turn,  and  to  display  before  their  eyes  one  of 
those  flashes  of  light,  wrhose  dazzling  radiance  manifested  his  divinity 
through  the  thick  cloud  of  his  humanity,  (a)  “  The  Pharisees  being 
gathered  together,  Jesus  asked  them  :  What  think  you  of  Christ  ? 
Whose  Son  is  he  ?  They  said  to  him  :  David’s.  Whereupon  he  an¬ 
swering,  said,  teaching  in  the  temple  :  How  do  the  Scribes  say  that 
Christ  is  the  Son  of  David  ?  For  David  himself  saith,  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  in  the  Book  of  Psalms  :  The  Lord  said  to  my  Lord  :  Sit  thou 
on  my  right  hand,  until  I  make  thy  enemies  thy  footstool.  David, 
therefore,  calleth  him  Lord;  and  whence  is  he  then  his  Son  (10)? 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxii.  41-46  ;  St.  Mark,  xii.  35-37  ;  St.  Luke,  xx.  42. 


brother  of  Jesus  Christ — the  living  member  of  that  adorable  head — the  son  of  his  grief, 
and  the  fruit  of  his  blood — called  to  share  eternally  with  him  his  throne  and  Iris  felicity. 
Now  it  is  easy  to  see  that,  whilst  loving  my  neighbor  from  these  motives,  it  is  God  and 
Jesus  Christ  that  I  love  in  his  person.  It  is  this  which  induced  theologians  to  say  that 
the  virtue  of  charity,  which  makes  us  love  God  for  God,  is  the  same  which  makes  us 
love  our  neighbor  for  God  ;  and  in  the  same  way  as  the  love  of  God  is  a  theological,  that 
is  to  say,  a  divine  virtue,  proposing  God  for  its  object,  so  likewise  charity  towards  our 
neighbor  is  also  a  theological  and  divine  virtue,  inasmuch  as  it  is  God  whom  we  love  in 
our  neighbor. 

God  has  so  much  love  for  men,  that  he  says  to  each  of  us  :  Love  them  on  my  account, 
and  I  shall  make  no  difference,  either  as  to  merit  or  as  to  recompense,  between  the  love 
which  you  shall  entertain  towards  them  and  that  which  you  shall  entertain  towards  my¬ 
self. 

If  God  should  say  to  us  :  Love  them  for  their  own  sake,  it  seems  that  hatred  might 
sometimes  be  just  and  reasonable  ;  but  God  removes  from  this  passion  every  reasonable 
and  equitable  pretext,  when  he  says  to  us  :  Love  them  for  my  sake. 

(10)  He  does  not  deny  that  he  is  the  Son  of  David;  but  he  declares  that  he  is  some- 


t-'fc  " 


» 


isM 


O  O  4  O  e 


426 


THE  niSTOKY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 

And  no  man  was  able  to  answer  him  a  word.  Neither  durst  any 
man  from  that  day  forth  ask  him  any  more  questions  ;  and  a  great 
multitude  heard  him  gladly.” 


CHAPTER  LV. 

TO  HEAR  THE  DOCTORS  OE  THE  LAW,  NOT  TO  IMITATE  THEM. - THE  SCRIBES  AND 

PHARISEES  ARE  CURSED. - THE  WIDOW’S  MITE. - THE  RUIN  OF  THE  TEMPLE  FORE¬ 
TOLD. - QUESTION  AS  TO  THE  TIME  OF  THE  RUIN  OF  JERUSALEM,  AND  OF  THE  END 

OF  THE  WORLD, 

The  censors  were  to  be  censured  in  their  turn.  Jesus  Christ,  be¬ 
fore  leaving  the  earth,  wished  to  make  them  thoroughly  known  to 
themselves  and  to  others  ;  to  themselves  for  the  purpose  of  convert¬ 
ing  them,  supposing  that  at  the  sight  of  their  own  vices,  laid  bare 
before  their  eyes,  they  might  yet  be  struck  with  remorse  ;  and  to 
others,  supposing  that  these  censors  should  not  be  converted,  yet  for 
the  purpose  of  arresting  the  progress  of  seduction,  by  unmasking 
the  seducers.  But,  inasmuch  as  these  perverse  men  were  still  the 
ordinary  interpreters  of  the  Mosaic  law — in  order  to  preserve  to 
them  the  authority  which  they  should  have  on  this  account  over  the 


thing  more.  David  certainly  calls  him  God  when  he  calls  him  his  Lord — royal  power 
acknowledging  no  other  Lord  than  God.  It  is  apparently  for  this  reason  that  Jesus 
Christ  only  quotes  this  passage  of  the  Psalm  in  proof  of  his  divinity.  All  the  other  char¬ 
acters  which  served  to  prove  his  divinity  are  to  be  found  concentrated  in  this  Psalm  :  his 
generation  from  the  bosom  of  his  Father — a  proof  of  his  consubstantiality  ;  his  sitting  at 
his  right  hand — a  mark  of  equality  ;  his  existence  anterior  to  all  the  stars — which  ex¬ 
presses  his  eternity  ;  his  absolute  empire  over  all  kings  and  over  all  people — which  be¬ 
longs  to  the  Divinity  alone.  We  see  here,  moreover,  his  quality — of  Eternal  Priest,  ac¬ 
cording  to  the  order  of  Melcliisedech — of  supreme  and  universal  Judge — of  Conqueror 
of  all  his  enemies,  who  lie  crushed  beneath  his  feet  ;  lastly,  his  sufferings,  by  which  it 
was  said  that  he  should  enter  into  his  glory.  We  should  observe  that  the  question  here 
is  of  the  Messiah  alone.  We  must  not  seek  here  for  mere  types,  for  Jesus  Christ  formal¬ 
ly  excludes  them  all,  and  refutes  beforehand  all  those  who  have  since  professed  to  dis¬ 
cover  them  throughout  all  this  Psalm.  The  modern  Jews  will  no  longer  have  it  that  the 
Messiah  is  the  object  of  this  divine  Psalm.  Their  fathers,  and  especially  those  who  lived 
in  the  time  of  Jesus  Christ,  never  entertained  a  doubt  on  the  subject. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


427 


CHAP.  LV.] 

minds  of  the  people,  the  Saviour  took  the  precaution  to  point  out 
beforehand  the  distinction  which  should  be  made  between  actions 
and  instructions,  between  the  chair  and  him  who  sits  therein. 
(a)  “  Then  Jesus  spoke  to  the  multitude  and  to  his  disciples,  and 
said  to  them  in  his  doctrine  :  The  Scribes  and  the  Pharisees  have 
sitten  on  the  chair  of  Moses.  All  things,  therefore,  whatsoever  they 
shall  say  to  you,  observe  and  do  ;  but  according  to  their  works  do 
ye  not,  for  they  say  and  do  not.  They  bind  insupportable  burdens 
and  lay  them  on  men’s  shoulders  ;  but  with  a  finger  of  their  own 
they  will  not  move  them.  And  all  their  works  they  do  for  to  be 
seen  of  men.  For  they  make  phylacteries  (1)  broad,  and  enlarge 
their  fringes.  They  love  the  first  places  at  feasts,  and  the  first  chairs 
in  the  synagogues,  and  salutations  in  the  market-place,  and  to  be 
called  by  men,  Rabbi.  Who  devour  the  houses  of  widows  under 
the  pretence  of  long  prayer.  These  shall  receive  greater  judgment, 
but  be  not  you,”  added  the  Divine  Master,  then  directing  his  dis¬ 
course  to  the  disciples  alone,  “  be  not  you  called  Rabbi  ;  for  one  is 
your  master,  and  all  you  are  brethren.  And  call  none  your  father 
upon  earth  ;  for  one  is  your  father  who  is  in  heaven  ;  neither  be  ye 
called  masters,  for  one  is  your  master,  Christ.” 

This  does  not  mean  to  convey  that  the  Saviour  here  prohibits 
those  titles  which  have  been  always  in  use,  without  any  one  ever 
thinking  of  being  scandalized  at  them.  But  he  wishes  that,  whilst 
we  recognize  fathers  and  masters  upon  earth,  we  should  at  the  same 
time  elevate  our  thoughts  to  the  Father,  by  excellence,  from  whom 
comes  all  paternity  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  and  to  the  first  of  all 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxiii.  1-10  ;  St.  Mark,  xi.  38. 


(1)  This  is  a  Greek  word.  Here  is  the  way  that  we  find  the  phylacteries  described  in 
the  Notes  of  Richard  Simon  on  the  New  Testament:  “The  phylacteries  are  made  in  or¬ 
der  to  preserve  four  sentences  extracted  from  the  law.  These  sentences  were  written 
upon  parchment,  and  inclosed  in  black  calf-skin,  in  a  little  square  form,  and  this  little 
square  is  between  two  strings,  to  which  it  is  attached.  When  the  Jews  say  their  pray¬ 
ers,  they  bind  their  head  with  these  strings,  so  that  the  square  which  is  in  the  middle 
falls  right  down  upon  the  forehead,  hanging  a  little  over  the  bridge  of  the  nose  ;  these 
are.  the  phylacteries  of  the  head  :  they  also  fix  similar  ones  to  the  bend  of  the  left  arm. 
The  Pharisees,  in  order  to  appear  persons  of  greater  worth,  affected  to  have  the  phylac¬ 
teries  broader  and  larger  than  the  other  Jews.” 


428  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  JpAET  n. 

masters,  from  whom  proceed  etli  all  light  and  all  knowledge.  For 
masters  here  below  are  but  faint  images  of  him,  incapable  of  instruct¬ 
ing  us  by  themselves,  and  can  only  do  it  in  a  salutary  way  when 
they  faithfully  repeat  the  things  which  they  have  learned  from  him. 
This  part  of  the  instruction  regards  the  common  people  ;  but  it  also 
had  for  its  main  object  to  warn  the  disciples  beforehand  against  phar- 
isaical  pride,  which  ambitiously  seeks  these  honorary  titles,  and  takes 
pleasure  therein.  This  is  the  reason  why  the  Saviour  concludes  the 
instruction  by  these  words  :  ( a )  “  Fie  that  is  greatest  among  you  shall 
be  your  servant  ;  and  whosoever  shall  exalt  himself  shall  be  humbled, 
and  he  that  shall  humble  himself  shall  be  exalted.” 

Then  returning  to  the  Pharisees,  from  whom  he  had  been  with¬ 
drawn  by  this  brief  digression,  he  went  on  to  add  fresh  reproaches  to 
those  which  he  had  already  heaped  upon  them,  and  forms  from  the 
whole,  as  it  were,  a  cloud  of  anathemas,  wherewith  he  is  going  to 
crush  them  in  these  tremendous  words:  “Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and 
Pharisees,  hypocrites  ;  because  you  shut  the  kingdom  of  heaven 
against  men.  For  you  yourselves  do  not  enter  in,  and  those  that  are 
going  in  you  suffer  not  to  enter  (2).  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Phari¬ 
sees,  hypocrites  ;  because  you  devour  the  houses  of  widows  (8),  pray¬ 
ing  long  prayers.  For  this  ye  shall  receive  the  greater  judgment. 
Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites;  because  you  go 
round  about  the  sea  and  the  land  to  make  one  proselyte  ;  and  when 
he  is  made,  you  make  him  the  child  of  hell  twofold  more  than  your¬ 
selves  (4).  Woe  to  you,  blind  guides,  who  say:  Whosoever  shall 
swear  by  the  temple,  it  is  nothing  ;  but  he  that  shall  swear  by  the 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxiii.  11-39. 


(2)  See  note  8,  page  307,  Part  II. 

(3)  Why  the  widows  more  than  any  other  women?  Because  they  are  usually  more 
given  to  piety,  and  they  are  the  mistresses  of  their  own  property.  We  see  that  the  hyp¬ 
ocrites  have  a  fine  opportunity  here. 

(4)  It  seems  that  the  masters  are  more  culpable  than  the  disciples,  and  that  a  greater 
punishment  is  due  to  them.  Yes,  if  the  disciples  do  not  become  masters  in  their  turn, 
which  causes  equality  of  malice  in  both  parties,  but  very  soon  the  disciples  surpass  the 
masters,  because,  in  order  to  secure  to  themselves  the  merit  of  invention,  they  add  addi¬ 
tional  dogmas  to  those  which  they  have  received,  and  they  thus  become  worse  than  their 
masters. 


I"  <w  'W|j 


CHAP.  LV.]  OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  429 

gold  of  the  temple  is  a  debtor.  Ye  foolish  and  blind;  for  whether 
is  it  greater,  the  gold,  or  the  temple  which  sanctifieth  the  gold  (5)  ? 
And  whosoever  shall  swear  by  the  altar,  it  is  nothing  ;  but  whoso¬ 
ever  shall  swear  by  the  gift  upon  it,  is  a  debtor.  Ye  blind  ;  for 
whether  is  greater,  the  gift,  or  the  altar  that  sanctifieth  the  gift  ? 
Ide,  therefore,  that  sweareth  by  the  altar,  sweareth  by  it,  and  by  all 
things  that  are  upon  it  ;  whosoever  shall  swear  by  the  temple,  swear¬ 
eth  by  it,  and  by  him  that  dwell eth  in  it  ;  and  he  that  sweareth  by 
heaven,  sweareth  by  the  throne  of  Grod,  and  by  him  that  sitteth 
thereon.  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites  ;  because 
you  tithe  mint,  and  anise,  and  cummin,  and  have  left  the  weightier 
things  of  the  law;  judgment,  and  mercy,  and  faith.  These  things 
you  ought  to  have  done,  and  not  leave  those  undone  (6).  Blind 
guides,  you  strain  at  a  gnat  and  swallow  a  camel.” 

“  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites  ;  because  you 
make  clean  the  outside  of  the  cup  and  of  the  dish,  but  within  you 
are  full  of  extortion  and  uncleanness.  Thou  blind  Pharisee,  first 
make  clean  the  inside  of  the  cup  and  of  the  dish,  that  the  outside 
may  become  clean.  Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites  ; 
because  you  are  like  the  whited  sepulchres  (7),  which  outwardly  ap¬ 
pear  to  men  beautiful,  but  within  are  full  of  dead  men’s  bones,  and 
of  all  filthiness.  So  you  also  outwardly,  indeed,  appear  to  men  just  ; 
but  within  you  are  full  of  hypocrisy  and  iniquity.” 

“Woe  to  you,  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites,  who  build  the 
sepulchres  of  the  prophets,  and  adorn  the  monuments  of  the  just, 
and  say  :  If  we  had  been  in  the  days  of  our  fathers,  we  would  not 
have  been  partakers  with  them  in  the  blood  of  the  prophets.  Where¬ 
fore  you  are  witnesses  against  yourselves  (8),  that  you  are  the  sons 
of  them  who  killed  the  prophets.  Fill  ye  up,  then,  the  measure  of 


(5)  Many  Pharisees  belonged  to  the  sacerdotal  order  ;  now  amongst  the  oaths  which 
were  obligatory,  some  were  profitable  to  the  priests,  and  there  were  others  from  which 
they  derived  no  advantage.  This  single  difference  constituted,  according  to  the  decisions 
of  these  worthy  men,  the  whole  difference  between  serious  oaths  and  those  which  were 
of  minor  consequence. 

(6)  See  page  305,  Part  II.,  and  note  3,  connected  with  the  same  passage. 

(7)  See  page  305,  Part  II. 

(8)  See  page  305,  Part  II. 


430 


THE  IIISTOEY  OF  THE  LIEE 


‘  [part  H. 

your  fathers.  You  serpents,  generation  of  vipers,  how  will  you  es¬ 
cape  the  judgment  of  hell?  Therefore  behold,  I  send  to  you  proph¬ 
ets,  and  wise  men,  and  Scribes  ;  and  some  of  them  you  will  put  to 
death,  and  crucify,  and  some  you  will  scourge  in  your  synagogues, 
and  persecute  them  from  city  to  city  :  that  upon  you  may  come  all 
the  just  blood  that  hath  been  shed  upon  the  earth,  from  the  blood 
of  Abel  the  just  (9),  even  unto  the  blood  of  Zacharias  the  son  of 
Barachias  (10),  whom  you  killed  between  the  temple  and  the  altar. 
Amen,  I  say  to  you,  all  these  things  shall  come  upon  this  generation. 
O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  thou  that  killest  the  prophets,  and  stonest 
them  that  are  sent  unto  thee,  how  often  would  I  have  gathered  to¬ 
gether  thy  children,  as  the  hen  gathereth  her  chickens  under  her 
wings,  and  thou  wouldst  not.  Behold,  your  house  shall  be  left  to 
you  desolate  ;  for  I  say  to  you,  you  shall  not  see  me  henceforth  till 
you  say  :  Blessed  is  he  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.” 

After  a  discourse  so  long  and  so  vehement,  the  Saviour,  who  con¬ 
descended  to  feel  fatigued,  had  need  of  some  short  repose.  But  his 
repose  was  not  less  useful  than  his  labor,  (a)  “  And  Jesus,  sitting 
over  against  the  treasury,  beheld  how  the  people  cast  money  into 
the  treasury  ;  many  that  were  rich  cast  in  much  ;  there  came  a  cer¬ 
tain  poor  widow,  and  she  cast  in  two  mites,  which  make  a  farthing.” 
A  thing  so  trifling  in  appearance  furnished  the  occasion  for  one  of 
the  most  sublime  instructions  contained  in  the  Gospel.  “  Calling  his 
disciples  together,  he  saith  to  them  :  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  this  poor 
widow  hath  cast  in  more  than  all  they  who  have  cast  into  the  treas¬ 
ury  ;  for  all  they  did  cast  in  of  their  abundance,  but  she  of  her  want 
cast  in  all  she  had,  even  her  whole  living.”  Men,  whose  wants  are 
great,  only  value  great  things.  God,  who  is  in  want  of  nothing, 
values  only  greatness  of  heart.  In  the  offerings  which  we  make  to 

(ct)  St.  Mark,  xii.  41-44. 


(9)  See  note  V,  page  307,  Part  II. 

(10)  We  find  in  Scripture  one  Zacharias  killed  between  the  temple  and  the  altar,  but 
he  was  the  son  of  Joiada;  we  find  another,  the  son  of  Barachias;  but  in  his  time,  says 
Saint  Jerome,  the  ruins  of  the  temple  were  scarcely  visible.  The  most  common  opinion 
is,  that  he  who  is  referred  to  here  is  the  first,  whose  father,  Joiada,  had  also  the  name 
of  Barachias. 


C1IAP.  LV.] 


him,  lie  regards  not  the  hand,  but  the  heart  ;  and  if  the  heart  be 
generous,  the  smallest  gift  acquires  in  his  sight  the  value  of  a  rich 
treasure.  Let  not,  therefore,  the  rich  man  pride  himself  because  of 
his  great  donations  ;  they  may  be  given  without  any  high  degree  of 
merit,  and  with  but  small  generosity  ;  and  let  not  the  poor  man 
think  himself  deprived  of  the  merit  of  giving  because  he  has 
little  to  give.  In  giving  all  that  he  has,  he  gives  much  more  than 
he  who,  whilst  he  gives  much,  still  reserves  for  himself  more  than  he 
gives.  The  reason  of  this  is  explained  by  the  Saviour  :  it  costs  but 
little  to  give  from  a  person’s  superfluity  ;  but  to  deprive  himself  of 
what  is  necessary  can  only  proceed  from  unlimited  generosity. 

The  Saviour,  before  he  gave  this  instruction  to  his  disciples,  had 
foretold  to  the  Jews  the  impending  ruin  of  Jerusalem,  and  of  the 
temple,  for  such  is  the  meaning  given  to  this  expression  which  he 
had  just  used:  “Behold,  your  house  shall  be  left  to  you  desolate.” 
If  we  believe  the  majority  of  interpreters,  this  fearful  prediction 
gave  rise  to  the  following  conversation,  which  only  served  to  con¬ 
firm  it,  by  repeating  it  in  terms  still  more  precise  and  more  ener¬ 
getic  :  (a)  “  Jesus  being  come  out  of  the  temple,  went  away  :  and  his 
disciples  came  to  show  him  the  buildings  of  the  temple  according 
to  the  interpretation  which  we  have  adopted,  their  intention  was  to 
make  him  revoke  the  sentence  which  he  had  pronounced  against 
that  superb  edifice.  They  spoke  of  it,  therefore,  with  this  design  : 
(Jj)  “  And  some  saying  of  the  temple  that  it  was  adorned  with  good¬ 
ly  stones  and  gifts,  one  of  his  disciples  saith  to  him  :  Master,  behold 
what  manner  of  stones,  and  what  buildings  are  here  !  Jesus  answer¬ 
ing,  said  to  him  :  Seest  thou  all  these  great  buildings  ?  Amen,  I  say 
to  you,  these  things  which  you  see,  the  days  will  come  in  which  there 
shall  not  be  left  a  stone  upon  a  stone  that  shall  not  be  thrown 
down  (11).” 

(а)  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  1. 

(б)  St.  Luke,  xxi.  5,  6  ;  St.  Mark,  xiii.  1,  2  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  2. 


(11)  This  prediction  contains  nothing  hyperbolical.  The  Romans  had  burned  and 
levelled  the  temple,  but  the  foundations  were  remaining.  Julian  the  Apostate,  having 
granted  to  the  Jews  permission  to  rebuild  it,  the  latter  commenced  by  uprooting  the  an¬ 
cient  foundations,  in  order  to  substitute  new  ones.  The  work  was  not  completed,  when 


Ha 


432 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


‘  [part  H. 

God,  although,  not  subject  to  change,  alters,  nevertheless,  his  de¬ 
crees  when  men  become  perverse.  This  he  did  with  regard  to  con¬ 
verted  Nineveh,  and  he  would  have  done  the  same  towards  the  Jews, 
if  they  had  sought  to  obtain  their  pardon  by  similar  penance.  But 
their  anticipated  obduracy  rendered  irrevocable  the  sentence  which 
had  just  been  pronounced  against  them.  The  positive  manner  in 
which  the  Saviour  repeated  it,  made  it  intelligible  to  the  apostles, 
who  now  only  required  to  know  the  period  of  its  execution. 

They  began  to  consider  the  means  of  obtaining  this  information, 
and  in  the  mean  time  they  continued  their  journey.  They  soon 
reached  their  destination,  (a)  “  and  as  he  sat  on  the  Mount  of  Olivet, 
opposite  the  temple,”  the  occasion  was  favorable  for  alluding  to  it. 
“The  disciples  came  to  him  privately,  and  Peter,  and  James,  and 
John,  and  Andrew  asked  him:  Master,  tell  us  when  shall  these 
things  be,  and  what  shall  be  the  sign  when  all  those  things  shall  be¬ 
gin  to  be  fulfilled  ?  what  shall  be  the  sign  of  thy  coming,  and  of  the 
consummation  of  the  world  ?” 

This  inquiry  had  two  objects — the  destruction  of  the  temple  and 
the  end  of  the  world,  which  was  to  be  preceded  by  the  coming  of 
Jesus  Christ,  as  he  himself  had  so  often  foretold.  The  apostles,  it 
seems,  entertained  the  notion  that  these  events  were  to  happen  about 
the  same  time.  The  cause  of  this  error  may  have  been,  that  Jesus 
Christ  had  associated  them  in  the  prediction  which  he  made  concern¬ 
ing  them.  However,  he  had  only  done  so  because  of  several  fea¬ 
tures  of  resemblance  which  were  found  between  the  destruction  of 
the  Jewish  nation  and  that  of  the  universe,  and  because  the  first  was 
to  be  the  figure  of  the  second.  But  we  know  that  he  did  not  wish 
the  period  of  his  last  coming  to  be  known,  but  only  that  it  might 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xiii.  3,  4  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  3  ;  St.  Luke,  xxi.  7. 


waving  masses  of  fire  issued  from  the  earth,  carrying  off  the  remains  of  the  foundations 
of  the  accursed  temple,  and  consuming  several  of  the  workmen,  which  compelled  the 
Jews  to  abandon  the  enterpiise.  Let  us  remark  that  Julian  had  permitted  the  Jews  to 
rebuild  the  temple  with  the  avowed  object  of  falsifying  the  prediction  of  Jesus  Christ, 
that  it  was  these  same  Jews  who  had  labored  with  their  own  hands  to  effect  the  entire 
accomplishment  of  the  prophecy,  and  we  shall  then  see  what  men  can  dp  when  opposed 
to  God. 


A 


\ 


be  foreseen  when  it  began  to  approach.  We  may  almost  say  the 
same  of  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem  and  the  destruction  of  the  Synagogue, 
the  precise  time  of  which  he  never  made  known,  although  he  clearly 
insinuated  that  the  time  was  not  far  distant.  He  does  not,  there¬ 
fore,  undeceive  his  disciples  ;  and  having  rather  in  view  to  instruct 
his  Church  than  to  satisfy  their  curiosity,  he  goes  on  to  inform  them 
by  what  marks  men  may  recognize  the  approach  of  these  two  great 
events.  We  have  already  said  that  they  are  sometimes  represented 
by  characters  which  are  common  to  both,  sometimes  distinguished 
by  others  which  are  peculiar  to  each.  An  attentive  reader  will  find 
it  easy  to  distinguish  between  them,  and  will  at  once  remark  that 
the  first  part  of  the  prophecy  applies  almost  exclusively  to  the  ruin 
of  Jerusalem,  and  the  second  to  the  last  coming  of  Jesus  Christ, 
who  thus  commences  to  speak  of  it,  in  answer  to  the  question  which 
the  disciples  had  just  put  to  him. 


CHAPTER  LYI. 

FORERUNNING  SIGNS. - SIGN  OF  THE  SON  OF  MAN. - THE  LAST  TRUMITST. - THE  ELECT 

GATHERED  TOGETHER. - VIGILANCE  ALWAYS  NECESSARY.— ONE  TAKEN,  ANOTHER 

LEFT. 

(a)  “  Take  heed,  lest  any  man  seduce  you  :  for  many  will  come  in 
my  name,  saying  :  I  am  Christ  (1)  ;  and  the  time  is  at  hand.  They 
will  seduce  many  ;  go  ye  not,  therefore,  after  them.” 

( b )  “  When  you  shall  hear  of  wars  and  seditions,  be  not  terrified. 
These  things  must  first  come  to  pass,  but  the  end  is  not  yet  present- 

( a )  St.  Mark,  xiii.  5,  6  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  5  ;  St.  Luke,  xxi.  8. 

( b )  St.  Luke,  xxi.  9-11  ;  St.  Matt.  xxiv.  8  ;  St.  Luke,  xxi.  12-15  ;  St.  Mark,  xiii.  9-11. 


(1)  Even  now  there  are  become  many  Antichrists,  said  the  apostle  Saint  John,  ep.  1, 
chap.  2  ;  in  point  of  fact,  there  appeared  several  false  Messiahs,  from  the  death  of  Jesus 
Christ  till  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  There  shall  appear  many  more  before  the  end 
of  the  world  besides  him  who  is  called  the  Antichrist,  by  excellence  ;  this  mark  is  com- 

28 


434 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 

ly.  Then  he  said  to  them:  Nation  shall  rise  against  nation,  and 
kingdom  against  kingdom.  There  shall  be  great  earthquakes  in  di¬ 
vers  places,  and  pestilences  and  famines,  and  terrors  from  heaven, 
and  there  shall  be  great  signs  (2).  Now  all  these  things  are  the  be¬ 
ginning  of  sorrows  ;  but  before  all  these  things  (3)  they  will  lay 
their  hands  on  you;  and  persecute  you,  delivering  you  up  to  the 
synagogues  and  into  prisons.  Look  to  yourselves,  for  they  shall  de¬ 
liver  you  up  to  councils,  and  in  the  synagogues  you  shall  be  beaten, 
and  you  shall  stand  before  governors  and  kings  for  my  sake,  for  a 
testimony  unto  them.  Lay  it  up,  therefore,  in  your  hearts,  when 
they  shall  lead  you  and  deliver  you  up,  not  to  meditate  before  how 
you  shall  answer  ;  but  whatsoever  shall  be  given  ye  in  that  hour 
speak  ye.  For  I  shall  give  you  a  mouth'  and  wisdom  which  all  your 
enemies  shall  not  be  able  to  resist  and  gainsay  (4)  ;  for  it  is  not  you 
that  speak,  but  the  Holy  Ghost  (5).” 


(2)  History  attests  that  all  those  scourges  preceded  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem.  In  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles,  chap,  xi.,  mention  is  made  of  the  famine  which  was  spread  over 
the  entire  world  during  the  time  of  the  Emperor  Claudius.  After  famine  comes  plague, 
says  a  Greek  proverb.  Eusebius  speaks  of  three  Asiatic  cities  which  were  levelled  by 
an  earthquake,  and  Josephus,  of  prodigies  and  heavenly  signs,  such  as  had  never  before 
appeared.  After  the  death  of  Nero,  the  whole  Roman  empire  was  a  prey  to  the  wars 
which  were  excited  by  the  different  princes  who  successively  disputed  the  empire.  It 
is  well  known  that  these  scourges  made  much  more  terrible  ravages  in  Judea  than  in  the 
rest  of  the  world.  These  scourges,  in  their  turn,  are  but  the  feeble  image  of  those  which 
shall  desolate  the  universe  previous  to  its  dissolution.  The  past  is  a  guarantee  for  the 
future,  and  what  has  been  certifies  for  that  which  is  yet  to  come. 

(3)  What  follows  is  a  repetition  of  the  prediction  which  Jesus  Christ  made  to  his  apos¬ 
tles,  and  of  the  instructions  which  he  gave  them  immediately  after  he  had  chosen  them. 
See  what  may  require  explanation  at  page  181,  et  seq.,  Part  I.,  and  the  notes  thereto  ap¬ 
pended. 

(4)  This  will  only  render  them  the  more  furious  ;  for,  when  you  strip  passion  of  all  the 
appearances  under  which  it  endeavored  to  disguise  itself,  it  no  longer  affects  any  thing, 
because  it  has  no  longer  any  thing  to  lose,  and  it  then  seems  to  say  :  I  still  wished  to 
appear  just  and  reasonable  to  a  certain  extent  ;  but,  since  your  answers  no  longer  leave 
me  this  resource,  I  throw  off  the  mask,  and  manifest  myself  openly  for  what  I  am — in¬ 
iquity  and  fury.  Nevertheless,  confess,  0  ye  confessors  !  and  fear  not  to  increase  the 
rage  of  these  tigers  thirsting  for  your  blood.  What  matter  should  your  bodies  be  butch¬ 
ered  and  hacked  to  pieces  ;  but  it  is  a  matter  of  paramount  importance  that  iniquity 
should  have  its  mouth  closed,  and  that  truth  should  triumph. 

(5)  We  have  several  of  these  answers  in  the  acts  of  the  martyrs,  and  it  is  easy  to  recog¬ 
nize  therein  the  Spirit  of  strength  and  truth,  by  whom  they  were  suggested.  After  so 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


435 


CHAP.  LVI.] 

But  what  shall  affect  them  more  than  all,  and  what  they  must, 
nevertheless,  expect,  is,  adds  the  Saviour,  that  (a)  “  you  shall  be  be¬ 
trayed  by  your  parents  and  brethren,  and  kinsmen  and  friends,  and 
some  of  you  will  they  put  to  death.  And  the  brother  shall  betray 
his  brother  unto  death,  and  the  father  his  son.  And  the  children 
shall  rise  up  against  the  parents,  and  shall  work  their  death,  and 
you  shall  be  hated  by  all  men  for  my  name’s  sake.  Then  shall  many 
be  scandalized,  and  shall  betray  one  another,  and  shall  hate  one  an¬ 
other  (6).  And  many  false  prophets  shall  rise,  and  shall  seduce 
many,  and  because  iniquity  hath  abounded  (7),  the  charity  of  many 
shall  grow  cold  ;  but  he  that  shall  persevere  to  the  end  he  shall  be 
saved.  But  a  hair  of  your  head  shall  not  perish  (8).  In  your  pa¬ 
tience  you  shall  possess  your  souls  (9).  This  Gospel  of  the  kingdom 
shall  be  preached  to  the  whole  world  (10),  for  a  testimony  to  all  na¬ 
tions  ;  and  then  shall  the  consummation  come.” 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxi.  16,  17  ;  St.  Mark,  xiii.  12-14;  St.  Matthew,  xiv.  10. 


authentic  a  promise  of  divine  inspiration,  may  we  not  in  some  measure  regard  them  as  a 
second  Revelation  ? 

(6)  Those  who  shall  have  fallen  will  deliver  up  those  who  shall  remain  faithful,  and 
will  hate  them  even  unto  death.  This  is  the  hatred  of  renegades,  always  more  envenom¬ 
ed  and  more  implacable  than  that  of  the  persecuting  infidel. 

(7)  Iniquity  here  signifies  persecution,  because  this  persecution  shall  be  very  furious  ; 
the  fear  of  being  exposed  to  it  shall  be  the  cause  why  many  of  your  brethren  will  not 
venture  to  exercise  charity  towards  you.  It  is  in  the  same  sense,  that  is  to  say,  with 
reference  to  charity  towards  our  neighbors,  that  we  usually  say  that  charity  hath  waxed 
cold. 

(8)  A  great  source  of  confidence  for  men  when  attacked  by  a  host  of  enemies,  and 
abandoned  by  their  brethren.  God  has  numbered  all  the  hairs  of  their  head,  and  not 
one  of  them  shall  be  taken  without  his  permission.  Here  is  the  reason  why  it  is  said 
that  not  one  of  them  shall  be  lost  ;  and  this  text  serves  also  to  prove  the  resurrection. 

(9)  You  shall  possess  your  souls;  that  is  to  say,  you  shall  preserve  and  save  them. 
Sufferings  shall  save  those  only  who  suffer  with  patience  ;  they  damn  the  impatient  and 
the  unresigned. 

Notwithstanding  this,  however,  sufferings  are  very  desirable  in  order  to  attain  salva¬ 
tion,  inasmuch  as  adversity  has  but  one  single  temptation,  which  is  that  of  impatience, 
whereas  prosperity  has  temptations  of  every  kind.  It  is  even  easier  to  reason  one’s  self 
out  of  impatience,  because  patiently  to  suffer  adversity  is  no  additional  pain  to  the  human 
mind  ;  whereas,  to  conduct  one’s  self  with  moderation  in  prosperity  is  always  some  sub¬ 
traction  from  pleasure.  ThuSVve  see  that  patience  in  adversity  is  not  so  rare  a  virtue  as 
is  moderation  in  prosperity. 

(10)  We  see  by  this  passage  that  they  are  in  error  who  consider  this  propnecy  as 


1 


(a)  “  When  you  shall  see  Jerusalem  compassed  about  with  an 
army,  then  know  that  the  desolation  thereof  is  at  hand  (11).  When, 
therefore,  you  shall  see  the  abomination  of  desolation  which  was 
spoken  of  by  Daniel  the  Prophet,  standing  in  the  holy  place  (12), 
(he  that  readeth  let  him  understand),  then  they  that  are  in  Judea 
let  them  flee  to  the  mountains  ;  and  those  who  are  in  the  midst 
thereof  depart  out,  and  those  who  are  in  the  countries  not  enter  into 
it.  Let  him  that  is  on  the  house-top  not  go  down  into  the  house, 
nor  enter  therein  to  take  any  thing  out  of  the  house  ;  and  he  that  is 
in  the  field  let  him  not  go  back  to  take  his  coat,  for  these  are  the 
days  of  vengeance,  that  all  things  may  be  fulfilled  that  are  written. 
But  woe  to  them  that  are  with  child,  and  give  suck  in  those  days  ! 
for  there  shall  be  great  distress  in  the  land,  and  wrath  upon  this 
people.  They  shall  fall  by  the  edge  of  the  sword,  and  shall  be  led 
away  captive  into  all  nations.  Jerusalem  shall  be  trodden  down  by 
the  Gentiles,  till  the  times  of  the  nations  be  fulfilled.” 

Jesus  would  have  stopped  there,  if  he  had  only  alluded  to  Jeru- 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxi.  20-24;  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  15;  St.  Mark,  xiii.  14-16. 


merely  regarding  the  end  of  the  world,  and  by  no  means  applicable  to  the  ruin  of  Jeru¬ 
salem.  Other  texts  will  convince  us  that  the  opinion  of  those  who  understand  the  text 
as  exclusively  regarding  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem,  and  by  no  means  relating  to  the  end  of 
the  world,  is  equally  untenable. 

(11)  The  Gospel  was  already  published  over  all  parts  of  the  known  world  when  Jeru¬ 
salem  was  destroyed.  Your  faith,  wrote  Saint  Paul  to  the  Romans,  is  celebrated  over 
the  whole  world.  Before  the  end  of  the  world  it  shall  be  preached  everywhere  without 
exception.  This  characteristic  is  also  applicable  to  both  events,  imperfectly  to  the  first, 
but  perfectly  to  the  latter. 

(12)  According  to  Saint  Mark,  where  it  ought  not — -that  is  to  say,  in  the  temple,  as 
Daniel  said  in  the  very  words  (Dan.  ix.  27).  People  are  divided  in  opinion  as  to  what 
is  here  termed  the  abomination  of  desolation.  1st.  Inasmuch  as  it  is  given  for  a  certain 
sign  of  the  impending  ruin  of  Jerusalem,  it  could  not  be  any  of  those  things  which  had 
alrèady  occurred  when  Jesus  Christ  spoke,  nor  any  of  those  occurrences  which  took 
place  after  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem  and  of  the  temple.  Several  explanations,  which  it 
would  be  useless  to  report,  are  already  refuted  by  this  single  observation.  2d.  Histoiy 
furnishes  us  with  nothing  to  which  this  prophecy  is  more  applicable  than  what  was  per¬ 
petrated  in  the  temple  when  seized  upon  by  the  faction  who  assumed  the  name  of  Zeal¬ 
ots.  These  monsters  profaned  it  by  so  many  crimes  and  abominations,  that  Titus,  who 
could  not  listen  to  the  recital  of  them  without  being  horrified,  took  God  to  witness  that 
he  was  in  no  wise  the  cause  thereof.  He  even  had  remonstrances  conveyed  to  them 
more  than  once,  entreating  them  to  put  an  end  to  such  fearful  excesses. 


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(13)  The  world,  converted  by  true  miracles,  shall  be  almost  entirely  perverted  by  pre¬ 
tended  miracles.  There  is  no  means  more  efficacious  in  ensnaring  the  credulity  of  men. 
However,  those  who  will  give  credit  to  false  miracles  shall  be  inexcusable,  because,  al¬ 
though  it  be  not  always  an  easy  matter,  it  is  never  impossible  to  discern  between  the 
two.  Theology  sets  forth  ample  demonstrations  on  this  subject.  We  shall  confine  our¬ 
selves  to  observing  here  that  every  work  wrought  by  way  of  confirmation  of  a  doctrine 
opposed  to  Scripture,  or  condemned  by  the  Church— such  a  work,  however  miraculous 
it  may  appear,  is  evidently  a  false  miracle,  refuted  by  other  miracles  incomparably  more 
numerous,  more  certain,  and  more  wonderful.  Such  are  all  those  which  have  been 
wrought  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  the  truth  of  Scripture  and  the  authority  of  the 
Church. 

(14)  They  shall  be  free  to  allow  themselves  to  be  seduced  ;  however,  it  is  certain,  and 
of  infallible  certainty,  that  they  will  not  allow  themselves  to  be  seduced  ;  which  signifies 
that  liberty  has  not  been  taken  away  from  them  by  the  decree  which  has  elected  them, 
and  that,  nevertheless,  this  decree  cannot  fail  to  be  carried  into  execution.  All  the  faith¬ 
ful  are  bound  to  believe  both  one  and  the  other  of  these  truths.  It  is  the  province  of 
Theologians  to  explain  how  they  harmonize  with  each  other. 


CHAP.  LYI.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  437 

salem  and  tlie  Jewish  people.  All  that  was  to  happen  to  them  is 
clearly  foretold  :  the  city  is  destroyed,  the  people  dispersed,  and  led 
captive  through  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  earth  ;  and  victorious  na¬ 
tions  trample  under  foot  the  scattered  ruins  of  the  holy  city.  It  is 
here,  therefore,  that  reality  succeeds  to  figures,  and  the  wreck  of 
heaven  and  of  earth  to  the  destruction  of  a  single  nation.  Jesus,  who 
passes  imperceptibly  from  one  to  the  other,  commences  the  prediction 
of  that  dreadful  catastrophe,  by  these  words,  which  have  a  remarka¬ 
ble  connection  with  the  foregoing  :  (a)  “  Pray  that  your  flight  be  not 
in  the  winter,  or  on  the  Sabbath;  for  \]ie  presently  added ]  in  those 
days  shall  be  such  tribulations  as  were  not  from  the  beginning  of 
the  creation  which  Grod  created,  until  now,  neither  shall  be.  And 
unless  the  Lord  had  shortened  the  days,  no  flesh  should  be  saved  ; 
but  for  the  sake  of  the  elect,  he  hath  shortened  the  days.  Then,  if 
any  man  shall  say  to  you  :  Lo,  here  is  Christ  ;  lo,  he  is  here  :  do  not 
believe.  For  there  shall  arise  false  Christs  and  false  prophets,  and 
they  shall  show  great  signs  and  wonders  (13),  insomuch  as  to  de¬ 
ceive  (if  possible)  even  the  elect.  Take  you  heed,  therefore:  be¬ 
hold,  I  have  foretold  you  all  things.  If,  therefore,  they  shall  say  to 
you  :  Behold,  he  is  in  the  desert  ;  go  ye  not  out  :  Behold,  he  is  in 
the  closet  ;  believe  it  not  (14)  :  for,  as  lightning  cometh  out  of  the 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  20—24,  26-28  ;  St.  Mark,  xiii.  19—23. 


W*stt 


LIS 


«g: 


& 


east,  and  appearetli  even  in  the  west,  so  shall  also  the  coming  of  the 
Son  of  man  be  (15).  Wheresoever  the  body  shall  be,  there  shall 
the  eagles  also  be  gathered  together  (16). 

(a)  “  And  immediately  after  the  tribulation  of  those  days,  there 
shall  be  signs  in  the  sun,  and  in  the  moon,  and  in  the  stars  ;  and 
upon  the  earth,  distress  of  nations,  by  reason  of  the  confusion  of 
the  roaring  of  the  sea,  and  of  the  waves  :  men  withering  away  for 
fear  (17),  and  expectation  of  what  shall  come  upon  the  whole  world. 
The  sun  shall  be  darkened,  the  moon  shall  not  give  her  light,  the 
stars  shall  fall  from  heaven;  and  the  powers  of  heaven  shall  be 
moved  (IB).” 

( b )  “  Then  shall  appear  the  sign  of  the  Son  of  man  in  heaven  (19)  ; 
then  shall  all  tribes  of  the  earth  mourn  (20),  and  they  shall  see  the 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  29  ;  St. 
Luke,  xxi.  25,  26. 


(b)  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  30,  31  ; 
St.  Mark,  xiii.  27. 


(15)  The  second  coming  of  Jesus  Christ  shall  be  so  visible,  that  the  fact  of  our  not 
seeing  it  is  sufficient  evidence  to  assure  us  that  it  has  not  as  yet  occurred.  It  shall  re¬ 
semble  those  huge  flashes  of  lightning  which,  issuing  from  the  depth  of  a  dark  night, 
dazzle  all  eyes  by  their  splendor,  and  illumine,  in  an  instant,  an  entire  hemisphere. 

(16)  Several  allegorical  meanings  have  been  given  to  this  text.  The  most  probable 
is  that  which  makes  it  signify  the  ardent  desire  of  pious  souls  for  the  adorable  body  of 
Jesus  Christ — whether  for  the  purpose  of  remaining  in  his  presence,  or  of  being  nourish¬ 
ed  with  his  vivifying  flesh.  The  literal  sense  refers  to  the  lightning.  Jesus  Christ,  like 
lightning,  shall  manifest  himself  by  himself.  It  suffices  to  have  eyes  in  order  to  recog¬ 
nize  him.  No  reasoning  shall  be  necessary  for  that  purpose.  Sense  and  instinct  shall 
bring  all  men  to  his  feet,  in  the  same  way  as  instinct  alone  gathers  birds  of  prey  round 
the  carcass.  Job  had  said,  xxxix.  30  :  “  Wheresoever  the  carcass  shall  be,  the  eagle 
is.”  Jesus  Christ  merely  repeats  these  words.  The  Greek  word  of  Saint  Matthew, 
which  the  Vulgate  renders  by  that  of  corpus,  properly  signifies  a  dead  body. 

(17)  We  may  form  an  idea  of  the  terror  which  shall  be  caused  by  this  horrible  con¬ 
vulsion  of  the  universe,  by  the  fear  which  is  struck  into  the  hearts  of  most  men  by  a 
thunder-peal,  which  is  an  occurrence  so  common,  so  brief,  and  so  seldom  followed  by 
any  fatal  effect.  Who  shall  not  fear  thee,  0  King  of  nations  ! — Jerem.  x.  7. 

(18)  People  dispute,  and  shall  dispute  until  the  end  of  the  world,  upon  the  manner  in 
which  these  stars  shall  fall  and  the  heavenly  virtues  (called  elsewhere  the  pillars  of  the 
universe)  shall  be  shaken;  when  the  time  comes,  we  shall  see  clearly  what  Jesus  Christ 
meant  when  he  said  :  The  stars  shall  fall  from  heaven  ;  and  the  powers  of  heaven  shall 
be  moved. 

(19)  Interpreters  have  also  entertained  different  opinions  as  to  what  might  be  this  sign 
of  the  Son  of  man.  The  Church  fixes  the  meaning  thereof,  when  she  says  :  This  sign  of 
the  cross  shall  appear  in  the  heavens  when  the  Lord  shall  come  to  judge. 

(20)  The  Jews,  to  whom  the  cross  was  a  scandal  ;  the  Gentiles,  who  treated  it  as 


§;■ _ a 


CHAP.  LVI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


Son  of  man  coming  in  tlie  clouds  of  heaven  (21),  with  much  power 
and  majesty.  And  he  shall  send  his  angels  with  a  trumpet  and  a 
great  voice  ;  and  they  shall  gather  together  his  elect  from  the  four 
winds,  from  the  farthest  part  of  the  heavens  to  the  utmost  bounds 
of  them.” 

The  remembrance  of  his  elect,  whom  he  again  names,  induces  him 
to  soften  down,  all  of  a  sudden,  these  terrible  images.  He  wishes 
that  what  should  make  the  wicked  wither  away  with  grief  and  fear, 
should  be  to  them  a  subject  of  joy,  and  a  source  of  confidence.  In 
reality,  these  signs,  which  shall  announce  to  the  first  the  unforeseen 
appearance  of  the  avenger  of  their  crimes,  shall  be  to  the  others  the 
infallible  sign  of  the  advent  of  him  who  is  to  reward  their  virtues. 
It  is,  therefore,  to  them  that  he  addresses  these  consoling  words,  in 
the  person  of  his  apostles,  who  represented  them  all  :  (a)  “  But  when 
these  things  begin  to  come  to  pass,  look  up  and  lift  up  your  heads,  be¬ 
cause  your  redemption  is  at  hand.  And  he  spoke  to  them  a  simili¬ 
tude  :  See  the  fig-tree,  when  the  branch  thereof  is  now  tender,  and 
the  leaves  are  come  forth,  and  all  the  trees  when  they  now  shoot 
forth  their  fruit,  you  know  that  summer  is  nigh  ;  so  you  also,  wdien 
you  shall  see  these  things  come  to  pass,  know  that  the  kingdom  of 
God  is  at  hand.  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  this  generation  shall  not  pass 
away  till  all  these  things  be  fulfilled  (22).  Heaven  and  earth  shall 
pass  away,  but  my  word  shall  not  pass  away.” 

Jesus  again  reverts  to  the  question  concerning  the  precise  time  of 
the  events  which  he  had  just  announced,  an  inquiry  which  he  does 
not  choose  to  answer,  as  shown  by  these  words  :  ( b )  “  But  of  the  day 
or  hour  no  man  knoweth,  neither  the  angels  in  heaven,  nor  the 
Son  (23),  but  the  Father.” 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xxi.  28-35;  St.  Mark,  xiii.  28. 


(b)  St.  Mark,  xiii.  32. 


folly.  They  shall  then  see  that  it  is  the  most  shiijing  testimony,  both  of  the  power  and 
the  wisdom  of  God  (I.  Cor.  i.  24).  Hence  remorse,  confusion,  and  despair. 

(21)  Behold  one  of  those  marks  which  clearly  point  out  the  last  judgment.  This  part 
of  the  prophecy  should  never  have  been  accomplished,  if  the  whole  prophecy  had  had 
exclusively  for  its  object  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem. 

(22)  The  present  generation,  by  applying  it  to  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem;  mankind,  by 
applying  it  to  the  end  of  the  world. 

(23)  The  Arians  have  abused  this  expression,  so  as  to  turn  it  into  an  argument  against 


;  * 


fc\' 


p 

2^) 


S&yi-  : 


\ 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


‘  [PART  H. 


There  is  a  very  close  analogy  between  the  end  of  the  world  and 
the  end  of  each  particular  man.  Terrible  phenomena  shall  announce 
the  proximity  of  the  first,  as  grievous  sickness  shall  give  warning 
that  the  second  is  not  far  offi  But  still,  God  does  not  wish  that  we 
should  know  the  day  nor  the  hour  thereof.  This  ignorance  is  neces¬ 
sary,  in  order  to  preserve  a  certain  physical  and  political  order,  which 
is  only  sustained  by  the  hope  of  a  long  existence.  Would  the  hus¬ 
bandman  take  the  trouble  of  sowing  his  field,  if  it  were  revealed  to 
him  that  he  should  not  live  until  the  harvest  ?  Thus  the  entire  world 
would  fall  into  a  universal  languor,  at  least  for  a  century  before  its 
end,  if  we  knew  exactly  when  that  is  to  be.  But  the  principal  rea¬ 
son  for  which  God  leaves  men  in  ignorance  of  the  end  of  all  things, 
is  in  order  that  they,  living  ever  in  expectation  of  it,  may  be  always 
ready  for  the  moment  when  it  shall  arrive.  The  warning  is  for  all 
times,  and  for  all  men,  because  all  are  mortal,  and  that  the  end  of 

the  divinity  of  the  Son.  It  might  have  been  said  in  answer  to  them,  that  it  was  not  ab¬ 
solutely  impossible  that  the  Son,  considering  in  him  human  nature  alone,  might  be  igno¬ 
rant  of  the  day  of  judgment;  so  that  ignorance  would  be  no  argument  against  his 
divinity. 

But  the  Catholic  Church  does  not  acknowledge  in  the  Son,  even  considered  as  man, 
ignorance  of  any  matter  whatever  which  has  been,  which  is,  or  which  shall  be.  In  what 
sense,  therefore,  could  it  be  said  that  the  day  of  judgment  was  unknown  to  him  ?  It  is 
this  which  constitutes  the  difficulty  of  this  text,  and  gives  rise  to  so  many  explanations 
of  its  meaning.  Here  are  the  two  which  appear  to  be  the  most  generally  received.  Ac¬ 
cording  to  the  first,  the  Son  was  not  cognizant  of  the  day  of  judgment  in  such  a  way 
that  he  could  reasonably  communicate  the  knowledge  thereof  ;  and  with  reference  to  his 
disciples,  who  sought  to  leam  it  from  him,  it  was  as  though  he  knew  it  not.  Thus,  a 
confessor,  when  questioned  upon  a  matter  which  he  only  knows  under  the  seal  of  con¬ 
fession,  can  answer,  without  violating  truth,  that  he  is  not  aware  of  it.  The  second  ex¬ 
planation  is  more  abstruse.  The  Son,  considered  even  according  to  his  divine  nature, 
attributes  to  the  Father  alone,  by  appropriation,  the  knowledge  of  the  end  of  the  world, 
in  the  same  way  as  creation  is  attributed  to  him  alone  ;  undoubtedly  because  the  crea¬ 
tion  of  the  world  and  its  destruction  are  regarded  as  belonging  to  the  same  power.  They 
apply  in  reference  to  this  subject  these  words  of  Jesus  Christ  to  his  disciples  :  It  is  not 
for  you  to  know  the  times  or  moments  which  the  Father  hath  put  in  his  power  (  Acts  i.). 
It  is  also  in  the  same  sense  that  he  has  said  upon  another  occasion  :  To  sit  on  my  right 
hand  or  my  left  is  not  mine  to  give  you,  but  to  them  for  whom  it  is  prepared  ;  which 
signifies  that  the  right  of  disposing  thereof  is  appropriated  to  the  Father,  although  it  be¬ 
longs  equally  to  the  three  divine  persons. 

Every  prophecy  which  foretells  the  time  of  the  end  of  the  world  is  false,  and  he  who 
makes  it  is  a  false  prophet.  This  evidently  follows  from  the  passage  which  we  have  just 
explained,  let  it  be  taken  in  whatever  sense  it  may. 


rar 


CHAP.  LVI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


life  is,  to  all  those  wlio  die,  the  end  of  the  world.  Let  eacli  one, 
therefore,  apply  to  himself  what  the  Saviour  seems  to  address  to  those 
only  who  shall  see  the  latter  days,  when  he  continues  in  these  words  : 

(a)  “  Take  heed,  watch,  and  pray  (24)  ;  for  ye  know  not  when  the 
time  is.  Take  heed  to  yourselves  [said  he  again ],  lest  perhaps  your 
hearts  "be  overcharged  with  surfeiting  and  drunkenness,  and  the  cares 
of  this  life  (25),  and  that  day  come  upon  you  suddenly.  For  as  a 
snare  shall  it  come  upon  all  that  sit  upon  the  face  of  the  earth. 
Watch  ye,  therefore,  praying  at  all  times,  that  you  may  he  account¬ 
ed  worthy  to  escape  all  these  things  that  are  to  come,  and  to  stand 
before  the  Son  of  man.  As  the  days  of  Noe,  so  shall  also  the  com¬ 
ing  of  the  Son  of  man  be.  For,  as  in  the  days  before  the  flood,  they 
were  eating  and  drinking,  marrying  and  giving  in  marriage,  even 
till  that  day  in  which  Noe  entered  into  the  ark,  and  they  knew  not 
till  the  flood  came,  and  took  them  all  away,  so  also  shall  the  coming 
of  the  Son  of  man  be  (26).” 

But  discrimination  shall  follow  these  times  of  confusion.  For 

( b )  “  then  two  shall  be  in  the  field  ;  one  shall  be  taken,  and  one  shall 

(а)  St.  Mark,  xiii.  33  ;  St.  Luke,  xxi.  34-36  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  37-39. 

(б)  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  40-44. 


(24)  Watch,  as  if  your  salvation  depended  upon  yourself  alone  ;  pray,  because  your 
salvation  depends  still  more  on  God.  Prayer  attracts  grace  :  vigilance  causes  grace  not 
to  be  received  in  vain.  To  watch  without  praying  would  be  Pelagian  presumption  ;  to 
pray  without  watching  would  be  a  species  of  quietism  ;  to  unite  both  together  is  to  have 
both  faith  and  works. 

(25)  Passions  and  the  business  of  the  world — general  causes  of  man’s  reprobation. 
The  passions  engender  sin,  and  the  bustle  of  business  nullifies  many  projects  of  conver¬ 
sion.  We  know  that  we  have  need  of  conversion,  we  desire  it  ;  subdued  passions  can 
no  longer  oppose  an  obstacle  to  this  conversion,  but  the  matters  of  business  which  have 
succeeded  the  passions  never  leave  time  for  it.  It  will  come  about,  we  say  ;  we  hope 
for  it,  and  we  are  deceived  ;  death  has  been  beforehand  with  it,  and  too  often  occurs 
before  the  affair  of  salvation  is  even  commenced.  True  it  is,  that  we  may  have  trans¬ 
acted  an  infinite  number  of  other  affairs,  all  useless  then,  whilst  the  one  thing  needful 
has  been  neglected.  0  ye  wise  of  the  world  !  what  think  you,  then,  of  your  wisdom  ? 
Non  insensati,  Sap.  V.  The  wise  of  time  are  the  fools  of  eternity. 

(26)  It  is  difficult  to  understand  such  a  security  in  the  midst  of  the  tragic  events  which 
Jesus  Christ  has  just  described.  Saint  Jerome  thinks  that  between  these  events  and  the 
arrival  of  the  judge  there  will  be  a  time  of  peace,  during  which  men,  becoming  reas¬ 
sured,  will  return  to  their  former  occupations. 


if 


Clilf 


442 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 


be  left  (27).  Two  women  shall  be  grinding  at  the  mill:  one  shall 
be  taken,  and  one  shall  be  left.  Watch  ye,  therefore  ;  because  ye 
know  not  what  hour  your  Lord  will  come.  But  this  know  ye,  that 
if  the  good  man  of  the  house  knew  at  what  hour  the  thief  would 
come,  he  would  certainly  watch,  and  would  not  suffer  his  house  to 
be  broken  open.  Wherefore  be  you  also  ready,  because  at  what 
hour  you  know  not,  the  Son  of  man  will  come.” 


CHAPTER  LVH. 

SEQUEL. - GOOD  AND  BAD  SERVANTS. - WISE  AND  FOOLISH  VIRGINS. - TALENTS. - 

JUDGMENT  OF  JESUS  CHRIST. 

Now  the  question  is,  in  what  does  this  vigilance  consist,  and  what 
dispositions  should  it  establish  within  us  ?  The  Saviour  is  going  to 
give  us  this  information  by  these  familiar  comparisons  :  (a)  “  Who, 
thinkest  thou,  is  a  faithful  and  wise  servant,  whom  his  lord  hath  ap¬ 
pointed  over  his  family,  to  give  them  meat  in  season  ?  Blessed  is 
the  servant  whom,  when  his  lord  shall  come,  he  shall  find  so  doing  ! 
Amen,  I  say  to  you,  he  shall  place  him  over  all  his  goods.  But  if 
that  evil  servant  shall  say  in  his  heart:  My  lord  is  long  a  coming; 
and  shall  begin  to  strike  his  fellow-servants,  and  shall  eat  and  drink 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxiv.  45-51  ;  St.  Mark,  xiii.  34-37. 


(27)  In  all  conditions  there  are  elect  and  reprobate,  which  shows  that  we  should  al¬ 
ways  entertain  both  fear  and  hope. 

Such  a  courtier  is  a  saint,  such  a  man  who  dwells  in  solitude  is  a  great  sinner  ;  there¬ 
fore  neither  do  the  difficulties  of  salvation  amount  to  impossibilities,  nor  are  the  facilities 
of  salvation  assurances  that  we  shall  obtain  it. 

One  single  just  man  in  a  profession  shall  suffice  to  condemn  all  those  who,  in  the  same 
profession,  have  not  known  how  to  preserve  justice. 

This  testimony  shall  be  the  more  irreproachable,  inasmuch  as  the  just  man  shall  be 
just  only,  because  he  has  fulfilled  all  the  duties  of  his  profession,  and  that  the  better  he 
has  fulfilled  them,  the  more  perfect  shall  be  his  justice. 


CHAP.  LYII.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


with  drunkards  (1),  the  lord  of  that  servant  shall  come  in  a  day  that 
he  hopeth  not,  and  at  an  hour  that  he  knoweth  not  ;  and  shall  sep- 
arate  him,  and  appoint  his  portion  with  the  hypocrites.  There  shall 
be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth.  Even  as  a  man  who,  going  into 
a  far  country,  left  his  house,  and  gave  authority  to  his  servants  over 
every  work,  and  commanded  the  porter  to  watch.  Watch  ye,  there¬ 
fore  ;  for  you  know  not  when  the  lord  of  the  house  cometh,  at  even, 
or  at  midnight,  or  at  the  cock’s  crowing,  or  at  morning  ;  lest,  com¬ 
ing  on  a  sudden,  he  find  you  sleeping.  And  what  I  say  to  you  I  say 
to  all:  Watch.” 

But  those  who  shall  be  taken  by  surprise  shall  not  be  taken  short 
on  one  account  alone,  viz.,  for  having  utterly  neglected  to  prepare 
for  the  coming  of  their  master  ;  but  also  if  they  have  begun  their 
preparation  too  late.  In  the  same  way,  the  weeping  and  gnashing 
of  teeth  shall  not  be  the  lot  of  the  bad  servant  alone  ;  they  shall 
also  be  the  lot  of  the  useless  servant.  It  is  plain  that  these  differ¬ 
ences  give  weight  to  the  preceding  examples  ;  and  the  reader  will 
not  regard  as  merely  a  repetition  what  Jesus  is  going  to  say.  Let 
no  one  be  astonished  at  his  dwelling  longer  on  this  subject  than  he 
has  upon  any  other.  Since  it  behooves  us  to  act  so  as  not  to  be  sur¬ 
prised  by  death,  we  are  bound,  therefore,  to  look  to  a  matter  which 
is  to  decide  our  eternal  salvation  ;  and  on  what  other  subject  should 
the  Saviour  so  earnestly  warn  us  to  be  careful  ? 

(a)  “  Then  shall  the  kingdom  of  heaven  (2)  be  like  to  ten  virgins, 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxv.  1-46. 


(1)  Those  who  say  :  Let  us  enjoy  life,  death  is  yet  afar  off,  are  described  here  feature 
by  feature. 

(2)  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  the  Church  taken  in  its  full  extent — that  is  to  say,  as 
being  the  society  of  all  the  faithful,  whether  just  or  sinners.  The  bridegroom  is  Jesus 
Christ  ;  the  bride  is  the  predestined  and  triumphant  Church  ;  the  ten  virgins  are  the 
whole  hody  of  the  faithful;  the  wise  virgins  are  the  just;  and  the  sinners  are  represent¬ 
ed  by  the  foolish  virgins.  The  lamps  signify  faith  ;  and  the  oil  signifies  good  works. 
The  sleep  whilst  awaiting  the  bridegroom  is  forgetfulness  of  death,  which  arises  from  the 
fact  of  our  believing  it  always  distant.  We  may  remark  that  this  species  of  sleep  comes 
also  over  the  just  ;  but  these,  when  they  are  surprised,  are  not  deceived,  because  they 
expect  to  be  so  surprised.  The  unexpected  arrival  of  the  bridegroom  is  the  moment  of 
death  and  of  judgment  which  immediately  follows.  Faith,  accompanied  by  works,  enters 
with  him  into  the  nuptial  hall  :  faith,  without  works,  is  irrevocably  excluded  therefrom. 


/7 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


'  [part  n. 


who,  taking  their  lamps,  went  out  to  meet  the  bridegroom  and  the 
bride  (3).  Five  of  them  were  foolish,  and  five  wise.  But  the  five 
foolish  having  taken  their  lamps,  did  not  take  oil  with  them  ;  but 
the  wise  took  oil  in  their  vessels  with  the  lamps.  The  bridegroom 
tarrying,  they  all  slumbered  and  slept.  -And  at  midnight  there  was 
a  cry  made  :  Behold,  the  bridegroom  cometh  ;  go  ye  forth  to  meet 
him.  Then  all  those  virgins  arose,  and  trimmed  their  lamps.  And 
the  foolish  said  to  the  wise  :  Give  us  of  your  oil,  for  our  lamps  are 
gone  out.  The  wise  answered  :  Lest  perhaps  there  be  not  enough 
for  us  and  for  you  (4),  go  ye  rather  to  them  that  sell,  and  buy  for 
yourselves  (5).  Whilst  they  went  to  buy,  the  bridegroom  came  ; 
and  they  that  were  ready  went  in  with  him  to  the  marriage,  and 
the  door  was  shut  :  at  last  came  also  the  other  virgins,  saying  :  Lord, 
Lord,  open  to  us.  But  he  answering,  said  :  Amen,  I  say  to  you,  I 


This  truth  is,  as  it  were,  the  moral  of  the  whole  parable,  and  the  principal  instruction 
which  it  is  meant  to  convey.  There  are  other  incidental  instructions  which  we  may  re¬ 
mark  as  we  go  along.  The  return  of  the  foolish  virgins,  the  door  which  they  find 
closed,  their  supplicating  the  bridegroom  to  open  it  for  them,  and  the  answer  which 
they  receive  from  him,  should  all  be  considered  as  mere  accompaniments  to  the  parable, 
and  having  no  application  ;  for  assuredly  the  reprobate,  after  their  judgment  and  their 
condemnation,  shall  not  come  to  the  gate  of  paradise  to  beseech  the  Lord  to  open  it  for 
them. 

(3)  Reprobates,  although  truly  virgins.  The  reason  is  because  there  are  proud  virgins, 
there  are  virgins  who  hate,  virgins  who  slander — angels  from  the  purity  of  their  bodies — 
demons  in  the  malignity  of  their  heart — justly  called  foolish,  according  to  Saint  Chrysos¬ 
tom,  because,  whilst  victorious  over  a  more  powerful  enemy,  they  allow  themselves  to  be 
vanquished  by  another  much  more  feeble.  It  is  the  gnat,  the  lion’s  conqueror,  perishing 
in  the  spider’s  web. 

(4)  The  just  shall  fear  lest  their  own  justice  may  be  found  insufficient  ;  and  if  the  just 
man  shall  scarcely  he  saved,  where  shall  the  ungodly  and  sinner  appear? — (I.  Peter, 
iv.  18.) 

(5)  In  God’s  judgment  the  merits  of  the  one  shall  not  supply  the  deficiency  of  others. 
This  is  the  meaning  of  this  answer  of  the  wise  virgins,  and  not  as  Protestants  say,  that 
the  intercession  of  saints  is  a  nullity,  and  has  no  effect.  This  intercession  is  a  satisfac¬ 
tion  for  the  temporal  pains  due  to  sin  in  this  world  and  in  the  other  :  it  is  also  efficacious 
by  way  of  impétration  in  obtaining  graces  which  may  be  available  for  the  salvation  and 
sanctification  of  those  to  whom  they  are  granted  ;  but  as  to  merit,  properly  speaking, 
this  intercession  procures  it  directly  for  no  one.  How,  there  was  here  no  question  as  to 
grace,  because  the  time  for  co-operation  therewith  was  past,  nor  as  to  the  temporal 
pains  of  a  life  which  was  then  ended,  nor  yet  as  to  those  of  the  other  life,  as  it  is  univer¬ 
sally  agreed  that  after  the  last  judgment  there  shall  no  longer  be  a  purgatory. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


445 


CHAP.  LYII.] 

know  you  not.  Watch  ye,  therefore,  "because  you  know  not  the  day 
nor  the  hour.” 

Here  follows  the  example  of  the  useless  servant,  which  the  Sa¬ 
viour,  after  having  enjoined  constant  vigilance,  adds  to  the  preced¬ 
ing,  continuing  his  discourse  thus  :  “  Even  as  a  man  going  into  a  far 
country,  called  his  servants,  and  delivered  to  them  his  goods  (6). 
To  one  he  gave  five  talents,  to  another  two,  and  to  another  one  ;  to 
every  one  according  to  his  proper  ability,  and  immediately  he  took 
his  journey.  He  that  had  received  five  talents  went  his  way  and 
traded  with  the  same,  and  gained  other  five.  And  in  like  manner, 
he  that  had  received  the  two  gained  other  two.  But  he  that  had 
received  the  one,  going  his  way,  digged  into  the  earth,  and  hid  his 
lord’s  money.  After  a  long  time  the  lord  of  those  servants  came, 
and  reckoned  with  them.  He  that  had  received  the  five  talents, 
coming,  brought  other  five  talents,  saying  :  Lord,  thou  deliveredst 
to  me  five  talents  ;  behold,  I  have  gained  other  five  over  and  above. 
His  lord  said  to  him:  Well  done,  thou  good  and  faithful  servant; 
because  thou  hast  been  faithful  over  a  few  things,  I  will  set  thee  over 
many  things  :  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  lord.  And  he  also  that 
had  received  the  two  talents  came  and  said  :  Lord,  thou  deliveredst 
two  talents  to  me  ;  behold,  I  have  gained  other  two.  His  lord  said 
to  him:  Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servant;  because  thou  hast 
been  faithful  over  a  few  things,  I  will  set  thee  over  many  things  : 
enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  lord.  But  he  that  had  received  the 
one  talent  came  and  said  :  Lord,  I  know  that  thou  art  a  hard  man  ; 
thou  reapest  where  thou  hast  not  sown,  and  gatherest  where  thou 
hast  not  strewed  ;  and  being  afraid,  I  went  and  hid  thy  talent  in  the 
earth.  Behold,  here  thou  hast  that  which  was  thine.  His  lord  an¬ 
swering,  said  to  him  :  Wicked  and  slothful  servant,  thou  knewest 
that  I  reap  where  I  sow  not,  and  gather  where  I  have  not  strewed. 
Thou  oughtest,  therefore,  to  have  committed  my  money  to  the  bank¬ 
ers  and  at  my  coming  I  should  have  received  my  own  with  usury. 
Take  ye  away,  therefore,  the  talent  from  him,  and  give  it  to  him  that 


(6)  For  an  explanation  of  this  parable,  we  refer  the  reader  to  that  on  the  ten  talents 
(Part  II.  chapter  1.  page  386),  which  so  closely  resembles  this,  that  several  interpreters 
take  it  to  be  the  same  parable,  reported  with  some  accidental  circumstances. 


m 


MA 


4  3 


hath  ten  talents.  For  to  every  one  that  hath  shall  be  given,  and  he 
shall  abound  ;  but  from  him  that  hath  not,  that  also  which  he  seem- 
eth  to  have  shall  be  taken  away.  And  the  unprofitable  servant 
cast  ye  out  into  the  exterior  darkness.  There  shall  be  weeping  and 
gnashing  of  teeth  (7).” 

The  parables  are  ended,  but  not  so  the  judgment.  Jesus  Christ 
dismisses  figures,  and,  instead  of  a  mortal  bridegroom  or  a  temporal 
master,  he  is  going  to  exhibit  to  us  the  immortal  king  of  ages  in  all 
the  lustre  of  his  glory,  pronouncing  sentences  of  eternal  life  or  death. 
If  he  attaches  either  one  or  the  other  to  the  practice  or  to  the  omis¬ 
sion  of  a  single  virtue,  he  does  so  in  order  to  inform  us,  on  the  one 
hand,  how  efficacious  this  one  virtue  is  in  obtaining  all  those  which 
are  necessary  to  salvation  ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  in  order  that  we 
may  not  be  ignorant  of  the  severity  of  his  judgments.  For,  if  eter¬ 
nal  chastisements  are  prepared  for  those  who  shall  not  have  done 
good,  what  may  those  expect  who  shall  have  done  evil  ?  Let  us 
hearken  to  him,  for  again  it  is  he  who  is  about  to  speak  : 

“  And  when  the  Son  of  man  shall  come  in  his  majesty,  and  all  the 
angels  with  him,  then  shall  he  sit  upon  the  seat  of  his  majesty.  All 
nations  shall  be  gathered  together  before  him  (8),  and  he  shall  sep¬ 
arate  them  one  from  another  (9),  as  the  shepherd  separateth  the 
sheep  from  the  goats.  He  shall  set  the  sheep  on  his  right  hand,  but 


(7)  In  the  parable  of  the  ten  talents  the  slothful  servant  is  at  the  same  time  deprived 
of  the  reward,  and  stripped  of  what  had  been  confided  to  him.  Here  we  have  super- 
added  the  weeping  and  the  gnashing  of  teeth.  This  is  in  order  to  teach  us  that  sloth 
shall  not  only  be  excluded  from  the  reward  of  labor,  but  shall  also  be  punished  as  a 
crime.  There  is  no  medium  between  heaven  and  hell.  He  who  is  not  deserving  of  the 
first  merits  the  second. 

(8)  This  word,  shall  be  gathered  together,  decides  against  Origen,  that  judgment  shall 
take  place  in  a  particular  and  determined  spot.  It  is  generally  thought  that  this  shall 
be  in  the  valley  of  Jehosaphat.  This  belief  has  some  foundation  in  Scripture.  What 
some  add  is  not  so  certain,  although  it  be  not  without  probability,  that  Jesus  Christ  shall 
appear  upon  the  Mount  of  Olives,  the  game  mountain  from  whence  he,  carried  upon  a 
cloud,  ascended  into  heaven,  aud  where  two  angels  announced  to  the  disciples  that  he 
should  one  day  return  again. 

(9)  He  shall  make  this  sepaiation  by  the  ministry  of  the  angels;  for  it  is  said  else¬ 
where  :  The  Son  of  man  shall  send  his  angels,  and  they  shall  gather  out  of  his  kingdom 
all  scandals,  and  them  that  work  iniquity,  and  shall  cast  them  into  the  furnace  of  fire 
(Saint  Matthew,  xiii.  41,  42). 


m 


CHAP.  LYII.] 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CHEIST. 


the  goats  on  his  left:  then  shall  the  king  say  to  them  that  shall  be 
on  his  right  hand  :  Come,  ye  blessed  of  my  Father,  possess  you  the 
kingdom  (10)  prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of  the  world. 
For  I  was  hungry,  and  yon  gave  me  to  eat  (11)  ;  I  was  thirsty,  and 
you  gave  me  to  drink  ;  I  was  a  stranger,  and  you  took  me  in  ;  naked, 
and  you  covered  me  ;  sick,  and  you  visited  me  ;  I  was  in  prison,  and 
you  came  to  me.  Then  shall  the  just  answer  him,  saying:  Lord, 
when  did  we  see  thee  hungry,  and  fed  thee  ;  thirsty,  and  gave  thee 
drink  (12)  ?  and  when  did  we  see  thee  a  stranger,  and  took  thee  in  ? 


(10)  The  Greek  word  signifies  inherit  the  kingdom.  Now,  if  it  be  possessed  by  the 
title  of  inheritance,  Protestants  add,  it  is  not,  therefore,  conferred  as  the  reward  of  works. 
We  are  surprised  that  they  should  venture  to  dispute  the  merit  of  works  whilst  reading 
this  passage,  wherein  Jesus  Christ  assigns  no  other  cause  for  the  recompense  bestowed 
upon  his  elect.  Catholics,  who  do  not  exclude  the  right  of  inheritance,  answer  that  the 
saints  shall  possess  heaven  both  as  an  inheritance  and  as  a  reward.  True,  it  shall  only 
be  given  to  the  children  of  God  ;  but  this  quality,  which  God  confers  gratuitously,  is 
preserved  by  good  works  only,  and  is  only  lost  by  bad  works.  Those  who  shall  do  the 
first  shall  inherit  heaven,  because  they  shall  be  found  worthy  of  such  inheritance.  Those 
who  have  done  evil  have  rendered  themselves  unworthy  of  it,  and  shall,' therefore,  be 
disinherited. 

Heaven  is  due  only  to  the  just.  Justice  cannot  be  merited  by  works,  since  it  is  a  mat¬ 
ter  of  faith  that  justification  always  precedes  merit  ;  therefore,  to  speak  precisely,  the 
foundation  of  celestial  glory  cannot  be  deserved  ;  we  can  only  merit  an  increase  thereof. 
A  silver  pound  can  never  be  made  out  of  nothing  ;  but,  should  this  pound  be  given  gra¬ 
tuitously,  the  receiver  may  turn  it  to  such  account  as  to  make  ten  pounds  of  it.  We  see 
here,  at  the  same  time,  both  grace  and  merit  :  grace  in  the  first  pound  which  is  given — 
merit  in  the  nine  others  which  are  added  thereto.  There  is,  however,  this  difference, 
that  in  the  first  instance  grace  is  pure,  and  without  any  mixture  of  merit  ;  whereas,  in 
the  others  merit  always  depends  on  grace,  not  only  because  it  is  its  first  foundation,  but 
also  because,  without  the  actual  assistance  of  grace,  man  is  incapable  of  making  it  avail¬ 
able.  Thus  it  is  that  God  perfects  his  own  gifts  whilst  crowning  our  merits. 

(11)  Who  are  so  well  entitled  to  this  great  kingdom  as  the  benefactors  of  its  mighty 
king  ? 

(12)  We  cannot  reasonably  think  that  the  just,  when  in  heaven,  can  be  ignorant  that 
the  good  which  they  have  done  towards  the  poor,  who  were  the  brothers  and  the  mem¬ 
bers  of  Jesus  Christ,  was  done  to  Jesus  Christ  himself.  They  cannot,  even  at  present, 
be  ignorant  of  this  fact,  since  Jesus  Christ  has  so  openly  declared  it.  Knowing  it  so 
well  both  before  and  after  their  death,  they  cannot  be  supposed  to  forget  it  at  the  day 
of  judgment.  Yet  they  seem  to  be  ignorant  of  this  truth,  since  it  seems  to  excite  their 
surprise.  We  may  answer  that  they  will  not  put  the  question  which  Jesus  Christ  here 
puts  in  their  mouth,  but  that  the  Saviour  avails  himself  of  the  occasion,  in  order  to  in¬ 
form  the  world  of  this  truth,  and  to  render  it  more  evident,  by  the  turn  which  he  gives 
it.  Hence  this  account,  which  in  every  other  respect  must  be  taken  to  the  letter,  may  be 


es 


'  [part  h. 


.'X 


U 


or  naked,  and  covered  thee  ?  or  when  did  we  see  thee  sick  or  in  pris¬ 
on,  and  came  to  thee  ?  The  king  answering,  shall  say  to  them  : 
Amen,  I  say  to  you,  as  long  as  you  did  it  to  one  of  these  my  least 
brethren  (13),  you  did  it  to  me.” 

“  Then  he  shall  say  to  them  also  that  shall  be  on  his  left  hand  : 
Depart- from  me,  you  cursed  (14),  into  everlasting  fire,  which  was 
prepared  for  the  devil  and  his  angels  (15).  For  I  was  hungry,  and 
you  gave  me  not  to  eat  ;  I  was  thirsty,  and  you  gave  me  not  to 
drink  ;  I  was  a  stranger,  and  you  took  me  not  in  ;  naked,  and  you 
clothed  me  not;  sick,  and  in  prison,  and  you  did  not  visit  me  (16). 
Then  shall  they  also  answer  him,  saying  :  Lord,  when  did  we  see 
thee  hungry  or  thirsty,  or  a  stranger,  or  naked,  or  sick,  or  in  prison, 
and  did  not  minister  to  thee  ?  Then  he  shall  answer  them  :  Amen, 
I  say  to  you,  as  long  as  you  did  it  not  to  one  of  these  least  ones, 
neither  did  you  do  it  to  me.  And  these  shall  go  into  everlasting 
punishment  ;  but  the  just  into  life  everlasting  (17).”  Thus  shall  be 


viewed  as  a  parable  in  this  single  point.  Or  else,  if  the  just  do  put  this  question,  it  will 
be  on  their  part  an  exclamation  of  astonishment  and  of  admiration,  inasmuch  as  the 
truth,  which  they  previously  recognized,  shall  never  have  appeared  to  them  so  striking 
as  when  they  shall  behold,  in  all  the  lustre  of  his  power  and  majesty,  him  whom  faith 
had  taught  them  to  recognize  under  the  rags  of  the  poor. 

(13)  Alms-giving  exercised  towards  a  poor  person,  for  the  sake  of  Jesus  Christ,  is 
more  meritorious  than  if  it  were  exercised  towards  Christ  himself,  inasmuch  as  such  an 
act  superadds  to  the  merit  of  giving  alms  to  Jesus  Christ  that  of  recognizing  him  in  the  poor. 

(14)  Ye  cursed,  simply,  and  not  ye  cursed  of  my  Father,  as  he  had  previously  said  : 
Ye  blessed  of  my  Father.  The  blessing  of  the  just  is  from  God  ;  the  malediction  of  the 
wicked  comes  from  themselves  alone  :  Destruction  is  thy  own,  0  Israel  :  thy  help  is  only 
in  me. 

(15)  Hell  was,  therefore,  made  for  them,  and  not  for  man.  But  man,  if  we  may  ven¬ 
ture  to  say  so,  makes  himself  for  hell,  by  rendering  himself  the  slave  of  him  who  is  its 
prince,  and  by  imitating  those  who  dwell  therein.  It  is  not  said  with  reference  to  the 
eternal  fire  as  with  reference  to  the  heavenly  kingdom,  that  it  was  prepared  from  the  be¬ 
ginning  of  the  world.  Sin  preceded  hell.  God*only  created  the  latter  when  he  was,  as 
it  were,  forced  to  do  it  by  the  rebellion  of  the  angels. 

(16)  Here  is  established  the  obligation  of  assisting  the  needy  when  we  do  not  even 
meet  with  them,  who  do  not  present  themselves  openly  before  our  eyes,  and  whom  we 
are  bound  to  seek  out.  Those  who  are  ashamed  to  beg  are  included  in  this  number  as 
well  as  the  sick  and  prisoners.  The  visit  may  sometimes  be  a  matter  of  perfection  only, 
but  the  assistance  is  always  a  matter  of  precept. 

(17)  Into  an  eternity,  properly  speaking;  for  in  the  enunciation  of  a  sentence  which 
only  admits  simple  and  precise  terms,  every  word  should  be  taken  literally. 


& 


//l'A\x 


CHAP.  LYH.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


449 


accomplished  this  saying  of  the  Saviour  with  respect  to  the  former  : 
“  Blessed  are  the  merciful,  for  they  shall  obtain  mercy  !” — (Matt,  v.) 
And  with  regard  to  the  latter,  that  other  saying  of  his  apostle  : 
“  For  judgment  without  mercy”  is  reserved  “  to  him  that  hath  not 
done  mercy.” — (James,  ii.  11.) 

This  concerning  the  end  of  the  world  was  the  last  prophecy  which 
Jesus  made  before  the  people,  and  charity  was  the  last  injunction 
which  he  laid  upon  them.  With  this  he  terminated  his  public 
preaching;  and  after  having  thoroughly  acquitted  himself  of  his 
duty  as  a  teacher,  he  applied  himself  exclusively,  whilst  preparing 
for  death,  to  fulfil  that  of  Redeemer. 


The  expression  being  the  same*for  the  eternity  of  life  and  the  eternity  of  punishment, 
it  would  be  utterly  inconsistent  to  understand  the  first  as  expressive  of  an  eternity,  prop¬ 
erly  speaking,  and  the  second  as  indicative  of  an  eternity,  improperly  speaking,  viz.,  a 
very  lengthened  but  still  limited  duration. 

Origen  denied  the  eternity  of  hell.  He  was  one  of  the  most  brilliant  writers  whom 
Christianity  has  ever  produced,  and  this  error  which  he  undertook  to  establish  was  of  all 
others  the  most  flattering  and  the  most  important.  Nevertheless,  this  error,  which  ap¬ 
peared  so  likely  to  be  disseminated,  and  to  last  longer  than  any  other,  has  been  adopted 
but  by  few,  and  was  of  short  duration.  So  thoroughly  have  mankind  been  always  con¬ 
vinced  that  the  revelation  is  so  evident  here  as  to  leave  no  room  for  cavilling,  and  that 
nothing  is  certain  in  Scripture,  if  this  point  be  not  clearly  established  therein. 

If  there  were  no  hell,  God  would  not  be  infinitely  just  ;  and  if  God  were  not  infinitely 
just,  he  would  be  no  longer  God. 

If  hell  were  not  eternal,  it  would  be  because  sin  did  not  deserve  an  infinite  punish¬ 
ment  ;  but  if  sin  did  not  deserve  an  infinite  punishment,  a  mediator  of  infinite  dignity 
would  not  be  necessary  in  order  to  expiate  it. 

There  is  a  God  ;  therefore  there  is  a  hell.  A  God  became  man  ;  therefore  hell  is 
eternal. 

These  are,  indeed,  incomprehensible  mysteries  ;  but  let  us  consider  well  the  mutual 
dependence  which  they  have  upon  each  other,  and  what  additional  probability  each  part 
acquires  by  the  just  proportion  it  bears  to  the  whole.  A  fiction  has  never  yet  been  so 
well  concerted  ;  and  independently  of  the  victorious  proofs  which  establish  this  series  of 
truths — a  religion  which  presents  simultaneously  an  infinite  offence  in  sin — an  infinite  du¬ 
ration  in  the  punishment — an  infinite  dignity  in  the  mediator — that  religion,  I  say,  in¬ 
stead  of  shocking  our  reason  by  the  immense  depth  of  its  mysteries,  rather  inclines  us  to 
believe,  because  of  the  wonderful  harmony  which  blends  all  these  mysteries  together. 

29 


CHAPTER  LVIII. 


CONSPIRACY  AGAINST  JESUS. — JUDAS  MAKES  HIS  CONTRACT. — PASCHAL  SUPPER. — 
WASHING  OF  THE  FEET. - TREASON  FORETOLD. 

(a)  “  Now  the  feast  of  unleavened  bread,  which  is  called  the  pasch, 
was  at  hand  ;  the  feast  was  after  two  days.  And  it  came  to  pass 
when  Jesus  had  ended  all  these  words,  he  said  to  his  disciples  :  You 
know  that  after  two  days  (1)  shall  be  the  pasch,  and  the  Son  of  man 

(a)  St.  Lube,  xxii.  1-46  ;  St.  Mark,  xiv.  1  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  1,  3,  5,  15,  16. 


(1)  This  was  on  a  Tuesday,  whence  it  follows  that  the  passover  must  have  fallen  on 
the  Thursday  evening  ;  and  it  was  then,  in  reality,  that  Jesus  celebrated  this  feast.  But 
one  great  difficulty  here  is,  that  Saint  John  says  clearly  that  the  passover  of  the  Jews 
was  not  to  be  made  until  the  Friday  evening.  Among  the  several  answers 'which  have 
been  given  to  this  difficulty,  we  select  those  which  have  appeared  the  most  satisfactory. 
According  to  some  interpreters,  the  Galileans  eat  the  passover  one  day  before  the  Jews 
of  Judea  proper,  and  of  Jerusalem.  The  reason  of  this  was,  that  the  paschal  lamb,  be¬ 
fore  it  was  eaten,  should  be  immolated  by  the  priests.  Now,  as  the  priests  could  not 
serve  all  in  a  single  day,  it  became  necessary  to  take  two  days  for  the  purpose.  In  like 
manner,  several  days  have  been  given  for  the  performance  of  the  Christian  paschal  so¬ 
lemnity,  because  Easter  Sunday,  which  is  properly  the  day  for  it,  would  not  suffice.  Ac¬ 
cording  to  others,  the  Jews,  after  their  return  from  the  captivity  of  Babylon,  had  made 
a  regulation,  that  when  the  passover  fell  upon  a  Thursday  evening,  it  was  lawful  to  trans¬ 
fer  it  to  the  Friday.  The  reason  of  this  toleration  is,  that  the  day  of  the  passover,  com¬ 
mencing  with  the  evening  when  it  was  celebrated,  was  to  be  a  festival  day.  Now  this 
day  being  followed  by  Saturday,  which  occurred  every  time  the  passover  fell  upon  a 
Thursday  evening,  occasioned  two  consecutive  days  of  rest,  which  became  a  very  trouble¬ 
some  observance,  on  account  of  the  extreme  strictness  with  which  this  rest  was  observed. 
However,  as  this  custom  was  merely  tolerated,  those  who  did  not  wish  to  observe  it  were 
not  obliged  to  do  so,  and  the  Saviour  was  of  this  class  ;  but  it  must  be  said  that  the  ma¬ 
jority  of  the  nation  availed  themselves  of  it  without  any  scruple. 

Here  is  a  third  explanation.  Jesus  Christ  and  all  the  Jews  eat  the  passover  on  the 
Thursday  evening,  which  was  the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  day  of  the  moon.  It  is 
well  known  that  the  days,  amongst  the  Hebrews,  commenced  in  the  evening  at  sunset. 
The  solemnity  commenced  only  at  the  close  of  the  fourteenth,  which  coincided  with  the 
commencement  of  the  fifteenth.  This  is  conformable  to  these  words  of  Leviticus,  chap, 
xxiii.,  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  same  month  is  the  solemnity  of  the  unleavened  bread,  which 
words  plainly  signify  that  between  the  eating  of  the  paschal  lamb,  which  was  fixed  for 
the  fourteenth,  and  the  solemnity  appointed  to  take  place  on  the  fifteenth,  there  inter¬ 
vened  one  day  which  belonged  to  no  festival.  Then  the  Jews  were,  moreover,  obliged 


i>Y 


7/t 


CHAP.  LVHI.J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


451 


shall  be  delivered  up  to  be  crucified.”  ~VVe  have  already  said  that 
the  chief  priests  and  the  scribes  were  seeking  how  they  might  put 
Jesus  to  death.  “  Then  (2)  were  gathered  together  the  chief  priests 
and  the  ancients  of  the  people  into  the  palace  of  the  high  priest,  who 
was  called  Caiphas,  and  they  consulted  together  that  by  subtilty  they 
might  apprehend  Jesus,  and  put  him  to  death.  But  they  feared  the 
people,  [therefore]  they  said:  Not  on  the  festival-day,  lest  there 
should  be  a  tumult  among  the  people.  And  Satan  entered  into  Ju¬ 
das,  who  was  named  Iscariot  (3),  one  of  the  twelve,  and  he  went  and 
discoursed  with  the  chief  priests  and  the  magistrates  how  he  might 


by  the  law  to  offer  various  sacrifices  of  the  immolation  of  the  paschal  lamb,  and  it  was 
a  matter  of  custom,  and  even  of  obligation,  to  eat  the  flesh  of  the  immolated  victims. 
The  circumstance  of  time  caused  this  act  to  be  also  styled  the  eating  of  the  passover. 
This  explanation  smooths  away  every  difficulty,  and  answers  every  objection.  For  al¬ 
though  the  paschal  lamb  was  eaten  on  Thursday  evening,  which  was  the  commencement 
of  the  fourteenth  day,  Saint  John  might  have  said  at  that  time  :  Before  the  festival  day 
of  the  pasch,  because  the  festival,  properly  speaking,  should  only  commence  on  the  next 
day,  the  fifteenth.  He  might  also  say  that  the  Jews  did  not  wish  to  enter  into  the  judg¬ 
ment-hall  of  Pilate,  for  fear  of  contracting  legal  impurity,  which  would  have  hindered 
them  from  eating  the  passover,  because,  although  they  had  already  eaten  the  paschal 
lamb,  they  would  still  have  to  eat  the  victims  which  were  immolated  at  the  commence¬ 
ment  of  the  solemnity,  and  they  very  naturally  called  this  eating  the  passover.  We  can¬ 
not  here  go  further  into  this  explanation,  which  is  to  be  found,  with  the  proofs  which  es¬ 
tablish  it,  and  the  answer  to  the  objections,  in  a  treatise  by  a  Spanish  Theologian  named 
Louis  Léon,  of  the  order  of  Saint  Augustine.  This  little  work  deserves  to  be  read.  It 
has  been  translated  into  French  by  Père  Daniel,  and  published  in  the  works  of  that  fa¬ 
ther,  tome  3,  page  449. 

(2)  Then,  to  wit,  the  rfext  day,  which  was  Wednesday.  It  was  on  account  of  this  con¬ 
sultation,  at  which  they  took  decisive  measures  for  putting  the  Saviour  to  death,  that  it 
was  formerly  the  custom  to  fast  on  Wednesday.  Some  interpreters  confound  this  con¬ 
sultation  with  that  which  was  held  four  days  earlier,  and  which  we  have  reported  page 
373,  Part  II.  It  appears  that  there  were  two  consultations  ;  it  was  resolved,  at  the  first, 
that  the  just  man  should  be  put  to  death  ;  at  the  second  consultation,  which  is  that  here 
alluded  to,  the  only  subject  for  deliberation  was  the  manner  in  which  they  should  pro¬ 
ceed,  in  order  to  carry  the  prior  resolution  into  effect. 

(3)  That  is  to  say,  that  Judas  then  gave  full  and  entire  consent  to  the  design  which 
Satan  had  suggested  to  him  of  delivering  up  the  Saviour.  Thus  did  Satan  enter  into  the 
traitor,  in  order  to  possess,  not  his  body,  but  his  soul — two  very  different  sorts  of  posses¬ 
sion.  The  possession  of  the  body  is  by  no  means  free,  either  in  itself  or  in  its  effects  ; 
wherefore  it  is  nowise  criminal  in  either  of  these  respects.  The  possession  of  the  soul  is 
criminal  in  itself  ;  for  the  devil  possesses  the  soul  of  those  only  who  are  willing  to  admit 
him.  It  is  also  criminal  in  its  effects,  because,  although  Satan  acquires  great  sway  over 
the  soul  which  he  possesses,  his  dominion  does  not  go  so  far  as  doing  violence  to  the  will. 


s 

i  éi 


V 


U 


M 


betray  him  to  them.  He  said  to  them  :  What  will  yon  give  me,  and 
I  will  deliver  him  unto  you  ?  Who  hearing  it  were  glad,  and  they 
appointed  him  thirty  pieces  of  silver  (4).  And  he  promised  ;  and 
from  thenceforth  he  sought  opportunity  to  betray  him,  in  the  ab¬ 
sence  of  the  multitude.” 

The  remainder  of  the  day,  which  was  Wednesday,  was  spent  in 
waiting  for  this  opportunity,  (a)  “  And  on  the  first  day  of  the 
Azymes,  on  which  it  was  necessary  that  the  pasch  should  be  killed, 
the  disciples  came  to  Jesus,  saying:  Whither  wilt  thou  that  we  go 
and  prepare  for  thee  to  eat  the  pasch  ?  He  sendeth  two  of  his  dis¬ 
ciples,  Peter  and  John,  saying  :  Go  and  prepare  for  us  the  pasch,  that 
we  may  eat.  But  they  said  :  Where  wilt  thou  that  we  prepare  ? 
He  said  to  them  :  Go  ye  into  the  city  ;  there  shall  meet  you  a  man 
carrying  a  pitcher  of  water.  Follow  him  into  the  house  where  he 
entereth  in,  and  whithersoever  he  shall  go  in,  say  to  the  master  of 
the  house,  the  Master  saith  :  My  time  is  near  at  hand  (5)  ;  I  will 
keep  the  pasch  at  thy  house  with  my  disciples  ;  where  is  my  refec¬ 
tory,  where  I  may  eat  the  pasch  with  my  disciples  ?  And  he  will 
show  you  a  large  dining-room,  furnished.  There  prepare  ye  for  us. 
His  disciples  went  their  way,  and  came  into  the  city,  and  they  found 
as  he  had  told  them  (6),  and  they  prepared  the  pasch.  And  when 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  17,  18;  St.  Luke,  xxii.  7-11,  14-18;  St.  Mark,  xiv.  12-17. 


(4)  We  read  in  Exodus,  chap,  xxi.,  that  if  any  one  wilfully  caused  the  death  of  a  free 
person,  he  was  punished  with  death.  If  it  was  the  death  of  a  slave  he  had  occasioned, 
he  paid  thirty  shekels  of  silver,  the  same  price  for  which  the  king  of  angels  and  of  men 
consents  to  be  sold.  We  make  this  remark  for  grateful  hearts,  who  do  not  wish  to  be 
ignorant  of  any  circumstance  of  the  opprobrium  which  the  Man- God  has  endured  for 
their  salvation. 

(5)  The  time  of  my  death.  Jesus  Christ  wishes  to  convey  to  him  by  these  words, 
that  he  desires  to  give  him  this  evidence  of  his  affection  ;  for  it  was  a  very  signal  proof 
thereof  to  give  his  house  the  preference,  for  the  purpose  of  celebrating  there  his  last 
passover,  which  was  only  to  precede  his  death  by  a  single  day.  It  appears  that  this 
man  was  one  of  his  disciples,  since  Jesus  Christ  makes  them  say  to  him  simply  :  The 
Master  saith  to  thee.  To  enter  into  a  disquisition  as  to  why  he  is  not  named  would  be 
superfluous.  What  would  it  avail  us  to  know  the  reason  why?  Jesus  speaks  of  his 
passion  as  his  time,  because  it  was  principally  for  this  passion  that  he  eame  into  the 
world  ;  and  also  because  it  was  the  time  wherein  he  resolved  to  die,  his  death  being 
a  perfectly  free  act  as  well  in  itself  as  in  the  time,  the  place,  and  the  manner  thereof. 

(6)  Prophecy  and  power  are  alike  visible  on  this  occasion.  The  reader  may  remem- 


y/>, 


'tm 


jailer 


vfilplJU'  ^  ]  |  -r>\7 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


453 


CHAP.  LVIH.] 

evening  was  come,  lie  cometli  with  the  twelve.  And  when  the  hour 
was  come,  he  sat  down,  and  the  twelve  apostles  with  him,  and  he 
said  to  them  :  With  desire  I  have  desired  to  eat  this  pasch  with  you, 
before  I  suffer  (7 ).  For  I  say  to  you,  that  from  this  time  I  will  not 
eat  it,  till  it  be  fulfilled  in  the  kingdom  of  God  (8).  And  having 
taken  the  chalice,  he  gave  thanks,  and  said  :  Take  and  divide  it 
among  you.  For  I  say  to  you,  that  I  will  not  drink  of  the  fruit  of 
the  vine  till  the  kingdom  of  God  come”  (9). 

If  we  should  consider  the  wine  in  the  same  light  as  the  passover, 
since  the  latter  was  as  yet  only  the  eating  of  the  paschal  lamb,  we 
must  believe  that  the  wine  of  which  the  Saviour  here  spoke  was  not 
as  yet  that  which  he  had  changed  into  his  blood.  When  the  Jews 
celebrated  the  passover,  the  father  of  the  family,  or  he  who  presided 
at  the  feast,  blessed  the  first  and  the  last  cup.  He  drank  of  it  the 
first,  and  then  presented  it  to  all  the  guests,  who  drank  of  it,  each 
according  to  his  rank.  One  of  the  evangelists,  who  mentions  ex¬ 
pressly  the  two  chalices,  places  immediately  after  the  first  the  words 
which  have  just  been  read,  and  it  is  only  the  second  chalice  which 
was  distributed  after  the  repast,  that  he  speaks  of  as  the  chalice  of 
the  Lord’s  blood.  Nevertheless,  two  evangelists  place  these  same 
words  after  the  consecrated  chalice.  Perhaps,  also,  the  two  sacred 
authors,  who  speak  only  of  the  second  chalice,  take  advantage  of 
this  opportunity,  which  was  the  only  one  they  had,  in  order  to  re¬ 
cord  these  words,  which  were  far  too  interesting  to  be  omitted. 

ber  with  reference  to  this  subject,  what  we  have  said  of  the  meeting  the  ass  and  the  foal, 
Part  II.,  page  397,  note  11. 

(7)  Because  in  this  passover  he  was  to  communicate  himself  wholly  and  entirely  to 
men  by  means  of  the  divine  Eucharist.  A  great  desire  of  receiving  him  therein  is  the 
best  manner  in  which  we  can  acknowledge  the  great  desire  which  the  Saviour  had  to 
give  himself  to  us. 

(8)  We  find  in  the  mysteries  of  the  new  law  the  reality  of  what  was  only  shadowed 
forth  and  prefigured  by  the  old  law.  Both  the  mysteries  and  the  figures  shall  be  per¬ 
fectly  accomplished  and  wholly  unveiled  in  heaven.  The  dawn  follows  the  night,  and 
ushers  in  the  clear  light  of  day. 

(9)  Heaven  and  the  Church  are  called  indiscriminately  the  kingdom  of  God.  We 
should  here  understand  the  expression  as  referring  to  heaven,  because  Saint  Matthew, 
when  recording  the  same  discourse,  makes  the  Saviour  say  :  I  will  not  drink  from  hence¬ 
forth  of  the  fruit  of  the  vine,  until  that  day  when  I  shall  drink  it  with  you  new  in  the 
kingdom  of  my  Father.  Now,  what  is  termed  in  Scripture  the  kingdom  of  the  Father, 
is  always  Heaven,  and  never  the  Church. 


454 


THE  HISTOEY  OF  THE  LIFE 


'[past  n. 

Now  reality  is  going  to  succeed  figures,  and  to  the  eating  of 
the  paschal  lamb  the  eating  of  the  flesh  of  the  Man-God  ;  a  mystery 
equally  beyond  our  conceptions  and  our  hopes.  Here  the  power  and 
the  love  of  a  God  are  displayed  in  their  infinity,  plainly  showing  that 
he  alone  could  be  the  author  of  this  mystery,  in  whom  every  thing  is 
infinite,  and  who  is  infinite  in  every  thing.  But  a  prodigy  of  humilia¬ 
tion  was  to  precede  this  prodigy  of  power  ;  and,  in  order  to  place 
his  body  in  a  condition  to  be  present  on  every  altar,  it  was  ordained 
that  Jesus  should  begin  by  annihilating  this  same  body  at  the  feet 
of  his  disciples.  We  are  now  about  to  consider  him  in  this  humilia¬ 
ting  posture,  after  having  explained  the  order  in  which  these  ac¬ 
tions  were  all  performed,  on  that  evening  so  full  of  mysteries  and  of 
wonders. 

The  first  of  these  acts  was  the  eating  of  the  paschal  lamb,  in  which 
Jesus  Christ,  always  a  punctual  observer  of  the  law,  fulfilled  all  the 
prescribed  formalities.  He  ate  it,  therefore,  in  a  standing  posture  ; 
and  if  it  be  alleged  that  he  then  sat  or  reclined,  inasmuch  as  the 
Gospel  represents  him  to  us  in  either  of  these  two  positions,  that 
would  be  to  confound  the  first  repast  with  the  second.  The  latter 
was  served  up  immediately  after  the  eating  of  the  paschal  lamb, 
when  that  alone  was  not  sufficient  to  appease  the  hunger  of  all  those 
who  had  partaken  of  it.  And  this  was  the  case  here,  since  Jesus 
Christ  had  with  him  his  twelve  apostles  ;  then  followed  the  repast 
in  which  the  guests  were  not  limited  in  the  choice  of  meats,  with  the 
exception  of  the  unleavened  bread,  nor  were  they  bound  to  any  cere¬ 
mony.  This  repast,  the  only  one  which  the  evangelists  properly  call 
the  Supper,  or  the  Lord’s  Supper,  was  finished  as  they  expressly 
state,  when  the  Saviour,  having  risen  from  the  table,  washed  the  feet 
of  his  disciples,  after  which  he  resumed  his  seat,  for  the  purpose  of 
instituting  the  adorable  Eucharist. 

'  (a)  “  Jesus  knowing  that  his  hour  was  come,  that  he  should  pass 
out  of  this  world  to  his  Father  (10),  having  loved  his  own  who  were 

(a)  St.  John,  xiii.  1-20. 


(10)  This  departure  deprived  the  earth  of  his  visible  presence  only;  for  the  Word, 
who  is  everywhere  present  in  his  immensity,  has  never  ceased  to  fill  the  earth,  and  his 
humanity  has  remained  really  present  thereon  in  the  adorable  Eucharist. 


S^'-nv 


CHAP.  LYIII.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  455 

in  the  world,  he  loved  them  to  the  end  (11)  ;  and  when  supper  was 
done,”  as  we  have  just  related,  “  (the  devil  having  now  put  into  the 
heart  (12)  of  Judas  Iscariot,  the  son  of  Simon,  to  betray  him)  (18), 
knowing  that  the  Father  had  (14)  given  him  all  things  into  his 
hands,  and  that  he  came  from  God,  and  goeth  to  God  :  He  riseth 
from  supper,  and  layeth  aside  his  garments,  and  having  taken  a  tow- 


(11)  His  disciples:  all  his  elect  who  were  in  existence  are  included  in  this  number, 
viz.,  all  those  whom  he  left  in  the  world,  a  land  of  misery,  of  woe,  and  of  crime,  which 
increased  his  tender  compassion  for  them.  He  loved  them  until  the  end  of  his  life. 
This  is  the  signification  of  the  word  in  finem.  Others  understand  by  this  expression  that 
he  loved  them  to  excess.  Nothing  is  more  true  ;  and  his  love  never  appeared  so  exces¬ 
sive  as  in  his  last  moments,  wherein  he  made  himself  their  victim,  after  having  made  him¬ 
self  then  food.  However,  the  literal  sense  only  expresses  the  constancy  of  his  love, 
which,  far  from  being  susceptible  of  change  or  alteration,  appeared  always  on  the  in¬ 
crease. 

(12)  The  instigation  of  the  devil  is  mentioned,  and  even  more  than  once,  in  order  that 
we  may  know  how,  having  been  the  principal  instigator  of  the  Saviour’s  death,  he  has 
deserved,  as  we  have  elsewhere  remarked,  to  be  deprived  of  the  empire  of  death.  God 
might  also  have  had  another  design.  He  foresaw  that  people  would  one  day  assert  that 
the  treachery  of  Judas  is  not  less  the  work  of  God  than  the  conversion  of  Saint  Paul. 
(Protestants  have  made  this  assertion.)  This  blasphemy  is,  therefore,  refuted  by  antici¬ 
pation,  and  Satan  is  not  more  opposed  to  God  than  these  new  evangelists  are  opposed 
to  the  Gospel. 

(13)  The  knowledge  which  he  had  of  the  treachery  and  of  the  traitor  did  not  hinder 
him  from  washing  his  feet,  and  giving  him  his  flesh  to  eat.  The  evangelist  alludes  to  it 
in  this  place  only,  for  the  purpose  of  making  us  observe  this  prodigy  of  love  and  of  hu¬ 
mility.  If  it  were  not  for  this  reason,  his  allusion  to  it  here  would  be  misplaced. 

(14)  Jesus  knew  that  the  work  of  the  redemption  had  been  confided  to  him  by  the 
Father,  and  that  he  alone  who  had  commenced  it  should  himself  finish  it.  As  the  time 
was  becoming  short,  since  he  was  on  the  point  of  returning  to  the  bosom  of  God  from 
whence  he  had  gone  forth,  he  did  three  things  which  he  could  no  longer  defer,  and  which 
he  judged  necessary  for  the  establishment  and  preservation  of  his  Church.  He  gave  an 
example  of  the  most  profound  humility  ;  he  instituted  the  sacrament  and  the  perpetual 
sacrifice  of  his  body  and  of  his  blood  ;  lastly,  he  finished  his  instructions  to  us  in  the  per¬ 
son  of  his  apostles,  by  the  admirable  discourse  which  he  addressed  to  them  after  supper. 
This  is  the  most  common  explanation  of  these  words  :  they  are  also  explained  in  the  fol¬ 
lowing  manner:  Jesus,  although  knowing  that  he  had  received  from  the  Father  the 
plenitude  of  divinity  and  of  power,  did  not  disdain  to  humble  himself  at  the  feet  of  his 
apostles,  and  to  wash  them  with  his  own  hands.  This  sense  is  very  fine  ;  whilst  recall¬ 
ing  to  mind  the  infinite  greatness  of  him  who  humbles  himself,  it  paints,  with  a  single 
stroke,  the  depth  of  his  humiliations. 

If  the  great  who  imitate  him  in  this  point  are  sensible  of  their  greatness,  they  should 
also  remember  that  he  who  has  given  them  the  example  is  infinitely  higher  above  them 
than  they  themselves  are  above  the  poor  whom  they  serve. 


«TO 


456 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


-  [part  n. 

el,  lie  girded  himself.”  After  these  preparations,  to  which  these 
words  are  so  applicable  :  He  emptied  him-self ,  taking  the  form  of  a 
servant — “  after  that  he  putteth  water  into  a  basin,  and  began  to 
wash  the  feet  of  the  disciples,  and  to  wipe  them  with  the  towel 
wherewith  he  was  girded.  He  cometh,  therefore,  to  Simon  Pe¬ 
ter  (15).  And  Peter  saith  to  him:  Lord,  dost  thou  wash  my  feet? 
Jesus  answered,  and  said  to  him  :  What  I  do  thou  knowest  not  now, 
but  thou  shalt  know  hereafter.  Peter  saith  to  him  :  Thou  shalt 
never  wash  my  feet.  Jesus  answered  him  :  If  I  wash  thee  not,  thou 
shalt  have  no  part  with  me  (16).  Simon  Peter  saith  to  him:  Lord, 
not  only  my  feet,  but  also  my  hands  and  my  head  (11).  Jesus  saith 
to  him  :  He  that  is  washed,  needeth  not  but  to  wash  his  feet,  but  is 
clean  wholly  (18).  And  you  are  clean,  but  not  all;  for  he  knew 
who  he  was  that  would  betray  him,  therefore  he  said  :  You  are  not 
all  clean.” 


(15)  Saying,  as  the  evangelist  does,  He  cometh,  therefore,  to  Simon  Peter,  after  hav¬ 
ing  said  he  began  to  wash  the  feet  of  his  disciples,  gives  us  to  understand  that  Jesus  did 
not  begin  with  Saint  Peter.  Notwithstanding,  some  interpreters  will  have  it  that  he 
did,  and  that  for  the  sole  reason  of  Peter’s  being  the  chief  of  the  apostles,  as  if  a  question 
of  rank  and  pre-eminence  could  enter  into  an  action  wherein  the  Master  placed  himself 
last  of  all. 

(16)  You  shall  not  participate  in  the  sacrament  of  my  body,  because  you  shall  not 
have  received  the  symbol  of  purity  which  I  require  from  those  who  participate  in  it  ;  or 
otherwise  you  shall  be  eternally  separated  from  me,  because  you  have  disobeyed  the  or¬ 
ders  which  I  give  you  to  let  me  perform  the  lowly  service  which  I  wish  to  render  to 
you.  We  may  choose  between  these  two  explanations.  If  the  first  be  the  true  expla¬ 
nation,  Saint  Peter  did  not  at  first  comprehend  the  meaning  ;  but  still  he  understood 
that  some  sort  of  separation  between  himself  and  his  dear  Master  was  threatened  here  if 
he  should  persist  in  his  refusal.  This  was  sufficient  for  this  disciple,  whose  love  was  so 
ardent,  in  order  to  restore  him  to  the  most  perfect  obedience. 

“  The  ardor  and  zeal  of  devotion,  even  when  accompanied  by  exterior  marks  of  hu¬ 
mility,  are  merely  illusions,  when  not  regulated  by  obedience  to  the  Church  and  to  our 
superiors.” 

.  (1Y)  It  is  love  which  speaks.  Peter,  startled  at  the  sight  of  his  Master  prostrate  at 
his  feet  for  the  purpose  of  washing  them,  is,  notwithstanding,  less  amazed  at  seeing  him 
there,  than  he  is  alarmed  by  the  dread  of  being  separated  from  him. 

(18)  The  feet  always  become  dirty,  especially  when  men  walk  barefooted,  as  is  com¬ 
monly  thought  to  have  been  the  case  with  the  apostles.  Not  so  with  the  rest  of  the 
body  ;  when  it  is  veiy  clean,  it  remains  so  at  least  for  some  time.  The  most  upright  in¬ 
dividuals  always  contract,  in  their  commerce  with  the  world,  some  slight  stains,  which 
are  like  the  dust  that  adheres  to  the  feet.  Confession  is  not  the  only  means  to  purify  us 
therefrom,  but  it  is  the  best. 


Jesus  was  perhaps  still  at  the  feet  of  the  traitor,  when  he  gave 
him  this  first  warning,  so  calculated  to  touch  a  heart  less  callous  than 
his  was.  The  apostles,  who  knew  not  to  whom  he  addressed  it, 
might  at  least  have  comprehended  the  lesson  by  which  he  inculcated 
to  them  a  purity  more  perfect  than  that  which  confines  itself  to  ex¬ 
emption  from  gross  faults.  This  is  what  Peter  knew  not  before. 
But  to  this  first  instruction,  which  was  directed  equally  to  all,  the 
Saviour  added  a  second,  which  might  apply  more  especially  to  him 
whom  he  had  established  the  chief  of  his  brethren,  although  it  was 
common  to  all.  “  Then,  after  he  had  washed  their  feet,  and  taken 
his  garments,  having  sat  down,  he  said  to  them  :  Know  you  what  I 
have  done  to  you  ?  You  call  me  Master  and  Lord,  and  you  say  well, 
for  so  I  am.  If  I,  then,  being  Lord  and  Master,  having  washed  your 
feet,  you  also  ought  to  wash  one  another’s  feet  ;  for  I  have  given  you 
an  example,  that  as  I  have  done  to  you,  so  you  do  also.  Amen, 
amen,  I  say  to  you,  The  servant  is  not  greater  than  his  lord,  neither 
is  the  apostle  greater  than  he  that  sent  him.  If  you  know  these 
things,  you  shall  be  blessed  if  you  do  them.” 

This  happiness  was  not  to  be  enjoyed  by  all.  Wherefore,  con¬ 
tinues  the  Saviour  :  “  I  speak  not  of  you  all  ;  I  know  whom  I  have 
chosen,”  and  if  he  who  is  to  betray  me  is  found  amongst  the  num¬ 
ber,  I  have  not  admitted  him  without  knowing  what  he  is  ;  “  but 
that  the  Scripture  may  be  fulfilled  :  He  that  eateth  bread  with  me, 
shall  lift  up  his  heel  against  me.  At  present  I  tell  you,  before  it  come 
to  pass,  that  when  it  shall  come  to  pass  you  may  believe  that  I  am  He.” 

Thus  the  Saviour  was,  as  it  were,  divided  between  two  objects 
which  constituted  alternately  the  subject  of  his  discourse.  He  la¬ 
bored  to  excite  remorse  in  the  heart  of  Judas,  and  he  exhorted  his 
disciples  to  render  to  each  other  the  duties  of  a  charity,  both  hum¬ 
ble  and  considerate.  In  order  to  smooth  to  them  the  practice  there¬ 
of,  he  adds,  that  very  far  from  lowering  themselves  in  the  sight  of 
men  by  humbling  themselves  to  one  another,  the  honor  which  they 
have  of  being  his  apostles,  will  make  them  as  respected  as  himself. 
This  exposition  alone  can  connect  the  preceding  words  with  these, 
which  come  immediately  after  :  “  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  he  that 
receiveth  whomsoever  I  send,  receiveth  me  ;  and  he  that  receiveth 
me,  receiveth  him  that  sent  me.” 


4S 


VriH 


CHAPTER  LIX. 

INSTITUTION  OF  THE  EUCHARIST. - JESUS  IS  TROUBLED. - WOE  TO  THE  TKAITOE. - JE¬ 
SUS  MAKES  HIM  KNOWN  TO  JOHN. - WITHDRAWAL  OF  JUDAS.— DISPUTE  OF  THE 

APOSTLES  UPON  PRIORITY. - PRESUMPTION  OF  PETER. — HIS  DENIAL  FORETOLD. - 

STATE  OF  WARFARE  ABOUT  TO  COMMENCE  FOR  THE  DISCIPLES. 

The  moment  was  come  wlien  Jesus  Christ  was  at  last  to  institute 
the  sacrament  of  his  body  and  blood,  and  to  replace  the  ancient  sac¬ 
rifices  by  that  which,  in  its  unity,  should  supply  the  place  of  them 
all,  and,  by  its  excellence,  infinitely  surpass  them  in  merit  and  in 
value,  (a)  “  And  -whilst  they  were  at  supper,  Jesus  took  bread, 
gave  thanks,  and  blessed,  and  broke,  and  gave  to  his  disciples,  and 
said  :  Take  ye,  and  eat  ;  this  (1)  is  my  body  (2),  which  is  given  for 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  26-29  ;  St.  Luke,  xxii.  19,  20  ;  St.  Mark,  xiv.  23. 


(1)  If,  as  Luther  said,  the  substance  of  bread  remained  in  the  Eucharist,  Jesus  Christ 
could  not  have  said  :  This  is  my  body,  but  this  (which  is  bread)  contains  my  body  ;  or, 
my  body  is  united  to  this  ;  or  else,  here  is  my  body. 

(2)  If  Jesus  Christ  meant  to  say  that  the  Eucharist  is  not  merely  the  figure  of  his 
body,  but  that  it  contains  the  reality,  he  could  not  have  expressed  himself  more  clearly, 
seeing  that  for  fifteen  centuries  the  Christian  world  understood  the  phrase  as  importing 
reality  and  not  figure. 

If  Jesus  Christ  meant  to  say  that  the  Eucharist  is  only  the  figure  of  his  body,  he  could 
not  have  expressed  himself  more  obscurely,  since  for  so  many  ages  the  entire  world  un¬ 
derstood  the  phrase  as  expressing  his  real  presence. 

When  we  say,  for  fifteen  centuries,  we  are  not  unaware  that,  in  the  eleventh  century, 
Beranger  denied  the  real  presence,  but  he  was  the  first  to  do  so  :  he  had  very  few  dis¬ 
ciples  ;  scarcely  one  remained  after  his  death,  and  in  a  short  time  not  a  single  disciple  of 
his  was  in  existence.  He  was  a  restless  and  fickle  man,  whose  entire  life  was  spent  in 
abjuring  what  he  had  taught,  and  in  teaching  over  again  what  he  had  abjured. 

Luther  frankly  avows  that  he  for  a  long  time  was  itching  to  attack  the  dogma  of  the 
real  presence  ;  but  that  he  could  not  venture  on  such  a  step,  having  before  him  those 
unmistakeable  words  :  This  is  my  body. 

Calvin  denied  the  real  presence,  and  took  his  stand  by  the  figurative  sense.  However, 
the  stamp  of  reality,  so  visible  in  these  words  of  the  Saviour,  has  driven  him  to  assert 
that,  although  the  body  of  Jesus  Christ  be  not  really  present  in  the  Eucharist,  yet  it  is, 
nevertheless,  really  and  in  substance  received  therein.  Thus,  whilst  seeking  to  escape 
from  the  mystery,  he  falls  into  a  palpable  contradiction. 


"s;«j  >1^' 


CHAP.  LIX.] 


OF  OUR,  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


459 


you.  Do  this  for  a  commemoration  of  me.  In  like  manner  taking 
the  chalice  also,  after  he  had  supped,  he  gave  thanks,  and  gave  to 
them,  saying  :  Drink  ye  all  of  this  (3)  ;  for  this  is  my  blood,  of  the 
New  Testament,  which  shall  be  shed  (4)  for  you  [cmaf]  for  many  (5) 
unto  the  remission  of  sins.  And  they  all  drank  of  it.  Amen,  I  say 
to  you,”  added  the  Saviour,  supposing  that  he  twice  made  use  of  this 
expression,  “  I  say  to  you,  I  will  not  drink  from  henceforth  of  the 
fruit  of  this  vine,  until  that  day  when  I  shall  drink  it  new  with  you 
in  the  kingdom  of  the  Father.” 

According  to  one  of  the  sacred  writers,  Jesus,  immediately  after 
he  had  pronounced  the  words  which  changed  the  wine  into  blood, 
added  these  :  (a)  “  But  yet  behold,  the  hand  of  him  that  betrayeth 
me  is  with  me  on  the  table.”  These  last  words,  connected,  as  they 
are,  with  the  preceding  discourse,  seem  to  decide,  contrary  to  the 
opinion  of  many,  that  Judas  was  then  present,  and  that  he  received 
communion  with  the  other  disciples.  Jesus  Christ  could  not  have 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  21. 


(3)  That  is  to  say,  drink  ye  all  of  this  chalice,  because  there  was  but  one  single  chalice 
that  was  to  pass  from  hand  to  hand.  This  expression  comprises  a  precept  for  priests  to 
communicate  under  both  kinds  every  time  that  they  consecrate,  and  this  precept  admits 
of  no  exception.  Protestants  allege  that  this  expression  establishes  a  universal  and  in¬ 
dispensable  obligation  of  communicating  under  both  kinds.  Yet  they  themselves  do  not 
follow  this  construction,  since  they  have  decided  in  their  Synods  that  communion  may 
be  given  -under  one  kind,  viz.,  that  bread  may  be  given  to  those  who  cannot  drink  wine, 
which  is  surely  equivalent  to  deciding  that,  according  to  the  institution  of  Jesus  Christ, 
both  kinds  are  not  essential  to  communion. 

The  legitimacy  of  communion  under  one  kind  is  founded  on  the  doctrine  of  concomi- 
tancy. 

(4)  We  read  in  the  Greek,  which  is  shed,  which  is  the  cause  why  many  interpreters 
explain  the  expression  as  referring  to  the  mystical  effusion  then  made.  The  author  of 
the  Vulgate  took  it  as  referring  to  the  effusion  thereof,  which  was  to  occur  upon  the 
cross  ;  and  for  this  reason  he  has  translated  it,  which  shall  be  shed.  We  say  in  the  words 
of  the  consecration,  which  shall  be  shed,  showing  that  the  Church  also  understands  the 
expression  as  referring  to  the  effusion  on  the  cross.  Jesus  Christ  might  have  referred  to 
the  same  effusion,  and  yet  say,  which  is  shed,  since  an  event  so  near  might  be  regarded 
as  present. 

(5)  One  of  the  evangelists  inserts  only  for  you;  two  others  insert  for  many.  The 
Church  unites  both  in  the  words  of  consecration.  For  many  signifies  in  this  place  for 
all,  according  to  the  Scriptural  mode  of  expression.  Supposing  that  Jesus  Christ  had 
said  for  you,  he  would  not  have  thereby  excluded  the  reprobate  sinner,  for,  according  to 
the  opinion  which  is  most  followed,  Judas  was  one  of  the  company  present. 


460 


TIIE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 


shown  him  more  clearly  the  blackness  of  his  treachery,  than  in  set¬ 
ting  it  before  his  eyes  at  the  very  moment  when  he  gave  him  such 
a  pledge  of  his  incomprehensible  charity.  By  profaning  that  sacra¬ 
ment,  the  traitor  put  the  finishing  stroke  to  his  iniquity. 

Jesus,  who  thus  informed  his  Church  that  the  public  sinner  must 
not  be  excluded  from  the  participation  of  the  sacraments,  was  pleased 
to  experience  within  himself  a  natural  horror  for  a  crime,  the  woeful 
effects  of  which  he  had  already  resolved  to  undergo.  Wherefore, 
(a)  “  when  he  had  said  these  things,  he  was  troubled  in  spirit,  and 
he  testified,  and  said  :  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  one  of  you  that 
eateth  with  me  shall  betray  me.  The  disciples,  therefore,  looked 
one  upon  another,  doubting  of  whom  he  spoke;  and  being  very 
much  troubled,  began  every  one  to  say  :  Is  it  I  (6),  Lord  ?  But  he 
answering,  said  :  One  of  the  twelve,  who  dippeth  with  me  (7  )  his 
hand  in  the  dish.  And  the  Son  of  man,  indeed,  goeth,  as  it  is  writ¬ 
ten  of  him  (8)  :  but  woe  to  that  man  by  whom  the  Son  of  man  shall 
be  betrayed!  It  were  better  for  him  if  that  man  had  not  been 
born  (9).” 

(a)  St.  John,  xiii.  21,  22  ;  St.  Mark,  xiv.  18,  20,  21  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  22,  23. 


(6)  This  humble  inquiry  shows  us  that  they  had  already  profited  by  the  teaching  of 
the  Saviour.  A  novice  in  virtue  would  have  said  at  first  :  It  is  not  I  ;  I  could  never  he 
capable  of  so  foul  a  deed.  A  saint  knows  better  than  men  commonly  do,  that  he  is 
within  a  hair’s  breadth  of  being  a  great  sinner  and  a  wicked  man. 

Their  humility  makes  them  fearful  that  they  themselves  might  be  the  traitors  ;  t.heir 
charity  hinders  them  from  suspecting  others.  Those  who,  in  similar  circumstances, 
would  have  suspected  others,  and  have  entertained  no  apprehension  for  themselves, 
would,  therefore,  have  been  wanting  in  humility  and  in  charity. 

(7)  That  is  to  say,  he  who  eats  at  the  same  table  as  I  and  with  me,  in  a  word,  he  who 
is  my  messmate,  for  it  is  not  true  that  Judas  actually  put  his  hand  on  the  dish,  nor  that 
Jesus  Christ  had  pointed  him  out  by  this  expression. 

(8)  With  regard  to  the  Son  of  man,  nothing  further  shall  result  from  this  treachery 
than  the  fulfilment  of  the  Scriptures,  which  have  foretold  the  circumstances  of  his 
death. 

(9)  If  annihilation  be  a  lesser  evil  than  reprobation,  redemption  is,  therefore,  a  greater 
benefit  than  creation,  therefore  Jesus  Christ  is  God  ;  for  if  he  were  merely  a  pure  crea¬ 
ture,  there  would  exist  a  creature  to  whom  man  would  be  more  indebted  than  to  the 
Creator. 

This  proof  is  not  of  a  nature  to  produce  faith  in  those  who  have  not  faith  ;  but  it  is 
very  capable  of  confirming  those  who  already  have  faith,  and  who  are  aware  how  ex¬ 
ceedingly  jealous  God  is  of  our  heart. 


! 

■’  ij 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST, 


excite  suspicion,  would  speak  as  well  as  the  others.  He  said,  there¬ 
fore,  in  his  turn  :  “  Is  it  I,  Rabbi  ?  He  saith  to  him  :  Thou  hast  said 
it.”  The  answer  was  given  so  secretly,  that  it  was  understood  by 
Judas  alone.  “  Wherefore  they  began  to  inquire  among  themselves 
which  of  them  it  was  that  should  do  this  thing.  Now,  there  was 
leaning  on  Jesus’s  bosom  (10)  one  of  his  disciples,  whom  Jesus  loved. 
Simon  Peter,  therefore,  beckoned  to  him  (11),  and  said  to  him  :  Who 
is  it  of  whom  he  speaketh  ?  He,  therefore,  leaning  on  the  breast  of 
Jesus  (12),  saith  to  him:  Lord,  who  is  it?  Jesus  answered:  He  it 
is  to  whom  I  shall  reach  bread  dipped  ;  and  when  he  had  dipped  the 
bread,  he  gave  it  to  Judas  Iscariot,  the  son  of  Simon.” 

This  was  not  now  the  Eucharistic  bread,  which  had  been  entirely 
consumed  ;  it  was  a  last  mark  of  the  tenderness  which  his  Master 
gave  him,  by  presenting  this  savory  bread.  Perhaps  the  act  excited 
further  remorse  in  the  heart  of  that  perfidious  man  ;  but  Judas  stifled 
it,  and  made  a  fixed  and  irrevocable  resolution  to  consummate  the 
crime  he  had  already  projected.  It  is  on  this  account  that  it  is  said 
that,  “ after  the  morsel,  Satan  entered  into  him.  Jesus  said  to  him: 
That  which  thou  dost,  do  quickly.”  He  thus  gave  him  to  under- 

( a )  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  25;  St.  Luke,  xxii.  23;  St.  John,  xiii.  13-30. 


(10)  We  know  that  the  ancients,  when  they  took  their  meals,  reclined  on  couches. 
These  couches  had  each  three  seats  ;  the  seat  in  the  middle  was  the  most  honorable. 
Those  who  occupied  the  seats  reclined  with  the  head  towards  the  table,  and  the  feet 
turned  outwards  ;  they  leaned  upon  the  right  or  left  side,  and  the  arm  which  was  at  lib¬ 
erty  was  made  use  of  to  take  the  food  and  convey  it  to  the  mouth.  He  who  occupied 
the  middle  of  the  couch  had  necessarily  his  countenance  turned  towards  one  of  those 
who  reclined  upon  the  same  couch  with  him,  and  his  back  was  turned  towards  the  other 
occupant.  If  the  person  in  the  middle  were  the  father  of  the  family,  the  place  occupied 
by  the  individual  towards  whom  the  father  of  the  family  had  his  face  turned  was  called 
the  bosom  of  the  father  of  the  family  ;  it  was  the  place  of  favor,  and  was  that  which 
Saint  John  occupied.  Alluding  to  this  custom,  it  is  said  that  Lazarus  reposed  in  the 
bosom  of  Abraham. 

(11)  It  appears  that  Saint  Peter  reclined  on  the  other  side  of  the  couch;  it  was  easy 
for  him,  by  raising  himself  a  little,  to  make  this  sign  to  Saint  John,  without  catching  the 
eye  of  Jesus  Christ,  whose  face  was  turned  towards  the  well-beloved  disciple. 

(12)  It  was  then  that  Saint  John  leaned  his  head  upon  the  sacred  breast  of  Jesus 
Christ.  We  are  not  aware  how  long  he  kept  it  there;  hut  we  know  how  highly  honor¬ 
able  was  such  an  intimacy,  were  it  only  to  have  lasted  for  an  instant. 


462 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


‘  [part  n. 

stand  that  lie  neither  dreaded  the  betrayal  nor  the  betrayer.  Judas 
well  understood  it,  but  “  now  no  man  at  the  table  knew  to  what  pur¬ 
pose  he  said  this  unto  him  (13).  For  some  thought,  because  Judas 
had  the  purse  (14),  that  Jesus  had  said  to  him  :  Buy  those  things 
which  we  have  need  of  for  the  festival  day  ;  or,  that  he  should  give 
something  to  the  poor.  He,  therefore,  having  received  the  morsel, 
went  out  immediately  ;  and  it  was  night.” 

He  went  at  once  to  execute  his  fearful  project,  and  his  departure 
may  be  regarded  as  the  prelude  of  the  mournful  scene  which  was  to 
close  with  the  death  of  the  Holy  of  Holies.  Jesus  only  viewed  it  at 
this  moment  under  the  aspect  of  the  infinite  glory  which  it  was  to 
procure  for  his  Father  and  himself.  Far,  therefore,  from  being 
grieved,  (a)  “  when  [Judas],  therefore,  was  gone  out,  Jesus  said,”  in 
a  transport  of  joy:  “Now  is  the  Son  of  man  glorified,  and  God  is 
glorified  in  him  (15).  If  God  be  glorified  in  him,  God  also  will  glo¬ 
rify  him  in  himself,  and  immediately  he  will  glorify  him.  And  a 
hymn  being  said,  they  went  out  into  Mount  Olivet.” 

(a)  St.  John,  xiii.  31,  32  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  30. 


(13)  Even  Saint  John  did  not  understand  it.  He  was  not  ignorant  who  the  traitor 
was  ;  but  he  knew  not  that  Judas  was  so  near  consummating  his  treachery,  and  that  the 
words  of  the  Saviour  pointed  thereto. 

The  first  cause  of  the  secrecy  which  Jesus  Christ  kept  with  regard  to  him,  was,  as  we 
have  said,  for  the  purpose  of  saving  his  reputation  ;  the  second  was,  that  he  might  not 
obstruct  the  work  of  the  redemption,  which  was  to  commence  by  the  treachery  of  Judas. 
If  the  apostles  got  information  of  what  he  was  plotting,  what  would  they  not  have  done 
in  order  to  counteract  it?  And  who  knows  whether  Peter’s  sword  would  have  re¬ 
mained  in  the  scabbard  ?  This  latter  reason  has  induced  some  to  think  that  Jesus  Christ, 
when  he  revealed  it  to  Saint  John,  forbade  him  to  tell  tire  others. 

(14)  Jesus  Christ  might  have  intrusted  him  with  this  administration,  although  know¬ 
ing  that  Judas  would  abuse  it.  Not  so  with  men  who  cannot,  as  God,  extract  good  from 
evil,  and  much  greater  good  than  the  foreseen  and  permitted  evil. 

(15)  The  text  gives  in  eo,  that  is  to  say,  literally,  in  him  (P.  De  Ligny  translates  par 
lui — by  him).  Those  who  thus  translate  explain  their  version  by  saying  that  the  divini¬ 
ty  personally  united  to  the  Son  of  man,  but  hitherto  not  entirely  manifested,  is  about  to 
be  manifested  by  the  prodigies  which  shall  accompany  his  death,  resurrection,  and  as¬ 
cension,  which  shall  so  quickly  succeed  each  other.  This  explanation  is  tantamount 
to  this  :  it  is  now  that  God,  concealed  in  the  Son  of  man,  is  going  to  be  manifested  and 
recognized.  We  (Pere  De  Ligny)  translate  par  lui,  as  do  the  greater  number  of  inter¬ 
preters  :  we  thus  have  this  sense,  which  appears  simpler  and  more  natural  :  God,  who 
shall  be  glorified  by  the  Son  of  man,  is  going  to  glorify  him  also  in  his  turn. 


OF  O  UE  LOKD  JESUS  CHEIST. 


463 


CHAP.  LIX.] 

The  disciples  were  to  have  part  in  this  glory.  Their  Master  had 
promised  it  to  them,  and  he  never  had  to  reproach  them  with  incre¬ 
dulity  on  this  head.  But  each  of  them  sought  to  be  first  in  this 
glory,  and  it  hardly  ever  happened  that  he  spoke  to  them  on  the 
subject  without  awakening  in  their  hearts  this  jealousy  of  each  other. 
Therefore,  as  it  appears  on  this  occasion,  (a)  “  there  was  also  a  strife 
amongst  them,  which  of  them  should  seem  to  be  the  greater.  And 
he  said  to  them  :  The  kings  of  the  Gentiles  lord  it  over  them  ;  and 
they  that  have  power  over  them  are  called  beneficent.  But  you 
are  not  so  ;  but  he  that  is  the  greater  among  you,  let  him  become 
as  the  younger,  and  he  that  is  the  leader,  as  he  that  serveth.  For 
which  is  the  greater,  he  that  sitteth  at  table,  or  he  that  serveth  ?  Is 
not  he  that  sitteth  at  table  ?  But  I  am  in  the  midst  of  you,  as  he 
that  serveth  (16).” 

Thus  men  should  only  hold  command  for  the  purpose  of  serving, 
and  if  it  be  allowable  to  desire  authority,  this  desire  can  only  be  en¬ 
tertained  with  a  view  to  the  advantage  which  may  accrue  to  those 
over  whom  the  authority  is  exercised.  After  this  lesson  which  Je¬ 
sus  had  already  given  to  his  apostles,  and  which  he  merely  repeats 
here,  he  proposes  to  them  a  glory  much  more  solid  than  all  those 
frivolous  distinctions  which  they,  in  their  blind  ambition,  sought. 
For,  reminding  them  of  all  they  had  done  for  him,  and  for  which  he 
in  his  goodness  condescended  to  give  them  credit,  although  they 
were  indebted  to  that  same  goodness  for  being  enabled  to  do  it, 
“he  said  to  them:  You  are  they  who  have  continued  with  me  in 
my  temptations  ;  and  I  dispose  to  you,  as  my  Father  hath  disposed 
to  me,  a  kingdom;  that  you  may  eat  and  drink  at  my  table,  in  my 
kingdom  ;  and  may  sit  upon  thrones,  judging  the  twelve  tribes  of 
Israel.” 

Then,  suffering  himself  to  be  softened  by  the  thought  that  he  was 
about  to  quit  them  ( b )  “  little  children,”  he  said  to  them  with  a 
kindness  truly  paternal,  “yet  a  little  while  I  am  with  you:  you 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  24—33.  ( b )  St.  John,  xiii.  33-36. 

(16)  He  proves  his  doctrine  by  his  own  uniform  practice.  They  are,  in  consequence 
of  his  demeanor  towards  them,  like  a  company  seated  at  table,  and  he  like  the  servant 
in  attendance.  Therefore  they  are  like  the  master,  and  he  like  the  servant,  although,  in 
point  of  fact,  they  are  the  servants  and  he  is  their  master.  See  Part  II.,  page  381,  et  seq. 


(S 


L7V 


v/l 


% X 


S1 


464 


THE  HISTOKY  OF  THE  LIFE 


‘  fPART  n. 


shall  seek  me,  and  as  I  said  to  the  Jews  :  Whither  I  go  yon  cannot 
come  ;  so  I  say  to  you  now.”  Hear,  then,  my  last  wishes  ;  for,  in 
quitting  you,  “a  new  commandment  (17)  I  give  unto  you:  That 
you  love  one  another,  as  I  have  loved  you,  that  you  also  love  one 
another.  By  this  shall  all  men  know  that  you  are  my  disciples,  if 
you  have  love  one  for  another.” 

Nothing  seems  impossible  to  love,  and,  therefore,  the  most  fer¬ 
vent  of  all  the  disciples  considered  as  at  least  dubious  the  truth  of 
this  expression  of  Jesus  :  “  Whither  I  go  you  cannot  go  ;”  and  it 
was  in  this  frame  of  mind  that  “  Simon  Peter  saith  to  him  :  Lord, 
whither  goest  thou?  Jesus  answered:  Whither  I  go,  thou  canst 
not  follow  me  now  ;  but  thou  shalt  follow  hereafter.” 

He  was  to  follow  him,  indeed,  in  his  sufferings  and  in  his  glory, 
but  the  time  for  doing  so  was  yet  far  distant.  It  was,  therefore, 
with  a  view  to  console  him  that  Jesus  revealed  to  him  this  glorious 
futurity.  But  as  he  wished,  at  the  same  time,  to  humble  his  pre¬ 
sumption,  when  “Peter  saith  to  him,  Lord,  why  cannot  I  follow 
thee  now  ?  I  will  lay  down  my  life  for  thee  ;  the  Lord  said  :  Si¬ 
mon,  Simon,  behold  Satan  hath  desired  (18)  to  have  you,  that  he 

(  1 7)  The  commandment  to  love  our  neighbor  as  ourselves  is  as  old  as  the  world.  We 
are  bound  to  do  so  by  the  law  of  nature  ;  and  even  the  Pagans  were  acquainted  with  it. 
We  find  it  expressed  by  Cicero  as  formally  as  it  is  in  the  Gospel.  Much  less  were  the 
Jews  ignorant  of  it,  as  appears  from  the  approbation  testified  by  the  doctor  of  the  law 
when  the  Saviour  told  him  that  the  precept  of  loving  our  neighbor  as  ourselves  is  like  to 
the  precept  of  loving  God.  It  is  not,  therefore,  in  this  sense  that  this  precept  is  here 
called  a  new  commandment.  Other  meanings  have  been  ascribed  to  it,  the  most  natural 
of  which  is  the  following:  Jesus  Christ  prescribes  to  his  apostles  a  love  still  more  tender 
and  more  generous  than  that  which  all  men  are  bound  to  have  for  each  other — a 
love  truly  fraternal,  grounded  upon  the  particular  quality  of  Christian,  which  gives  unto 
them  all  God  for  a  father,  and  Jesus  Christ  for  a  brother.  This  is  the  reason  why  the 
Saviour  adds  that  the  world  should  know  by  this  remark  that  they  professed  to  belong  to 
him.  Tins  love  was  visible  when  the  Church  commenced,  when  the  multitude  of  believ¬ 
ers  had  but  one  heart  and  one  soul,  and  it  was  still  in  full  force  during  the  first  centuries, 
when  the  Pagans,  enraptured  with  admiration,  exclaimed,  as  Tertullian  reports  :  See  how 
the  Christians  love  one  another.  If  this  charity  has  now  waxed  very  cold,  it  is  not  yet 
utterly  extinguished.  While  there  are  found  individuals  so  charitable  as  to  give  away  all 
their  wealth  to  the  poor,  and  apostolical  men  who  are  prodigal  of  their  sweat  and  blood 
for  the  salvation  of  their  brethren,  we  cannot  doubt  but  that  Jesus  Christ  has  still  upon 
earth  disciples  and  imitators  of  his  tender  and  inexhaustible  charity. 

(18)  As  he  had  asked  permission  to  tempt  Job.  Satan  has  no  power  over  us  except 
inasmuch  as  God  grants  it  to  him. 


CHAP.  LIA.]  OP  OUE  LOKD  JESUS  CHEIST.  465 

may  sift  yon  as  wheat  (19)  ;  but  I  have  prayed  for  yon  (20),  that 
thy  faith  fail  not  (21)  ;  and  thou  being  once  converted,  confirm  thy 
brethren  (22).” 

Knowing  that  they  would  need  to  be  thus  confirmed,  (a)  “  Then 
Jesus  saith  to  them  :  All  you  shall  be  scandalized  in  me  this  night. 
For  it  is  written  :  I  will  strike  the  shepherd,  and  the  sheep  of  the 
flock  shall  be  dispersed.  But  after  I  shall  be  risen  again,  I  will  go 
before  you  into  Galilee.” 

Peter  could  not  bear  that  his  Master  should  confound  him  with 
the  crowd,  from  which,  however,  he  was  only  to  distinguish  himself 
by  a  more  shameful  and  a  more  criminal  cowardice.  ( b )  “  Answer¬ 
ing  [therefore],  he  said  to  him  :  Although  all  shall  be  scandalized  in 
thee,  I  will  never  be  scandalized  ;  I  am  ready  to  go  with  thee,  both 
into  prison  and  into  death.  I  will  lay  down  my  life  for  thee.  Jesus 
answered  him  :  Wilt  thou  lay  down  thy  life  for  me  ?  Amen,  amen, 
I  say  to  thee,  Peter,  the  cock  shall  not  crow  this  day  (23)  till  thou 
thrice  deniest  that  thou  knowest  me.  Amen,  I  say  to  thee,  to-day, 

(а)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  31,  32. 

(б)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  33;  St.  Luke,  xxii.  33,  34;  St.  John,  xiii.  37,  38;  St.  Mark, 

xiv.  30. 


(19)  That  is  to  say,  to  tempt  you  violently;  as  the  grain  which  is  winnowed  or  sifted 
is  shaken  and  tossed  about. 

(20)  We  can  only  resist  by  means  of  grace,  and  grace  is  given  to  us  only  because  Je¬ 
sus  Christ,  who  has  purchased  it  for  us  by  the  effusion  of  his  blood,  asks  and  obtains  it 
for  us. 

(21)  Peter’s  faith  never  failed,  but  he  failed  in  courage  to  confess  it. 

(22)  These  words  give  room  for  believing  that  Peter,  whose  conversion  followed  so 
soon  after  his  fall,  exerted  himself  immediately  to  bring  back  the  scattered  disciples,  and 
to  strengthen  their  tottering  faith.  All  antiquity  has  admitted  that  these  words  are  not 
only  addressed  to  Saint  Peter,  but  also  to  his  successors,  to  whom  it  has  been  given  to 
constitute  after  him  the  foundation-stone  which  contributes  to  give  to  the  Church  that 
immovable  firmness  against  which  it  is  said  that  the  gates  of  hell  shall  never  prevail. 

(23)  According  to  one  evangelist,  the  Saviour  said  :  The  cock  shall  not  crow  this 
day  till  thou  thrice  deniest  that  thou  knowest  me.  According  to  another  evangelist,  he 
said  :  Before  the  cock  crow  twice  thou  shalt  deny  me  thrice.  We  have  combined  in  the 
text  these  two  expressions,  without  being  able  to  decide  which  of  the  two  the  Saviour 
really  used.  The  cock  crowed  the  first  time  after  the  first  denial  of  Saint  Peter.  Two 
other  denials  having  followed  it,  the  cock  crowed  again  the  second  and  third  time.  Thus 
when  it  is  said.  The  cock  shall  not  crow  this  day  till  thou  thrice  deniest  that  thou  know¬ 
est  me,  means  that  the  cock  shall  not  finish  his  nightly  crowing  until  thou  thrice  deniest 
that  thou  knowest  me. 


I  ^ 

A  mp 

w 

A 

\W 


1»"  r  ,  : 


'  V 5J 


ri 


4M 


even  in  this  night,  before  the  cock  crow  twice,  thou  shalt  deny  me 
thrice.”  A  man  can  only  become  thoroughly  acquainted  with  him¬ 
self  by  being  put  to  the  proof.  Peter,  who  thought  that  he  loved 
his  Master  more  than  his  life,  although,  in  point  of  fact,  he  loved 
his  life  more  than  he  did  his  Master,  (a)  “  spoke  the  more  vehement¬ 
ly  :  Although  I  should  die  together  with  thee,  I  will  not  deny  thee. 
In  like  manner  also  said  they  all,”  whether  it  was  that  the  same  pre¬ 
sumption  urged  them  to  speak  thus,  or  whether  they  were  ashamed 
to  show  themselves  less  resolute  than  their  chief. 

The  past  inspired  them  with  this  hope  for  the  future  ;  but  that 
future  which  they  hoped  to  find  like  unto  the  past,  was  to  be  of  a 
far  different  aspect.  Jesus,  though  always  exposed  to  the  malignity 
of  the  Pharisees,  had  hitherto  retained  the  love  and  veneration  of 
the  people.  The  disciples,  who  had  suffered  but  little  from  the  per¬ 
sonal  hatred  which  the  Pharisees  entertained  towards  their  Master, 
had  reaped  in  abundance  the  fruits  of  the  admiration  and  gratitude 
so  eminently  due  to  him,  and  which  the  multitude  so  willingly  ren¬ 
dered.  Such  was  the  past,  but  how  very  different  was  the  future 
to  be.  The  people,  duped  by  their  magistrates  and  by  their  teach¬ 
ers,  were  to  enter  into  a  league  with  them  against  the  Saviour  :  the 
conspiracy  was  to  be  general  ;  and  after  having  shown  favor  to  the 
disciples,  because  of  the  Master,  they  were  now  going,  on  his  ac¬ 
count,  to  persecute  them  to  the  very  utmost.  It  was  this  alarming 
change,  and  the  different  treatment  they  were  about  to  receive,  that 
Jesus  Christ  wished  to  set  before  their  eyes  when  he  said  to  them  : 
(Z>)  “  When  I  sent  you  without  purse  and  scrip,  and  shoes,  did  you 
want  any  thing?  But  they  said:  Nothing.  Then  said  he  unto 
them  :  But  now  he  that  hath  a  purse,  let  him  take  it,  and  likewise 
a  scrip  ;  and  he  that  hath  not,  let  him  sell  his  coat,  and  buy  a  sword. 
For  I  say  to  you,  that  this  that  is  written  must  yet  be  fulfilled  in 
me:  And  with  the  wicked  was  he  reckoned  (24).  For  the  things 


(a)  St.  Mark,  xiv.  31  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  35. 


(6)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  35-38. 


(24)  Jesus  Christ,  as  we  have  said,  was  about  to  be  treated  like  a  malefactor,  and  the 
world,  by  whom  he  was  to  be  so  treated,  would,  consequently,  persecute  his  disci¬ 
ples,  as  the  accomplices  of  his  crimes.  This  is  what  the  Saviour  means  when  he  de¬ 
clares  that  the  moment  is  come  wherein  this  prophecy  is  to  be  accomplished,  and  with 


j 


CHAP.  LIX.] 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CHEIST. 


concerning  me  have  an  end.  And  they  said:  Lord,  behold  here 
are  two  swords;  and  he  said  to  them:  It  is  enough  (25).” 

lie  did  not  countermand  the  order  which  he  had  previously  given 
them  of  going  without  provisions,  and  of  dwelling  in  the  world  like 
sheep  in  the  midst  of  wolves.  But  he  gave  them  notice  that,  after 
having  been  regarded  as  the  disciples  of  the  Messiah,  they  were 
henceforth  to  be  treated  as  the  accomplices  of  a  malefactor  ;  that 
the  world  was  about  to  declare  against  them  that  irreconcileable  war 
which  should  only  end  with  their  life,  and  that  hostilities  were  just 
on  the  point  of  commencing  ;  that  they,  therefore,  stood  in  need  of 
courage,  but  that  they  should  not  depend  too  much  upon  that  cour¬ 
age  which  they  evinced  by  words,  inasmuch  as  it  had  not  as  yet 
been  put  to  the  trial.  The  sword  of  which  he  had  spoken  was  only 
indicative  of  that  state  of  warfare  on  which  they  were  going  to  en¬ 
ter.  Peter,  wdio  understood  it  literally,  provided  himself  in  reality 
writh  a  sword.  Jesus  did  not  hinder  him  from  so  doing,  because  the 
use  which  this  impetuous  disciple  was  to  make  of  his  weapon  was 
destined  to  furnish  the  Saviour  with  an  occasion  of  further  display¬ 
ing  his  meekness  and  his  power  at  the  moment  of  his  capture  ; 
and  he  postponed  till  another  opportunity  the  information  that  it 
is  not  allowable  for  private  individuals  to  oppose  force  to  public 
authority,  even  when  it  makes  a  tyrannical  use  of  its  rights. 

The  apostles  were  troubled  at  what  they  had  just  heard,  and  it 
was  natural  that  they  should  be  so.  Jesus  Christ  was  on  the  point 
of  quitting  them,  without  any  possibility  of  their  following  him. 
One  of  their  number  was  to  betray  him,  and  even  their  chief  was  to 


the  wicked  was  He  reckoned.  Such  is  the  common  explanation  ;  and  what  most  favors 
this  interpretation  is,  that  Saint  Mark,  after  having  mentioned  that  Jesus  Christ  was  cru¬ 
cified  between  two  thieves,  immediately  quotes  this  prophecy  :  And  with  the  wicked  He 
was  reputed.  Some  interpreters  have  explained  it  in  a  different  manner  ;  according  to 
fiie  latter,  Jesus  Christ  wished  his  disciples  to  have  swords,  because  he  foresaw  that 
Saint  Peter  would  make  use  of  his  sword  for  the  purpose  of  wounding  one  of  those  who 
came  to  arrest  his  Master,  and  that  this  violence  towards  men  charged  with  the  execution 
of  an  order  from  the  magistrates  would  be  set  down  as  an  act  of  revolt,  which  would 
give  occasion  for  arraigning  Jesus  Christ  as  the  leader  of  a  seditious  band.  Thus  the 
prophecy  which  says.  And  with  the  wicked  He  shall  be  reputed,  which  was  accomplished 
by  the  crucifixion  between  two  robbers,  had  also  its  fulfilment  in  this  circumstance. 

(25)  That  is  to  say,  two  swords  are  enough  for  the  purpose  which  I  have  in  view. 


TIIE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


‘ [part  n. 


deny  him.  The  pastor  was  to  be  soon  struck  down,  and  the  sheep, 
left  to  themselves,  were  to  wander  to  and  fro,  hunted  and  despised. 
Weak  as  they  were,  we  may  conceive  what  sadness  and  what  terror 
must  have  filled  their  souls  at  the  sight  of  a  futurity  so  near  and  so 
terrible.  This  charitable  pastor,  more  affected  by  their  state  than 
by  the  evils  with  which  he  was  menaced,  appears  to  forget  himself 
in  order  to  occupy  himself  with  the  care  of  consoling  his  beloved 
disciples.  It  is  with  this  design  that  he  is  going  to  address  to  them 
this  admirable  discourse  of  which  we  have  already  spoken,  in  which 
we  may  say  that  his  beautiful  soul  unfolds  itself  entirely  before  their 
eyes — his  wisdom  and  his  charity  having  never  appeared  with  great¬ 
er  lustre.  Taking  occasion,  therefore,  from  the  trouble  in  which 
they  were,  he  begins,  in  order  to  compose  their  minds,  to  speak  to 
them  in  these  terms. 


CHAPTER  LX. 


DISCOURSE  AFTER  THE  SUPPER. - THE  DISCIPLES  ENCOURAGED  AND  CONSOLED.-* 

SEETH  THE  FATHER  SEETH  THE  SON. - THE  SPIRIT  OF  TRUTH  PROMISED. 


-WHO 


(a)  “Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled”  at  what  you  have  just  heard. 
My  promises  should  dispel  your  fears.  For,  as  “you  believe  in  God, 
believe  also  in  me  (1).”  I  am  going,  as  I  have  said  to  you,  and  I 
have  hitherto  told  Peter  only  that  one  day  he  shall  follow  me 
whither  I  go.  Yet  this  should  not  alarm  you  :  neither  he  nor  any 
other  could  exclude  you  from  that  happy  abode.  “In  my  Father’s 
house  (2)  there  are  many  mansions.  If  not,  I  would  have  told  you 

(a)  St.  John,  xiv.  1—31. 


(1)  Have  in  me  the  same  faith  and  the  same  confidence  which  you  have  in  God. 
This  text  is  one  of  those  which  prove  the  Saviour’s  divinity. 

(2)  Although  these  words  do  not  formally  express  the  inequality  of  the  places  found¬ 
ed  upon  inequality  of  merit,  nevertheless  the  Catholic  Church  has  always  recognized  it 
here  ;  and  we  now-a-days  make  use  of  these  words,  in  order  to  prove  it  ;  Jovinian  him¬ 
self,  who  thought  that  the  saints  in  heaven  are  all  equal  in  glory,  admitted  that  inequali¬ 
ty  was  expressed  in  this  text.  His  only  resource  was  to  apply  the  text  to  the  Church 


CHAP.  LIA.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


tliat  I  go  to  prepare  a  place  for  you,”  and  let  tins  proof  of  my  love 
prevent  you  from  suspecting  that  I  could  entertain  the  design  of  de¬ 
ceiving  you.  Do  not,  therefore,  hesitate  to  believe  it,  even  when 
you  shall  see  me  no  more,  and  rest  assured  that,  “if  I  shall  go  and 
prepare  a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again,  and  will  take  you  to  my¬ 
self  ;  that  where  I  am,  you  also  may  be  (3).  And  whither  I  go 
you  know,  and  the  way  you  know.” 

He  was  going  to  his  Father,  and  it  is  through  him  alone  that  any 
one  is  enabled  to  go  there  after  him.  He  had  told  them  this  so 
often,  and  in  so  many  ways,  that  they  could  not  be  in  utter  igno¬ 
rance  of  the  fact.  But,  either  because  they  did  not  then  remember 
it,  or  because  they  had  but  a  very  imperfect  idea  of  the  way  and 
the  end  thereof,  “  Thomas  saith  to  him  :  Lord,  we  know  not  whither 
thou  goest  ;  and  how  can  we  know  the  way  ?  Jesus  saith  to  him  : 
I  am  the  way,  and  the  truth,  and  the  life  (4).  No  man  cometh  to 
the  Father  but  by  me  ;  if  you  had  known  me,  you  wrould,  without 
doubt,  have  known  my  Father  also.  From  henceforth  you  shall 
know  him,  and  you  have  seen  him.” 

They  had  seen  him,  and,  notwithstanding,  they  had  yet  to  know 
him.  That  confused  knowledge  which  makes  people  say  indiscrim¬ 
inately,  that  they  know  and  that  they  do  not  know,  is  sufficient  ex¬ 
cuse  for  the  apparent  contradiction  which  is  found  in  these  modes  of 
speech.  They  had,  therefore,  seen  the  Man-God;  they  had  been 
witnesses  of  his  deeds  ;  they  had  heard  the  words  which  issued  from 
his  adorable  lips.  Both  one  and  the  other  emanated  from  the  di¬ 
vinity  which  dwelt  within  him,  and  would  have  unveiled  him  to 
eyes  more  spiritual  than  theirs,  to  eyes  sufficiently  clear-sighted  to 


militant  and  to  the  different  degrees  of  its  hierarchy.  Other  heretics,  such  as  the  Pela¬ 
gians,  make  a  difference  between  the  mansion  and  the  kingdom.  The  latter  being  more 
excellent,  according  to  them,  is  destined  for  those  who  receive  baptism  ;  and  the  man¬ 
sion  is  the  dwelling  of  those  children  who  die  without  having  been  baptized,  as  if  the 
mansion  were  not  in  the  kingdom,  and  as  if  it  did  not  sometimes  imply  more  to  be  in 
the  mansion  than  to  be  in  the  kingdom;  besides,  Jesus  Christ  speaks  here  to  the  apos¬ 
tles,  who  were  surely  not  to  be  classed  with  children  who  have  died  without  baptism. 

(3)  He  shall  return  at  the  moment  of  their  death  to  conduct  their  souls  thither,  and 
at  the  day  of  the  last  judgment,  to  lead  them  there,  both  body  and  soul. 

(4)  I  am  the  way  which  you  should  follow,  the  truth  which  you  shall  believe,  and  the 
life  which  is  to  resuscitate  you  to  a  life  eternal  and  eternally  happy. 


a  <»  a  <3  o  a  o 


470 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[fart  IL 


discover  through  the  Saviour’s  humanity,  which  was  merely  the  in¬ 
strument  of  the  wonders  which  he  wrought — the  divinity  which  was 
their  source.  To  see  the  Son  with  this  perfect  vision,  would  be  to 
see  the  Father  as  clearly;  and,  in  this  sense,  they  had  seen  the 
Father  as  well  as  the  Son,  inasmuch  as  the  divine  nature,  which 
they  had  only  caught  a  glimpse  of  in  the  Son,  is  the  same  in  the  Son 
as  in  the  Father.  Thus  it  is  easy  to  perceive  both  what  they  had 
and  what  they  still  required.  In  a  little  time,  according  to  the  prom¬ 
ise  which  the  Saviour  here  makes  to  them,  they  should  require  noth¬ 
ing,  because  the  Holy  Ghost  was  then  to  descend  upon  them  with 
the  plenitude  of  his  light.  Impatient  to  see  the  effect  of  this  prom¬ 
ise,  “Philip  saitli  to  Jesus:  Lord,  show  us  the  Father,  and  it  is 
enough  for  us.  Jesus  saith  to  him,”  in  the  sense  which  has  just  been 
explained  :  “  So  long  a  time  have  I  been  with  you,  and  have  you  not 
known  me  ?  Philip,  he  that  seeth  me  seeth  the  Father  also.  How 
say  est  thou,  Show  us  the  Father  ?  Do  you  not  believe  that  I  am  in 
the  Father  and  the  Father  in  me  ?  The  words  that  I  speak  to  you 
I  speak  not  of  myself.  But  the  Father  that  abideth  in  me  he  doth 
the  works.  Believe  you  not  that  I  am  in  the  Father  and  the  Fa¬ 
ther  in  me  ?  Otherwise  believe  for  the  very  works’  sake.” 

His  works  were,  in  point  of  fact,  the  incontestable  proof  of  the 
truth  of  all  his  words  ;  but  it  seems  that  this  proof  became  more 
sensible  to  them  if  they  did  themselves,  by  virtue  of  Jesus  Christ, 
the  same  things  which  He  had  done.  And,  in  giving  to  whomso¬ 
ever  he  wished  the  power  of  working  miracles,  did  he  not  discover 
his  divinity  still  more  clearly  than  even  by  those  which  he  himself 
wrought  ?  It  is  in  this  sense  that  he  adds  :  “  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to 
you,  he  that  belie veth  in  me,  the  works  that  I  do  he  shall  also  do  ; 
and  greater  than  these  shall  he  do  (5),  because  I  go  to  the  Father  ; 
and  whatsoever  you  shall  ask  the  Father  in  my  name,  that  will  I 
do;  that  the  Father  may  be  glorified  in  the  Son  (6).  If  you  shall 
ask  me  any  thing  in  my  name,  that  will  I  do.” 


(5)  The  shadow  of  Saint  Peter  cured  the  sick — a  miracle  which  Jesus  Christ  never 
wrought,  except  by  word,  or  at  least  by  the  touch  of  his  sacred  garments.  But  the 
miracles  of  the  disciples  all  redound  to  the  glory  of  the  Master,  because  they  weie 
wrought  in  his  name  and  by  his  power. 

(6)  We  must  pray  to  the  Father  through  the  Son,  and  to  the  Son  through  himself,  so 


'■'WKW 


CIÏAP.  LX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


He  is,  therefore,  as  powerful,  or  rather  He  has  the  same  power,  as 
the  Father,  since  those  very  same  things  which  are  asked  from  the 
Father  may  also  be  asked  from  him.  What  indicates  still  more 
clearly  this  unity  of  power  is,  that  he  does  not  here  say  that  he  shall 
pray  the  Father,  and  that  he  shall  obtain  from  him  for  them  all  that 
they  can  desire,  but  that  he  himself  will  confer  it  upon  them.  These 
words,  while  proving  his  omnipotence,  expressed  at  the  same  time 
the  greatness  of  his  love.  For  what  more  affecting  evidence  thereof 
could  he  give  to  them  than  by  offering  himself,  as  he  did,  to  accom¬ 
plish  all  their  desires,  and  by  rendering  them  the  depositaries  of  that 
supreme  power  which  nothing  can  resist  in  heaven  or  on  earth  ?  A 
promise  so  magnificent  could  not  fail  to  excite  in  them  some  senti¬ 
ments  of  gratitude  and  love.  And  it  is  likely  that  Jesus,  who  avails 
himself  of  every  opportunity  ill  order  to  instruct  them,  took  occa¬ 
sion  therefrom  to  inform  them  how  that  love,  which  they  owed  him 
by  so  just  a  title,  should  not  stop  at  sentiment,  but  must  also  be 
manifested  by  deeds,  inasmuch  as  he  added  immediately,  and  without 
any  apparent  connection  :  “  If  you  love  me,  keep  my  commandments.” 

Still  this  wondrous  gift  could  not  indemnify  them  for  his  loss  :  it 
was  necessary  for  that  purpose  that  Jesus  should  give  them  another 
self  in  his  stead.  Having,  as  God,  the  power  to  send  him,  he  may 
also,  as  man,  pray  for  his  coming;  and  he  promises  to  do  so  when 
he  says  :  “  I  will  ask  the  Father,  and  he  shall  give  you  (7 )  another 


that  all  is  through  him,  and  nothing  but  through  him.  Such  is  the  belief  and  the  prac¬ 
tice  of  the  Church,  who  never  petitions  for  any  thing,  but  in  the  name  and  through  the 
merits  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  A  motive  this,  of  the  most  profound  humility — by  my¬ 
self  I  am  unworthy  of  any  thing.  A  motive  of  the  most  perfect  confidence — through  J esus 
Christ  I  can  obtain  all  ;  confidence  and  humility,  two  dispositions,  which  should  always 
accompany  prayer. 

It  would  be  abusing  this  doctrine,  if  we  suffered  it  to  weaken  the  confidence  which  we 
have  in  the  intercession  of  the  saints.  We  are  only  the  more  humble  for  believing  that 
the  saints  are  more  agreeable  than  we  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  we  have  not  the  less  confi- 
dence  in  Jesus  Christ,  because  we  still  believe  that  it  is  only  through  Him  that  the  saints 
pray,  and  that  their  prayers  are  heard.  We  should  be  Calvinists  or  Iconoclasts,  did  we 
say  we  withdraw  ourselves  from  Jesus  Christ  when  we  'pray  to  his  members,  which  are 
also  ours,  his  children,  who  are  also  our  brothers,  and  his  saints,  who  are  our  first-fruits, 
to  pray  with  us  and  for  us  to  our  common  Master,  in  the  name  of  our  common  Media - 
tor. — Bossuet’s  Exposition  of  Catholic  Doctrine. 

his  merits.  No  one  had  merited  that  the  Son 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 

Paraclete  (8),  that  lie  may  abide  with  you  forever  (9).  The  Spirit 
of  truth  whom  the  world  cannot  receive  (10),  because  it  seeth  him 
not,  nor  knoweth  him.  But  you  shall  know  him,  because  he  shall 
abide  with  you,  and  shall  be  in  you.” 

Between  the  promise  and  the  accomplishment  little  more  than 
fifty  days  was  to  elapse.  The  term,  therefore,  was  not  far  distant, 
and  their  patience  was  not  to  have  too  long  a  trial.  However,  the 
Saviour  did  not  wish  to  leave  them  under  the  impression  that  they 
should,  during  all  that  time,  have  to  mourn  his  absence  ;  and,  by  an 
impulse  of  that  paternal  tenderness  which  induced  him  to  call  them 
his  little  children,  he  further  said,  announcing  to  them  the  near  ap¬ 
proach  of  his  resurrection  :  “  I  will  not  leave  you  orphans  ;  I  will 
come  to  you.  Yet  a  little  while  and  the  world  seeth  me  no  more  ; 


should  be  sent  ;  but  the  Son  has  merited  the  sending,  or  the  mission  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 
We  have  just  seen  that  Jesus  Christ  could  say  positively,  I  will  send,  without  saying, 
I  will  ask,  as  he  had  said  before,  Whatsoever  you  shall  ask  the  Father,  I  will  ask  him, 
and  he  shall  give  you  ;  whereas  he  says  absolutely,  Whatsoever  you  shall  ask  the  F a- 
ther  in  my  name,  that  will  I  do.  It  is  thus  that  he  speaks,  sometimes  as  God,  some¬ 
times  as  man,  in  order  to  testify  the  existence  of  both  natures. 

(8)  We  read  in  the  text,  another  Paraclete:  Jesus  Christ  is,  therefore,  our  Paraclete, 
since  he  saith  that  the  Holy  Ghost  is  another.  The  Greek  word  from  whence  this  is 
derived  has  three  significations  in  the  New  Testament  :  it  means  to  console,  to  exhort, 
and  to  perform  the  office  of  Advocate.  In  these  three  senses  it  applies  to  Jesus  Christ, 
and  in  the  first  two  significations  it  applies  also  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  to  whom  the  name 
of  Advocate  cannot  be  applicable,  inasmuch  as  it  only  belongs  to  Jesus  Christ,  on  ac¬ 
count  of  his  humanity,  by  which  he  is  become  mediator  between  God  and  man.  God, 
as  God,  cannot  be  called  our  Advocate  ;  for  before  whom  could  he  plead  our  cause  ? 
P.  De  Ligny  translates  the  word  into  French  by  “ Consolateur .”  He  adds  to  this  note 
that  he  translates  thus,  with  the  majority  of  commenta  tors  :  On  a  traduit  par  Consolateur 
avec  la  plupart  des  interprètes. 

The  Holy  Ghost  was  to  console  the  apostles  for  the  absence  of  Jesus  Christ.  He  was 
also  to  be  their  consoler,  in  the  midst  of  the  toils  which  they  had  to  undergo,  and  the 
persecutions  of  which  they  were  to  bear  the  brunt. 

■  (9)  The  apostles  were  going  to  be  deprived  of  the  pleasure  of  living  with  Jesus  Christ, 
but  the  consoling  Spirit  was  never  to  abandon  them.  When  he  promised  that  the  Holy 
Ghost  should  dwell  eternally  in  their  souls,  Jesus  Christ  promised  to  them  that  they 
should  never  lose  grace,  but  there  is  reason  to  think  that  they  did  not  then  understand 
this  promise. 

(10)  Truth  is  here  set  forth,  in  opposition  to  vanity  and  falsehood,  which  renders  it 
utterly  incompatible  witli  the  world,  which  is  essentially  vain  and  false. 

You  will  say  that  the  world  might  possibly  receive  the  Holy  Ghost,  but  then  it 
would  cease  to  be  what  is  called  the  world,  in  the  Gospel. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


473 


CHAP.  LX.] 

but  you  see  me,  because  I  live  and  you  shall  live  (1 1).  In  that 
day  you  shall  know  that  I  am  in  my  Father,  and  you  in  me,  and 
I  in  you  (12).”  And  because  in  one  sense  this  concerns  us  no 
less  than  the  disciples,  to  whom  Jesus  then  addressed  his  dis¬ 
course,  let  us  remark  the  condition  to  which  he  attaches  his  favors  : 
“  He,”  said  he,  “  that  hath  my  commandments,  and  keepeth  them, 
he  it  is  that  loveth  me  (13).  And  he  that  loveth  me  shall  be 


(11)  Death  was  soon  to  withdraw  him  forever  from  the  eyes  of  the  world,  but  not 
from  the  eyes  of  his  disciples,  to  whom  he  was  to  show  himself  immediately  after  his 
resurrection.  We  may  believe  that  he  said  in  this  sense,  I  live,  for  a  death  so  brief 
might  really  be  called  a  sleep  only,  as  the  .Saviour  terms  it  himself,  speaking  of  the 
death  of  Jairus’s  daughter,  and  of  the  death  of  Lazarus,  whom  he  was  going  to  restore 
to  life.  What  he  adds,  You  shall  live,  is  understood  to  refer  to  the  assurance  he  gives 
his  disciples,  that  the  rage  of  his  persecutors  shall  not  extend  to  them,  in  pursuance  of 
the  prohibition  which  he  would  lay  upon  them,  when,  at  the  moment  of  his  capture,  he 
said  unto  them,  “If,  therefore,  ye  seek  me,  let  these  go  their  way 

(12)  They  saw  after  his  resurrection  that  his  Father  was  in  him,  because  his  divinity 
was  rendered  so  manifest  to  them,  that  there  was  not  one  of  them,  nay,  not  even  the  in¬ 
credulous  disciple,  who  did  not  confess  that  he  was  his  Lord  and  his  God.  Now,  to  see 
his  divinity  so  clearly,  was  to  see  just  as  plainly  that  the  divine  nature  was  common  to 
him  with  his  Father,  and,  consequently,  that  he  is  in  his  Father,  and  that  his  Father  is 
in  him,  as  he  says  himself  elsewhere.  They  shall  know,  moreover,  that  they  are  in  him 
and  that  he  is  in  them,  because,  having  participated  in’ flesh  and  blood  by  his  incarna¬ 
tion,  he  has  made  himself  to  be  of  the  same  nature  with  them.  Besides,  being  their 
head,  and  they  his  members,  they  are  animated  by  the  same  spirit,  and  live  by  the  same 
supernatural  life  as  he,  which  the  reader  shall  see  more  fully  explained  in  the  similitude 
of  the  vine  and  its  branches.  These  truths  were  not  utterly  unknown  to  them  before  the 
Saviour’s  Passion  ;  but  they  began  to  comprehend  them  better  after  his  resurrection,  the 
lustre  of  his  resuscitated  body  having  commenced  to  shed  a  new  light  on  their  minds. 
The  new  instruction  then  given  by  their  Divine  Master  contributed  also  to  this  end  ;  for, 
after  they  had  seen  with  their  eyes  their  Lord  and  their  God,  they  learned  from  his  lips 
that  he  who  was  their  Lord  and  their  God,  was,  at  the  same  time,  their  brother,  and  his 
Father  their  Father. 

(13)  Man  knoweth  not  whether  he  is  worthy  of  love  or  of  hatred.  He  does  not  know, 
therefore,  whether  he  loves,  for  were  he  assured  that  he  loves,  he  would  also  be  equally 
assured  that  he  is  beloved.  He  is  not,  therefore,  assured  that  he  keeps  the  command¬ 
ments  ;  for,  after  this  expression  of  Jesus  Christ,  he  could  no  longer  doubt,  if  he  kept  the 
commandments,  whether  he  loves  God,  or  whether  he  is  loved  by  him.  However,  man 
should  believe  himself  as  equally  assured  that  he  loves  God,  as  he  can  be  that  he  keeps 
his  commandments.  Some  Christians  are  uneasy  because  they  do  not  feel  a  sensible 
love  ;  others  compose  themselves  into  a  state  of  confidence,  because  they  have  a  sensible 
affection  for  God.  These  are  mistaken,  both  of  them,  since  in  Jesus  Christ’s  judgment 
this  love  is  decided  by  the  commandments  being  kept  or  not  kept. 


7-nVVv^ 


474  THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE  '[PiET  H. 

loved  of  my  Father,  and  I  will  love  him,  and  will  manifest  myself  to 
him  (14).” 

“  Judas,  not  the  Iscariot,”  but  he  who  was  otherwise  called  Thad- 
deus,  the  brother  of  James,  and  cousin  of  the  Lord,  “saith  to  him: 
Lord,  how  is  it  that  thou  wilt  manifest  thyself  to  us,  and  not  to  the 
world  ?”  The  reason  is,  because  they  loved  him,  whereas  the  world 
hated  him.  For  such  is  the  sense  comprised  in  these  words,  which 
Jesus  again  repeated  :  “  If  any  one  love  me,  he  will  keep  my  word, 
and  my  Father  will  love  him,  and  we  will  come  to  him,  and  will 
make  our  abode  with  him  (15).  He  that  loveth  me  not  keepeth  not 
my  words.”  But  if  he  have  not  love  for  me,  neither  hath  he  any 
love  for  my  Father,  and  he  should  no  longer  expect  to  be  loved 
either  by  Him  or  by  Me.  For  “  the  word  which  you  have  heard  is 
not  mine,  but  the  Father’s  who  sent  me.” 

All  tills  contains  a  profound  meaning,  which  the  apostles  were  not 
as  yet  capable  of  penetrating.  Jesus,  who  spoke  it,  however,  that  it 
might  be  understood,,  promised  them  that  they  should  yet  under¬ 
stand  it,  in  the  following  words  :  “  These  things  have  I  spoken  to 
you,  abiding  with  you.  But  the  Paraclete,  the  Holy  Ghost,  whom 
the  Father  will  send  in  my  name,  he  will  teach  you  all  things  (16),  and 
bring  all  things  to  your  mind  whatsoever  I  shall  have  said  to  you  (17).” 


(14)  In  order  to  love  God,  we  must  know  him.  God  makes  himself  more  fully  known 
to  those  who  love  him.  Greater  knowledge  produces  greater  love,  which,  in  its  turn,  is 
rewarded  by  a  fresh  increase  of  knowledge.  The  tree  springs  from  the  seed  thereof,  and 
both  one  and  the  other,  by  their  mutual  reproduction,  increase  and  multiply  almost 
infinitely. 

(15)  God  is  everywhere,  but  he  has  three  special  dwellings  :  heaven,  where  he  shows 
himself  unveiled  ;  the  temples,  wherein  he  receives  our  homage  ;  and  the  souls  of  the  just, 
wherein  he  continually  operates  by  grace.  The  latter  may  well  be  termed  his  temples  : 
“  Ye  are  the  temples  of  the  living  God,”  saith  Saint  Paul.  Well  might  they  some¬ 
times  be  called  heaven  also,  on  account  of  the  wondrous  light  which  God  vouchsafes 
to  shed  upon  them.  Saint  Paul  leaves  it  doubtful  whether  it  was  not  during  one  of  these 
interior  illuminations  that  he  was  carried  in  spirit  to  the  third  heaven,  and  there  “  heard 
sacred  words,  which  it  is  not  granted  to  man  to  utter.” — II.  Cor.  xii.  4. 

(16)  Jesus  Christ  might  confer  the  Holy  Ghost  upon  the  apostles  at  the  same  time 
that  he  instructed  them  ;  he  did  not  choose  to  do  so,  in  order  that  they  might  learn  that 
exterior  preaching  produces  no  effect,  except  by  the  interior  action  of  the  Holy  Ghost, 
and  that  they  might  not  be  tempted  to  attribute  to  their  preaching  the  fruits  which  it 
was  soon  to  produce. 

(1Ï)  See  page  236  Part  I. 


CHAP.  L5.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  475 

Being  so  near  Iris  departure  from  tliem,  lie  once  more  bids  them 
farewell  in  these  terms  :  “  Peace  I  leave  with  you  ;  my  peace  I  give 
unto  you.”  It  is  thought  that  this  was  very  nearly  the  usual  form 
of  farewell  amongst  the  Jews.  It  was  only  a  civil  expression  with 
them  ;  but,  on  the  part  of  the  Saviour,  it  was  a  real  present.  He 
actually  gave  what  they  could  merely  wish  ;  and  the  peace  which 
he  gave  was  much  more  genuine  and  precious  than  that  which  they 
wished  each  other.  It  is  on  this  account  that  he  adds  :  “  Not  as  the 
world  giveth  do  I  give  unto  you.” 

But  the  apostles  were  not  then  in  a  condition  to  relish  the  sweet¬ 
ness  of  that  peace.  The  idea  of  the  separation — which  separation 
these  wmrds  forcibly  recalled  to  their  mind — caused  them  at  this 
moment  a  sadness  and  trouble  which  the  Saviour  condescended  to 
soothe  by  these  words:  “Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled,  nor  let  it 
be  afraid.  You  have  heard  that  I  said  to  you,  I  go  away,  and  I 
come  unto  you.”  The  assurance  of  my  return  should  enable  you  to 
bear  my  absence.  You  would  even  desire  it  if  you  were  more  en¬ 
lightened  than  you  are,  and  if  you  had  for  me  the  love  which  you 
ought  to  have.  Yes,  “  if  you  loved  me,  you  would  indeed  be  glad, 
because  I  go  to  the  Father;  for  the  Father  is  greater  than  1(18),” 
and  he  calls  me  to  himself  solely  for  the  purpose  of  associating  me 
in  his  dominion,  and  sharing  with  me  his  power.  If  he  wishes  that 
I  should  reach  it  by  the  way  of  sufferings  and  opprobrium,  far  from 
being  scandalized  thereat,  remember  ye  that  “now  I  have  told  ye 
before  it  come  to  pass,  that  when  it  shall  come  to  pass,  you  may  be¬ 
lieve.  I  will  not  now  speak  many  things  to  you  ;  for  the  prince  of 
this  world  cometh,  and  in  me  he  hath  not  any  thing  (19).  But  that 


(18)  Jesus  Christ  spoke  thus  because  of  his  humanity,  according  to  the  common  ex¬ 
planation,  which  is  quite  sufficient  to  silence  Arians.  The  ancient  fathex-s,  and  especially 
the  Greek  fathers,  thought  that  the  Saviour  might  have  also  said  this  with  refei'ence  to 
his  divinity,  on  account  of  a  certain  superioiity,  which  we  fancy  to  ourselves,  according 
to  our  own  conceptions,  in  him  who  is  the  principle,  over  him  who  proceeds  from  him, 
in  him  who  engenders,  over  him  who  is  engendered,  in  the  Father,  over  the  Son.  This 
was,  as  we  see,  without  prejudice  to  the  equality  and  identity  of  nature,  so  that  heresy 
could  derive  no  advantage  from  this  explanation  ;  but  heresy  might  make  a  bad  use  of 
it,  and  it  is  always  safe  to  confine  ourselves  to  the  formel-. 

(19)  It  is  sin  which  has  given  to  the  devil  the  empire  of  death  ;  he  therefore  had  no 
right  over  him  who  never  sinned,  who  could  only  die  voluntarily  and  of  his  own  free-will. 


» 


f/rnX' 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


‘  [part  H. 


the  world  may  know  that  I  love  the  Father,  and  as  the  Father  hath 
given  me  the  commandment,  so  do  I  :  Arise,  let  us  go  hence  (20).” 


CHAPTER  LXI. 

SEQUEL  OF  THE  DISCOURSE. - JESUS  OIIEIST  IS  THE  TRUE  VESTE. - WE  ARE  TO  PERSE¬ 
VERE  IN  CHARITY. - PERSECUTIONS  FORETOLD. - TESTIMONY  OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST. 

It  is  not  easy  to  say  very  exactly  in  what  place  Jesus  Christ  spoke, 
and  from  whence  he  then  departed.  Many  think  that  he  was  still 
in  the  supper  chamber,  where  he  had  eaten  the  paschal  lamb,  and 
that  it  was  from  it  he  now  went  forth.  Others  think  that  he  did 
not  leave  it  at  this  moment  ;  and  although  he  had  said,  “  Arise,  let 
us  go  hence,”  that  he  remained  there,  notwithstanding,  until  he  had 
concluded  the  long  discourse  which  he  had  commenced,  and  a  great 
part  of  which  was  yet  unspoken  :  this  supposition  is  very  improba¬ 
ble.  As  for  us,  confining  ourselves  to  the  letter,  we  have  already 
stated  that,  immediately  after  the  supper,  they  all  joined  in  the  can¬ 
ticle  of  thanksgiving,  and  that  they  immediately  set  out,  taking  the 
way  towards  Mount  Olivet.  We  must,  therefore,  infer  that  the  dis¬ 
course  was  pronounced  upon  the  way,  partly  while  walking  on,  and 
partly  whilst  stopping,  either  upon  the  road  itself,  or  under  some 
shelter  which  they  met.  We  shall  find  no  difficulty  here  if  we  re¬ 
member  that  they  walked  outside  of  the  city,  and  during  night — 
that  is  to  say,  in  a  time  and  in  a  place  where  the  Saviour  could  not 


(20)  There  is  a  colon  in  the  text  after  these  words:  “But  that  the  world  may  know 
that  I  love  the  Father  ;  and  as  the  Father  hath  given  me  commandment,  so  do  I."  This 
colon,  in  the  place  where  it  is,  renders  the  phrase  imperfect,  and  has  caused  some  to 
think  that  there  was  a  deficiency  here  ;  but  by  changing  this  punctuation,  and  joining 
what  precedes  to  these  latter  words,  “  arise,  let  us  go  hence''  we  have  this  natural  sense, 
so  conformable  to  the  Saviour’s  mode  of  thinking  and  of  speaking  :  “  But  that  the  world 
may  know  that  I  love  the  Father  ;  and  as  the  Father  hath  given  me  commandment,  so  do 
I  arise  :  let  us  go  hence,"  in  order  to  proceed  to  that  death  to  which  he  sends  me.  How¬ 
ever,  we  would  not  have  taken  this  liberty,  had  we  not  been  authorized  to  do  so  by  the 
example  of  skilful  interpreters. — [Père  De  Ligny.) 


CHAP.  LXI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


477 


be  interrupted  by  the  throng  of  passers-by.  Wherefore,  after  hav¬ 
ing  stopped  a  while,  he  arose  with  his  disciples,  and  resumed  his  jour¬ 
ney  and  his  discourse. 

Nothing  had  greater  interest  for  them  than  the  new  mystery  which 
he  was  about  to  disclose  to  them.  It  is  that  of  the  union,  and,  if  we 
may  dare  to  use  the  expression,  of  the  incorporation  of  all  the  faith¬ 
ful  with  the  Man-God,  by  which  he  makes  himself  their  head,  and 
they  become  his  members,  constituting  but  one  body  with  him,  ani¬ 
mated  by  the  same  spirit,  and  living  by  the  same  life.  Thus  is  form¬ 
ed  the  entire  Christ,  composed  of  the  head  and  members,  as  branch¬ 
es,  attached  to  the  trunk,  springing  from  the  same  root,  and  nourish¬ 
ed  by  the  same  sap,  form  with  it  but  one  and  the  same  tree,  for  such  is 
the  comparison  which  the  Saviour  makes,  pursuing  thus  his  discourse  : 

“  I  am  the  true  vine,  and  my  Father  is  the  husbandman  (1).  Every 
branch  in  me  that  beareth  not  fruit,  he  will  take  away  (2)  ;  and 
every  one  that  beareth  fruit,  he  will  purge  it  (3),  that  it  may  bring 
forth  more  fruit.  Now  you  are  clean  by  reason  of  the  word  which 
I  have  spoken  to  you  (4).  Abide  in  me,  and  I  in  you.  As  the 
branch  cannot  bear  fruit  of  itself,  unless  it  abide  in  the  vine,  so  nei¬ 
ther  can  you,  unless  you  abide  in  me.  I  am  the  vine,  you  the  branch¬ 
es.  He  that  abideth  in  me,  and  I  in  him,  the  same  beareth  much 
fruit  ;  for  without  me  you  can  do  nothing  (5).  If  any  one  remain- 

(1)  Jesus  Christ  is  also  the  husbandman,  but  he  speaks  of  this  with  reference  to  his 
Father  only,  because  it  was  proper  that,  in  the  parable,  the  vine-dresser  should  be  dis¬ 
tinguished  from  the  vine.  He  calls  himself  the  true  vine,  in  order  to  signify  that  the 
union  of  the  vine  with  the  branches  is  still  but  an  imperfect  figure  of  the  union  of  Jesus 
Christ  with  his  members,  and  of  the  admirable  manner  in  which  he  communicates  to 
them  life  and  fecundity. 

(2)  It  shall  be  separated,  in  this  life,  from  my  mystic  body,  by  heresy  or  by  excom¬ 
munication  ;  or,  if  it  still  remain  attached  by  faith,  it  shall  be  separated  in  the  other  life 
at  least  by  reprobation. 

(3)  He  will  prune  them.  If  the  branch  were  sensitive,  what  would  it  not  say  against 
the  hand  who  prunes  it  without  mercy  ?  But  if  it  were  rational,  could  it  complain 
of  those  salutary  wounds  which  procure  for  it  glory  and  fruitfulness,  and  which  preserve 
it  from  the  fire  to  which  it  had  been  justly  condemned  on  account  of  its  sterility  ? 

(4)  We  have  in  the  text,  by  reason  of  the  word  which  I  have  spoken  to  you.  This  is 
the  evangelical  word,  the  preaching  of  which  produced  faith  which  was  followed  by  jus¬ 
tification. 

(5)  This  expression,  and  we  might,  indeed,  say  the  whole  of  this  parable,  gives  a  mor¬ 
tal  blow  to  Pelagianism  ;  it  was  the  fundamental  dogma  of  that  heresy  that  grace  is  not 


478  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE  -[PART  II. 

etli  not  in  me,  lie  shall  be  cast  forth  as  a  branch,  and  shall  wither. 
They  shall  gather  him  up,  and  cast  him  into  the  fire,  and  he  burn- 
eth  (6).  If  you  remain  in  me,  and  my  words  remain  in  you,  you 
shall  ask  whatever  you  will,  and  it  shall  be  done  to  you.  In  this  is 
my  Father  glorified,  that  you  bring  forth  very  much  fruit,  and  be¬ 
come  my  disciples.” 

This  parable  could  not  have  a  more  suitable  place  than  that  where¬ 
in  J esus  Christ  proposed  it.  His  disciples,  who  were  upon  the  point 
of  being  deprived  of  his  sensible  presence,  might  easily  forget  him, 
and  detach  themselves  from  him.  It  was,  therefore,  necessary  that 
they  should  be  aware  how  closely  it  concerned  their  own  interest  to 
remain  always  united  to  him  by  faith  and  charity.  This  is  the  im¬ 
port  of  the  parable,  in  which,  besides  several  incidental  truths,  we 
find  associated  all  the  motives  capable  of  inducing  the  apostles  to 
rivet  as  closely  as  they  can  the  bonds  which  unite  them  to  their  Di¬ 
vine  Master — to  wit,  that  of  honor  ;  it  concerns  them  to  avoid  the 
shame  of  sterility,  and  to  procure  for  themselves  the  glory  of  a  happy 
fecundity:  that  of  fear;  if  they  detach  themselves  from  this  mystic 
vine,  or  if  they  deserve  to  be  cut  off  therefrom,  fire  shall  be  their  in¬ 
evitable  lot  and  their  eternal  punishment  :  that  of  self-interest  ;  for 
the  Saviour,  being  sensible  of  their  attachment,  makes  them  deposi¬ 
taries  of  his  power  and  arbiters  of  his  graces  ;  all  they  require  is,  to 

necessary  in  order  to  perform  good  actions,  and  that  at  most  it  only  facilitates  the  per¬ 
formance  thereof.  No,  says  Jesus  Christ,  without  me,  that  is  to  say,  without  my  grace, 
you  can  absolutely  do  nothing  ;  and,  in  point  of  fact,  it  is  not  in  order  to  fructify  more 
easily  or  more  abundantly  that  the  sapling  is  attached  to  the  vine — it  is  simply  in  order 
that  it  may  fructify  ;  without  this  union  it  would  be  equally  impossible  for  it  to  bear 
fruit,  either  more  or  less. 

This  expression,  you  can  do  nothing,  does  not  exclude  all  actions,  but  only  such  as  are 
conducive  to  salvation.  It  would  be  an  abuse  of  the  expression  to  conclude  therefrom 
that  all  the  acts  of  the  unfaithful  are  sins.  Between  sins  and  actions  meriting  eternal 
life  there  exists  a  medium,  viz.,  actions  morally  good,  but  which,  in  the  order  of  salva¬ 
tion,  have  neither  value  nor  merit.  Saint  Paul  said  well,  that  all  that  he  could  do  with¬ 
out  charity  would  profit  him  nothing,  but  he  does  not  say  that  it  would  be  hurtful 
to  him. 

(6)  In  the  text  it  is  in  the  present,  and  he  burneth  (P.  De  Ligny  translates  the  phrase 
into  the  future  of  the  French  verb  “brûler,”  et  il  brûlera );  this  is  in  order  to  signify  the 
incredible  activity  of  this  devouring  fire,  which  burns  in  an  instant  all  that  it  touches. 
We  also  find  its  infinite  duration  expressed  here  by  this  present,  always  to  come  and  al¬ 
ways  present,  and  he  burneth. 


AVI  Mï/y 


desire  and  to  ask,  and  their  wishes  shall  be  instantly  accomplished  : 
lastly,  that  of  gratitude  ;  God  shall  be  glorified  by  the  fruits  of  jus¬ 
tice  and  holiness  which  they  shall  produce,  as  the  fruits  whereby  a 
tree  is  crowned  are  at  the  same  time  the  glory  of  the  tree  and  or 
him  who  cultivates  it.  This  is  only  a  figurative  repetition  of  what 
the  Saviour  had  said  to  them  long  before,  viz.,  that  seeing  their  good 
works,  men  would  refer  the  glory  thereof  to  their  heavenly  Father, 
as  the  author  of  all  the  good  which  might  be  in  them. 

The  Saviour  again  reverts  to  what  he  had  already  said  to  them, 
in  order  to  impress  it  still  more  deeply  upon  their  minds.  He  re¬ 
peats  to  them,  therefore,  that  they  must  always  remain  united  to 
him,  bv  the  observance  of  his  commandments,  and  inasmuch  as  all 
the  commandments  are  comprised  in  charity,  which  comprises  the 
love  of  God  and  of  our  neighbor  :  “  As  the  Father  hath  loved  me,” 
he  said  to  them,  “  I  also  (7 )  have  loved  you.  Abide  in  my  love. 
If  you  keep  my  commandments,  you  shall  abide  in  my  love,  as  I 
also  have  kept  my  Father’s  commandments  (8),  and  do  abide  in  his 
love  (9).  These  things  I  have  spoken  to  you  (10),  that  my  joy  may 
be  in  you,  and  your  joy  may  be  filled  ;  this  is  my  commandment  : 
That  you  love  one  another  as  I  have  loved  you.  Greater  love  than 
this  no  man  hath,  that  a  man  lay  down  his  life  for  his  friends  (11). 

(7)  That  is  to  say,  gratuitously  and  without  there  being  on  your  part  any  preceding 
merit  which  bound  me  to  it  :  it  is  thus  that  the  Father  loved  the  Saviour’s  holy  humani¬ 
ty,  when,  in  advance  of  all  merit,  he  chose  it  to  be  united  to  the  Word  by  unity  of  per¬ 
son.  Jesus  Christ  speaks  lie  re  as  man,  and  the  comparison  which  he  draws  between  his 
love  for  his  disciples  and  the  love  which  his  Father  has  for  him,  should  be  understood  as 
indicative  of  similar  gratuitousness,  and  not  of  love  equal  in  its  degrees  and  effects. 

(8)  By  making  himself  obedient  unto  death,  even  unto  the  death  of  the  cross.  He  un¬ 
doubtedly  received  the  commandment  to  do  so,  since  where  there  is  no  commandment 
there  is  no  obedience. 

(9)  The  love  of  the  Father  was  for  the  Son  an  inalienable  good  which  he  could  never 
lose  ;  nevertheless,  the  Son  has  done  more  in  order  to  preserve  it,  than  he  requires  from 
us  in  _order  that  we  may  retain  his  love.  The  condition  is  similar,  and  it  is-  less  rigorous  : 
who  would  dare  to  complain  of  it  ? 

(10)  That  joy  of  complacency  which  a  good  father  feels  when  he  sees  his  children  do¬ 
cile  to  his  salutary  advice.  You  yourselves  rejoice  to  know  that  I  rejoice  in  you,  and 
this  holy  joy,  which  shall  be  henceforward  the  fruit  of  your  docility,  shall  one  day  re¬ 
ceive  from  your  perseverance  its  plenitude  and  its  perfection. 

(11)  Such  has  been  my  love  for  you — such  is  that  which  you  ought  to  have  for  one 
another.  This  conclusion  is  here  understood  ;  Saint  John  elsewhere  expresses  it  formal- 


4  y 

à  Ci 

W>  A 
J, 


ft. 


T 


480 


THE  HISTOEY  OP  THE  LIFE 


[PAET  II. 


You  are  my  friends  if  you  do  the  tilings  that  I  command  you.  I 
will  not  now  call  you  servants,  for  the  servant  knoweth  not  what 
his  lord  doth  ;  but  I  have  called  you  friends,  because  all  things  (12) 
whatsoever  I  have  heard  from  my  Father,  I  have  made  known  (13) 
to  you.  You  have  not  chosen  me  ;  but  I  have  chosen  you,  and  have 
appointed  you,  that  you  should  go,  and  should  bring  forth  fruit,  and 
your  fruit  should  remain;  that  whatsoever  you  shall  ask  of  the  Fa¬ 
ther  in  my  name,  he  may  give  it  you.  These  things  I  command 
you,  that  you  love  one  another.” 

What  induces  him  to  repeat  it  to  them  here  is,  that  union  of  hearts 
is  absolutely  necessary  for  those  who  are  to  concur  in  the  success  of 
a  great  enterprise  ;  but  this  unanimity,  which  facilitates  the  means, 
is  not  alone  sufficient  to  surmount  all  difficulties.  Patience  is  also 
necessary,  and  none  ever  required  it  more  than  the  apostles,  des¬ 
tined  as  they  were  to  encounter  the  fury  of  the  entire  world.  Jesus 
Christ  recommends  this  virtue  to  them,  or  rather  he  exhorts  them 
to  it  by  the  most  affecting  of  all  motives,  viz.,  his  own  example, 
which  he  proposes  to  them  in  these  terms  :  “  If  the  world  hate  you, 
know  ye  that  it  hated  me  before  you.  If  you  had  been  of  the  world, 
the  world  would  love  its  own  (14)  ;  but  because  you  are  not  of  the 
world,  but  I  have  chosen  you  out  of  the  world,  therefore  the  world 

ly,  when  he  says  (I.  Ep.  iii.)  :  We  have  known  the  charity  of  God,  because  he  hath  laid 
down  his  life  for  us  ;  and  we  ought  to  lay  down  our  lives  for  the  brethren. 

The  charity  of  Jesus  Christ  went  still  further.  He  has  not  given  his  life  for  his  friends 
only,  but,  saith  Saint  Paul  (Rom.  v.),  God  commendeth  his  charity  towards  us  ;  because 
when  as  yet  we  were  sinners,  according  to  the  time,  Christ  died  for  us.  We  have  already 
seen  under  what  circumstances  it  becomes  a  matter  of  obligation,  or  when  it  is  merely  a 
matter  of  perfection,  to  give  our  life  for  our  neighbor.  See  note  7,  page  182,  Part  I. 

(12)  We  issue  orders  to  servants,  without  being  bound  to  disclose  to  them  our  mo¬ 
tives  ;  but  we  tell  our  secrets  to  our  friends. 

(13)  All  only  refers  here  to  those  things  which  concern  religion  and  salvation.  Jesus 
Christ  had  not  already  communicated  all  those  things,  since  he  soon  after  says  to  the 
apostles  :  I  have  yet  many  things  to  say  to  you,  but  you  cannot  bear  them  now.  But  he 
had  communicated  a  part  of  them,  and  he  will  shortly  communicate  the  rest.  Thus,  I 
have  made  known  to  you,  signifies  in  this  place,  I  have  commenced,  and  I  shall  soon  fin¬ 
ish  making  known  to  you,  either  by  myself,  or  by  the  Holy  Ghost  whom  I  shall  send 
you,  all  that  my  Father  hath  told  me. 

(14)  Not  that  people  do  not  often  hate  each  other  in  the  world,  but  the  world  ever 
sympathizes  with  the  corrupt  morals  of  those  who  belong  to  it  ;  whereas  it  has  a  natural 
and  eternal  antipathy  to  the  pure  morality  of  virtuous  people. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


CHAP.  LXL 


hateth  you.  Remember  my  word  that  I  said  to  you  :  the  servant  is 
not  greater  than  his  master.  If  they  have  persecuted  me,  they  will 
also  persecute  you  :  if  they  have  kept  my  word,  they  will  keep  yours 
also.  But  all  these  things  they  will  do  to  you  for  my  name’s  sake  (15), 
because  they  know  not  him  that  sent  me  (16).” 

And  this  ignorance  does  not  excuse  them,  because  it  is  voluntary. 
“  If  I  had  not  come,  and  spoken  to  them,  they  would  not  have  sin  ; 
but  now  they  have  no  excuse  for  their  sin.”  They  do  not  compre¬ 
hend  the  enormity  thereof,  because  they  think  they  hate  me  only  ; 
but  “  he  that  hateth  me,  hateth  my  Father  also  (17).”  I  say  again  : 
“  If  I  had  not  done  among  them  the  works  that  no  other  man  hath 
done,  they  would  not  have  sin  ;  but  now  they  have  both  seen  and 
hated  both  me  and  my  Father.  But  that  the  word  may  be  fulfilled 
which  is  written  in  their  law  :  They  hated  me  without  cause.” 

But  their  hatred  shall  not  prevail  against  the  truth  which  it  made 
them  disown  ;  for  “  when  the  Paraclete  cometh,  whom  I  will  send 
you  from  the  Father  (18),  the  Spirit  of  truth,  who  proceedeth  from 


(15)  Not  only  shall  you  be  persecuted  like  me,  but  you  shall  be  persecuted  on  my  ac¬ 
count.  The  first  is  a  source  of  consolation  for  your  pains,  the  second  is  a  subject  of  joy 
and  of  triumph  in  the  midst  of  the  greatest  contumely.  They  indeed  went  from  the  pres¬ 
ence  of  the  council,  rejoicing  that  they  were  accounted  worthy  to  suffer  reproach  for  the 
name  of  Jesusf  Acts  v.).  But  let  none  of  you  suffer  as  a  murderer,  or  a  thief,  or  a 
railer,  or  a  coveter  of  other  men's  things  (I.  Pet.  iv.  15). 

(16)  They  know  one  God,  the  Creator  of  Heaven  and  of  Earth,  but  they  do  not  know 
him  only  as  the  Father  of  Jesus  Christ,  since  they  disown  his  Son  ;  nor  as  the  Author 
of  Christ’s  mission,  since  they  reject  his  Envoy.  They  do  not  know  God,  since  they  do 
not  recognize  him  ;  that  is  to  say,  since  they  do  not  acknowledge  his  power  in  the  mira¬ 
cles  of  Jesus  Christ,  or  his  sanctity  in  the  doctrine  of  Jesus  Christ. 

(17)  Nothing  is  more  rare  than  direct  hatred  towards  God,  nothing  is  more  common 
than  indirect  hatred.  We  hate  God  indirectly,  as  legislator  and  as  judge,  when  we  hate 
the  law  which  he  imposes  upon  us,  and  his  justice  which  punishes  the  transgression  of 
that  law.  Hatred  of  the  religion  which  he  has  revealed,  of  the  Church  which  he  has 
founded,  of  the  ministers  whom  he  has  established,  is,  of  all  indirect  hatred,  that  which 
approaches  nearest  to  direct  hatred. 

(18)  All  the  works  which  God  produces  exteriorly  are  equally  the  work  of  the  three 
divine  persons.  However,  it  often  happens  that  we  attribute  them,  by  appropriation,  to 
one  of  the  three.  Thus,  Creation  is  attributed  to  the  Father,  Redemption  to  the  Son, 
and  , Sanctification  to  the  Holy  Ghost.  We  say,  with  reference  to  one  of  the  persons, 
that  this  person  is  sent,  when  the  divine  work  is  one  of  those  operations  which  are  ap¬ 
propriated  to  him  ;  which,  however,  is  said  only  with  reference  to  the  persons  who  pro¬ 
ceed.  Thus,  the  Son  is  sent  by  the  Father  from  whom  he  proceeds,  and  the  Holy  Ghost 

.31 


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[part  n. 

tile  Father,  he  shall  give  testimony  of  me  ;  and  yon  shall  give  testi¬ 
mony,  because  you  are  with  me  from  the  beginning  (19). 

(a)  “  These  things”  which  you  shall  have  to  suffer  with  me,  and 
for  me,  “  have  I  spoken  to  you,  that  you  may  not  be  scandalized.” 
You  must,  therefore,  be  prepared  to  bear  it.  “They  will  put  you 
out  of  the  synagogues.  Yea,  the  hour  cometh,  that  whosoever  kill- 

fa)  St.  John,  xvi.  1-15. 


is  sent  by  the  Father  and  by  the  Son  ;  but  the  Father  from  whom  the  two  other  persons 
proceed,  and  who  proceeds  from  no  one,  is  never  said  to  be  sent.  But  if  the  Son  said 
of  himself,  the  spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me,  *  *  he  hath  sent  me  to  evangelize  the  poor, 
it  should  only  be  understood  with  reference  to  the  Saviour’s  humanity,  according  to  which 
he  might  in  reality  have  been  sent  by  the  Holy  Ghost  ;  for  if  we  merely  consider  in  him 
the  divinity,  as  he  is  the  principle  of  the  Holy  Ghost  who  proceeds  from  him,  it  is  he 
who  sends  the  Holy  Ghost,  as  he  says  expressly  in  this  passage,  and  it  is  no  longer  per¬ 
missible  to  say  that  the  Holy  Ghost  sent  him. 

This  expression,  whom,  1  will  send  you,  has  always  been  made  use  of  to  prove  that  the 
Holy  Ghost  proceeds  from  the  Son.  And  as  it  is  said,  immediately  after,  who  proceed¬ 
ed  from  the  Father,  we  have  in  this  single  text  the  refutation  of  two  heresies,  viz.,  of 
that  which  made  the  Holy  Ghost  proceed  from  the  Son  and  not  from  the  Father,  and 
of  that  which  made  him  proceed  from  the  Father  and  not  from  the  Son.  It  is  well 
known  that  the  second  is  the  heresy  of  the  Greeks  :  the  first  is  but  little  known. 
Saint  Basil  has  opposed  it  in  Eunomius,  as  may  be  seen  lib.  II.  contra  Eunomium, 
in  fine. 

(19)  St.  Augustin  says  that  the  testimony  rendered  by  the  apostles  is  the  testimony 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  is  here  spoken  of.  That  is  true,  but  it  is  not  all.  Indeed,  the 
Holy  Ghost  directed  and  inspired  the  apostles  in  the  testimony  which  they  rendered  to 
Jesus,  according  to  this  expression  :  It  is  not  you  who  speak  ;  it  is  the  spirit  of  your  Fa¬ 
ther  who  speaketh  in  you.  And  in  this  sense  the  testimony  of  the  apostles  is  also  that  of 
the  Holy  Ghost.  But  this  divine  Spirit  hath  also  rendered  his  particular  testimony  ut¬ 
terly  independent  of  that  of  the  apostles  :  this  occurred  when  he  descended  upon  them 
in  the  form  of  fiery  tongues,  and  communicated  to  them  the  gift  of  language.  He  re¬ 
peated  this  testimony  every  time  he  descended  in  a  visible  manner  upon  the  newly  bap¬ 
tized  Christians,  and  communicated  to  them  the  same  gift.  Such  is  the  divine  testimony 
which  was  rendered  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  The  testimony  of  the  apostles,  inasmuch  as 
they  were  inspired  by  the  same  spirit,  was  also  divine.  But  it  was,  at  the  same  time, 
human  testimony  founded  upon  that  which  they  had  heard  with  their  ears,  seen  with 
their  ejes,  and  touched  with  their  hands,  as  Saint  John  expresses  himself  (I.  Ep.  i.). 
And  it  is  in  this  sense  that  Jesus  Christ  thus  speaks  of  it,  when  he  says  :  You  shall  give 
testimony,  because  you  are  with  me  from  the  beginning.  The  first  testimony  was  neces¬ 
sary,  in  order  to  oblige  men  to  believe  divine  truths  ;  the  second  was  accommodated  to 
the  nature  of  man,  and  to  his  manner  of  proceeding  in  the  verification  of  facts,  viz.,  proof 
by  witness.  The  combination  of  both  leaves  no  species  of  testimony  wanting  to  Jesus 
Christ. 


“kUT" '""f  \  j  ji'\7  n«, 


HA 


ssl 


P” 


111 


m 


eth  you  will  think  that  he  doth  a  service  to  God  (20).  And  these 
things  will  they  do  to  you,  because  they  have  not  known  the  Father 
nor  me.  But  these  things  I  have  told  you,  that  when  the  hour  shall 
come,  you  may  remember  that  I  told  you  of  them. 

“  But  I  told  you  not  these  things  from  the  beginning  (21),  because 
I  was  with  you,”  and  that,  supported  by  my  presence,  you  had  no 
need  of  being  cautioned  ;  besides,  that  the  first  effects  of  this  hatred 
must  fall  upon  me  alone.  “  Now  I  go  to  him  that  sent  me,  and  none 
of  you  asketh  me,  Whither  goest  thou  ?”  I  know  that  this  is  not 
from  indifference.  “  But  because  I  have  spoken  these  things  to  you, 
sorrow  hath  [,?o]  filled  your  heart,”  that  you  have  not  strength  to 
speak.  “But  I  tell  you  the  truth.”  However  advantageous  my 
presence  may  be  to  you,  “it  is  expedient  to  you  that  I  go  (22);  for 
if  I  go  not,  the  Paraclete  will  not  come  to  you;  but  if  I  go,  I 
will  send  him  to  you  (23).  And  when  he  is  come,  he  will  con- 

(20)  Christian  and  Catholic  magistrates  and  princes  have  believed  that  they  rendered 
a  service  to  God  by  persecuting,  as  impious  men,  those  who  opposed  the  Christian  and 
Catholic  faith,  and  in  this  they  were  not  deceived.  On  the  other  hand,  infidel  or  heretic 
rulers  have  imagined  that  they  served  God  when  persecuting  those  who  professed  or  de¬ 
fended  the  Christian  or  Catholic  faith,  and  in  believing  so  they  were  grievously  mistaken. 
It  is  not  so  much  the  pain  endured  as  the  cause  for  which  it  is  endured,  which  consti¬ 
tutes  the  difference  between  the  martyr  and  the  obdurate  fanatic.  In  like  manner,  it  is 
not  the  pain  inflicted,  but  the  cause  for  which  it  is  inflicted,  which  makes  the  difference 
between  the  impious  persecutor  and  the  zealous  defender.  God  is  so  just  that  he  will 
take  ignorance  as  some  excuse  for  the  enemies  of  his  religion,  and  even  for  the  murder¬ 
ers  of  his  prophets:  Forgive  them,  for  they  know  not  what  they  do.  He  is  so  patient 
that  he  spares  even  those  who  dare  to  say  that  the  defence  of  his  cause  concerns  only 
himself,  and  that  princes  (though  his  vicegerents  on  earth)  have  no  right  to  interfere  on 
his  behalf. 

(21)  Jesus  Christ  had  already  foretold  more  than  once  to  his  disciples  the  persecu¬ 
tions  which  they  should  have  to  encounter.  What  he  here  tells  them  for  the  first  time 
is,  that  they  shall  be  persecuted  and  put  to  death,  because  they  shall  be  regarded  as  im¬ 
pious  and  enemies  of  God  ;  which  scornful  imputation  and  unmerited  punishment  must, 
of  course,  be  very  distressing  to  these  virtuous  men.  It  is  to  this  latter  circumstance 
that  we  may  refer  these  words  :  I  told  you  not  these  things  from  the  beginning. 

(22)  The  apostles  could  only  be  indemnified  for  the  loss  of  a  God  by  the  coming  of  a 
God.  Therefore  the  Holy  Ghost  is  God,  says  Saint  Chrysostom,  who  drew  this  conclu¬ 
sion  against  Macedonius. 

(23)  It  might,  indeed,  have  occurred  that  the  Holy  Ghost  should  come,  and  that 
Jesus  Christ  should  send  him,  although  Jesus  Christ  did  not  quit  the  earth  ;  but  this 
would  not  have  been  in  accordance  with  the  order  of  the  divine  decrees.  According  to 
this  order,  each  of  the  persons  was  to  appear  in  his  turn  in  the  work  of  the  divine  re- 


ta 


m 


vince  (24)  the  world  of  sin,  and  of  justice,  and  of  judgment” — that  is  to 
say  (if  we  may  venture  to  interpret  such  mysterious  words),  when  the 
Paraclete  comes,  he  shall  convince  the  world  that  it  is  sinful  (25),  that 
I  am  just,  or  rather,  that  I  am  justice  itself,  and  that  on  the  day  of 
the  last  judgment,  I,  who  am  to  be  its  judge,  because  I  am  the  con¬ 
queror  and  the  judge  of  its  prince — I  shall  display  before  its  eyes 
the  overwhelming  contrast  of  its  crimes  with  my  innocence,  and  of 
my  justice  with  its  iniquity.  Thus  the  world  shall  know  at  last 
what  it  is,  what  I  am,  and  what  it  has  -to  expect. 

The  Holy  Ghost  will,  therefore,  convince  the  world  “  of  sin,”  adds 
the  Saviour,  reverting  to  what  he  had  already  said,  “  because  they 
believed  not  in  me  ;  of  justice,  because  I  go  to  the  Father,  and  you 
shall  see  me  no  longer  (26)  ;  and  of  judgment,  because  the  prince  of 
this  world  is  already  judged  (27).” 


demption  and  of  the  sanctification  of  men.  The  Father  had  commenced  it  bv  sending 
his  only  Son,  and  by  uniting  him  to  human  nature  through  the  incarnation.  The  incar¬ 
nate  Word  had  enlightened  the  world  by  his  doctrine,  and  redeemed  it  by  his  death  ;  it 
was  necessary  that  he  should  disappear,  and  that  he  should  leave,  if  we  may  venture  so 
to  speak,  the  world  unoccupied,  so  that  the  Holy  Ghost  might  exhibit  himself  therein  in 
his  quality  of  man’s  sanctifier,  and  as  the  consummator  of  the  work  of  the  Father  and 
the  Son.  We  also  deduce  from  hence  the  divinity  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  for  there  was  no 
one  but  a  God  who  could  perfect  the  work  of  God. 

(24)  To  convince,  signifies  to  give  proof  sufficiently  conclusive  not  to  leave  any  reason¬ 
able  ground  of  objection.  This  does  not  hinder  people  from  being  still  incredulous,  but 
it  renders  them  inexcusable. 

The  most  conclusive  of  all  proof  which  the  apostles  gave,  were  the  miracles  which  the 
Holy  Ghost  operated  through  their  ministry. 

(25)  All  men  are  sinners,  and  cease  to  be  so  only  by  faith  in  Jesus  Christ.  Where¬ 
fore  those  who  do  not  believe  in  Him,  remain  necessarily  and  irremediably  sinful. 

(26)  Jesus  Christ,  by  quitting  the  earth  and  ascending  into  heaven  by  his  own  power, 
has  shown  that  he  was  more  than  man,  and  very  far  from  being,  as  the  world  had  con¬ 
sidered  him,  merely  a  sinful  man,  and  guilty  to  the  extent  of  deserving  extreme  punishment. 

(27)  The  prince  of  this  world  is  the  devil.  Dispossessed  of  the  temples  wherein  he 
was  adored  ;  reduced  to  silence  in  the  places  where  he  had  delivered  his  oracles,  or  to 
the  forced  confession  of  Jesus  Christ’s  divinity  by  the  mouth  of  demoniacs  from  whose 
bodies  he  was  expelled — this  spirit  of  darkness  was  manifestly  vanquished,  and,  conse¬ 
quently,  judged  and  condemned.  Therefore  the  world,  his  worshipper  and  his  slave, 
could  no  longer  avoid  being  judged  and  condemned  in  its  turn. 

These  three  truths,  proved  by  the  apostles,  that  is  to  say,  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  who 
inspired  the  preaching  of  the  apostles,  and  who  was  the  author  of  their  miracles,  proved 
also  those  truths  which  Jesus  Christ  has  just  proposed,  taken  in  the  sense  that  we  have 
given  to  them.-'  ' 


_ 


By  these  last  words  the  Saviour  entered  into  mysteries  which 
were  as  yet  beyond  the  reach  of  the  disciples.  This  it  is  which 
makes  him  then  say  to  them  :  “  I  have  yet  many  things  to  say  to 
you  (28),  but  you  cannot  bear  them  now.  But,”  he  adds,  in  order 
to  increase  in  them  the  desire  of  the  coming  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  by 
inspiring  them  with  the  desire  of  being  thoroughly  instructed  in  all 
which  it  behooved  them  to  know — “  but  when  he,  the  Spirit  of  truth, 
is  come,  he  will  teach  you  all  truth  ;  for  he  shall  not  speak  of  him¬ 
self;  but  what  things  soever  he  shall  hear  he  shall  speak  (29),  and 
the  things  that  are  to  come  he  shall  show  you  (30).  He  shall 
glorify  me,  because  he  shall  receive  of  mine,  and  shall  show  it  to 
you  (31).” 

It  is  true  that  all  which  he  has  comes  from  the  Father  ;  but  “  all 
things  whatsoever  the  Father  hath  are  mine  :  therefore  I  said  that 
he  shall  receive  of  mine,  and  shall  show  it  to  you.” 

These  words  are  easily  understood,  if  the  Son  be  the  principle  of 
the  Holy  Ghost  ;  but  if  he  were  not,  they  would  be  unintelligible. 
The  procession  of  the  divine  persons  is,  therefore,  clearly  known,  and 
we  may  say  that  the  Saviour  here  completes  the  revelation  thereof. 


(28)  See  note  13,  page  480,  Part  II. 

(29)  The  Holy  Ghost  spoke  only  what  he  heard  from  the  Son,  as  the  Son  only  does 
what  he  sees  the  Father  do  :  figures  of  speech  which  signify  that  the  Holy  Ghost  re¬ 
ceives  knowledge  from  the  Son  as  the  Son  receives  power  from  the  Father. 

(30)  The  gift  of  prophecy  is  promised  by  these  words.  The  apostles  had  it,  and  they 
were  not  the  only  individuals  who  had  it,  since  Saint  Paul  distinguishes  different  classes 
of  apostles,  of  prophets,  of  doctors,  &c.  The  apostles  combined  within  themselves  all 
these  qualities  which  are  found  divided  amongst  others. 

(31)  The  Holy  Ghost  received  from  the  Son  all  divine  knowledge  with  the  divine  essence. 
But  he  has  not  communicated  it  all  to  the  apostles,  human  nature  being  incapable  of  re¬ 
ceiving  such  a  communication  ;  and  it  is  with  reference  to  the  portion  which  he  commu¬ 
nicates  to  them  that  the  Saviour  said  :  He  shall  receive  of  mine,  and  shall  show  it  to  you, 
which  is  tantamount  to  this  :  He  shall  receive  from  me  what  he  shall  announce  to  you. 


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THE  END  OF  THE  DISCOUESE. - JOT  PKOMXSED  AFTEE  SOEEOW. - JESUS  PEATS  FOB 

HIMSELF  AND  FOE  HIS  DISCIPLES. 

Consoled  in  their  sufferings  by  the  visit  and  by  the  gifts  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  the  disciples  shall  also  be  finally  consoled  by  their  re¬ 
union  with  their  beloved  Master.  The  expectation  thereof  was  not 
to  be  of  very  long  duration  ;  it  was  only  to  last  during  this  life,  so 
short  in  itself,  and  which  is  merely  a  moment,  if  we  compare  it  with 
eternity.  It  is  apparently  in  this  sense  that  Jesus  further  said  to 
them  :  (a)  “  A  little  while,  and  now  you  shall  not  see  me  ;  and 
again  a  little  while,  and  you  shall  see  me  ;  because  I  go  to  the  Fa¬ 
ther.” 

The  first  of  these  two  periods  is  that  which  was  to  elapse  before 
his  ascension.  The  second  period  was  from  the  ascension  of  the  Sa¬ 
viour  till  the  death  of  the  apostles — that  day  when  he  was  to  re¬ 
ceive  them  with  open  arms,  and  carry  up  unto  his  very  throne  their 
souls,  then  victorious  over  hell  and  the  world.  What  he  adds  con¬ 
cerning  his  return  to  the  Father  refers  to  two  things.  Inasmuch  as 
he  was  soon  to  ascend  thither,  his  disciples  must  then  lose  sight  of 
him  ;  but  inasmuch  as  he  went  thither  for  the  purpose  of  preparing 
a  place  for  them,  his  departure  was  to  them  a  guarantee  for  his  re¬ 
turn,  and  the  cause  of  their  affliction  became  the  foundation  of  their 
hope.  All  this  had  been  announced,  but  not  developed  ;  and  if  it 
had  for  the  disciples  the  certainty  of  oracles,  it  had  also  their  obscu¬ 
rity,  at  least  for  the  majority  amongst  them.  “Then  some  of  his 
disciples  said  one  to  another  :  What  is  this  that  he  saith  to  us  ?  A 
little  while  and  you  shall  not  see  me  ;  and  again  a  little  while  and 
you  shall  see  me  ;  and  because  I  go  to  the  Father.  They  said, 
therefore:  What  is  this  that  he  saith?  We  know  not  what  he 
speaketh.” 

“  Jesus  knew  that  they  had  a  mind  to  ask  him,  and  he  said  to 

(a)  St.  John,  xvi.  16-33. 


K 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


them  :  Of  this  do  you  inquire  among  yourselves,  because  I  said  :  A 
little  while  and  you  shall  not  see  me  ;  and  again  a  little  while  and 
you  shall  see  me.  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  that  you  shall  lament 
and  weep,  but  the  world  shall  rejoice  ;  and  you  shall  be  made  sor¬ 
rowful,  but  your  sorrow  shall  be  turned  into  joy.” 

Without  fixing'  the  duration  of  these  two  periods,  Jesus  makes 
them  understand  that  the  time  of  his  absence  shall  be  one  of  afflic¬ 
tion  to  them,  which  affliction  shall  be  followed  by  joy  at  his  return. 
Their  condition  in  this  respect  is  very  different  from  that  of  the 
lovers  of  the  world,  who  commence  with  joy  and  end  with  sorrow. 
Let  the  Saviour’s  disciples,  therefore,  leave  the  lovers  of  the  world 
to  revel  in  their  short  and  frivolous  joys  ;  and,  instead  of  regarding 
them  with  envy,  let  them  consider  that  the  evils  of  the  present  life 
are  like  unto  the  labor  by  which  they  bring  forth  a  second  life, 
which  is  to  be  one  of  infinite  joy  and  endless  happiness,  as  the  Saviour 
makes  manifest  by  this  comparison,  which  should  serve  as  a  consola¬ 
tion  to  all  just  souls  laboring  under  sorrow  or  affliction  :  “  A  woman, 
when  she  is  in  labor,  hath  sorrow,  because  her  hour  is  come  ;  but 
when  she  hath  brought  forth  the  child,  she  remembereth  no  more 
the  anguish,  for  joy  that  a  man  is  born  into  the  world.  So  also  you 
now,  indeed,  have  sorrow  :  but  I  will  see  you  again,  and  your  heart 
shall  rejoice  ;  and  your  joy  no  man  shall  take  from  you.  And  in 
that  day  you  shall  not  ask  me  any  thing  (1).” 

But  when  once  they  are  separated  from  a  master  so  beneficent 
and  so  powerful,  to  whom  shall  they  have  recourse  in  their  necessi¬ 
ties  ?  The  Saviour  is  about  to  relieve  them  from  this  last  anxiety. 
There  is  a  means  of  obtaining  more  favors  in  his  absence  than  they 
did  obtain  during  the  time  that  he  dwelt  amongst  them.  This 
means,  hitherto  unknown,  was  at  last  to  be  manifested  to  the  world. 
Jesus,  who  had  already  indicated  it,  makes  it  thoroughly  known  by 
these  words:  “Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  you,  if  you  ask  the  Father  any 


(1)  If  we  refer  this  expression  to  what  has  been  previously  said,  it  will  signify,  you 
shall  ask  me  no  further  questions.  If  we  connect  it  with  what  immediately  follows,  it 
will  mean,  you  shall  make  no  further  ■prayer  to  me.  The  majority  of  interpreters  follow 
the  first  of  these  explanations.  Those  who  see  God  face  to  face,  no  longer  desire  any 
information.  It  is  true  that  they  have  no  longer  any  wants  to  expose  ;  but  if  they  can 
no  longer  pray  for  themselves,  they  may  still  pray,  and  do  incessantly  pray,  for  us. 


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THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


thing  in  my  name,  lie  will  give  it  to  you.”  Accustomed  to  address 
your  prayers  to  me  alone,  “hitherto  you  have  not  asked  any  thing 
in  my  name.  Ask,  and  you  shall  receive,  that  your  joy  may  be 
full,”  by  the  entire  accomplishment  of  your  desires. 

Jesus  at  last  terminates  this  long  instruction  with  the  renewed 
promise  of  a  clearer  manifestation  of  the  divine  secrets:  “These 
things,  said  he,  I  have  spoken  to  you  in  proverbs  :  the  hour  cometh 
when  I  will  no  more  speak  to  you  in  proverbs,  but  will  show  you 
plainly  of  the  Father,”  either  by  myself  or  by  the  Spirit  whom  I 
shall  send  to  you.  “  In  that  day  you  shall  ask  in  my  name  ;  and  I 
say  not  to  you  that  I  will  ask  the  Father  for  you  (2)  even  were 
it  possible  that  I  did  not  do  so,  you  would  still  be  heard  ;  “  for  the 
Father  himself  loveth  you,  because  you  have  loved  me  (3),  and  have 
believed  that  I  came  out  from  God.  I  came  forth  from  the  Father, 
and  am  come  into  the  world  ;  again,  I  leave  the  world,  and  I  go  to 
the  Father  (4).” 

The  Saviour  had  often  before  spoken  as  clearly  as  he  has  just 
done,  and,  notwithstanding,  he  had  not  been  understood.  But 
whether  the  repetition  of  the  same  things  had  rendered  them  more 
intelligible,  or  whether  he  had  accompanied  his  last  words  with  an 
extraordinary  light,  which  supplied  the  defect  of  capacity  in  his 
hearers,  “  His  disciples  say  to  him  :  Behold,  now  thou  speakest  plain- 

(2)  Jesus  Christ,  in  heaven,  is  always  living  to  make  intercession  for  us  (Heb.  vii.). 
However,  the  Church  never  says  to  him,  as  to  the  saints,  pray  for  us,  but  have  mercy 
on  us.  The  reason  is,  says  the  Abbé  Rupert,  because  the  intercession  of  Jesus  Christ  is 
not  like  that  of  the  saints,  an  humble  and  suppliant  prayer,  but  a  representation  of  our 
wants  and  of  his  rights  made  by  Him  who,  although  he  made  himself  like  to  us,  is  not 
the  less  equal  to  God. 

(3)  The  love  which  God  has  for  us  necessarily  precedes  that  which  we  have  for  God. 
We  never  could  love  him  if  he  did  not  first  love  us.  But  our  love  makes  him  love  us 
still  more.  Perhaps  it  might  be  more  desirable  to  say  that  the  first  love  which  God  en¬ 
tertained  towards  us  was  merely  beneficence,  and  that  our  love  causes  the  love  of  com¬ 
placency  to  succeed  to  this  beneficence,  in  the  heart  of  God  ;  and  it  is  with  reference  to 
this  second  love  that  it  is  said  :  My  Father  loveth  you  because  you  have  loved  me. 

(4)  The  Word  was  in  the  world  before  he  left  the  bosom  of  the  Father;  and  he  did 
not  quit  his  Father’s  bosom  when  he  appeared  to  leave  it,  in  order  to  come  into  the 
world.  Always  and  everywhere  present  by  his  immensity,  he  merely  manifested  himself 
where  he  had  not  been  visible.  The  Man-God  has  not  quitted  the  world,  though  he 
left  it  to  return  to  his  Father;  always  present  upon  earth  under  the  eucharistie  species, 
lie  merely  ceased  to  be  visible  where  he  had  before  been  visible. 


CHAP.  LXII.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  489 

ly,  and  speakest  no  proverb.  Now  we  know  that  thou  knowest  all 
things,  and  thou  needest  not  that  any  man  should  ask  thee  :  by  this 
we  believe  that  thou  comest  forth  from  God.  Jesus  answered  them  : 
Do  you  now  believe  ?”  I  know  that  you  do  ;  but  such  is  still  the 
feebleness  of  your  faith,  that  “  behold  the  hour  cometh,  and  it  is  now 
come,  that  you  shall  be  scattered  every  man  to  his  own,  and  shall 
leave  me  alone  ;  and  yet  I  am  not  alone,  because  the  Father  is  with 
me.”  And,  in  order  to  keep  before  their  eyes  the  principal  object 
of  his  discourse,  he  closed  with  these  words  :  “  These  things  I  have 
spoken  to  you,  that  in,  me  you  may  have  peace,”  from  the  certainty 
that  nothing  shall  occur,  either  to  you  or  to  me,  which  shall  not 
eventually  turn  out  to  my  advantage  and  to  yours.  “  In  the  world 
you  shall  have  distress  ;  but  have  confidence,  I  have  overcome  the 
world  (5).” 

(a)  “These  things  Jesus  spoke,  and  lifting  up  his  eyes  to  heaven, 
he  said  :  Father,  the  hour  is  come  ;  glorify  thy  Son,  that  thy  Son 
may  glorify  thee,  as  (6)  thou  hast  given  him  power  over  all  flesh  (7), 

(a)  St.  John,  xvii.  1-26. 


(5)  The  world  was  not  entirely  disarmed  by  the  victory  which  Jesus  Christ  achieved 
over  it  ;•  but  it  is  so  weakened  thereby,  that  it  can  conquer  those  only  who  do  not  choose 
to  defend  themselves. 

What  strength  the  world  still  retains  has  been  left  to  it  only  in  order  to  signalize  the 
courage  of  its  conquerors,  and  its  weakness  is  the  reproach  of  those  who  become  its 
slaves. 

(6)  As  relates  to  this  expression,  Glorify  thy  Son ;  it  expresses  the  measure  of  the 
glory  for  which  Jesus  Christ  asks.  This  glory  must  be  proportioned  to  the  power  which 
his  Father  has  communicated  to  him.  Now  this  power  being  extended  over  all  flesh, 
that  is  to  say,  unlimited,  it  is  fitting  that  the  glory  which  accompanies  it  should  also  be 
unlimited,  because  Christ  Jesus  humbled  himself,  becoming  obedient  unto  death,  even  unto 
the  death  of  the  Cross  ;  God  also  hath  exalted  him,  and  hath  given  him  a  name  which  is 
above  all  names,  that  at  the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee  should  bow  of  those  that  are  in  heav¬ 
en,  on  earth,  and  under  the  earth,  and  that  every  tongue  should  confess  that  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  is  in  the  glory  of  God  the  Father  (Philip,  ii.). 

(7)  We  find  in  the  text,  all  flesh,  an  expression  by  which  interpreters  have  always  un¬ 
derstood,  all  men.  It  is  subsequently  said,  that  he  may  give  eternal  life  to  all  whom  thou 
hast  given  him.  He  gives,  therefore,  eternal  life  to  all  flesh — that  is  to  say,  to  all  men, 
which  shows  that  he  does  not  here  speak  of  eternal  life  consummated,  but  only  of  eter¬ 
nal  life  commenced,  or  as  Saint  Cyril  explains  it,  of  the  root  and  origin  of  eternal  life, 
viz.,  the  knowledge  of  one  true  God,  and  of  Jesus  Christ  in  the  quality  of  Messiah,  as 
the  Saviour  himself  is  about  to  inform  us.  Such  is  the  eternal  life  which  he  has  given 


f/j 


1/7 


that  he  may  give  eternal  life  to  all  whom  thou  hast  given  him.  Now 
this  is  eternal  life  :  That  they  may  know  thee  the  only  true  God, 
and  Jesus  Christ,  whom  thou  hast  sent  (8).  I  have  glorified  thee 
on  earth  ;  I  have  finished  the  work  which  thou  gavest  me  to  do  ; 
and  now  glorify  thou  me,  O  Father,  with  thyself,  with  the  glory 
which  I  had,  before  the  world  was,  with  thee  (9).” 

After  having  prayed  for  himself,  he  is  now  going  to  pray  for  his 
disciples.  The  greater  length  of  the  discourse,  and  the  exquisite 
tenderness  of  the  expressions,  would  almost  make  us  believe  that  he 
takes  a  greater  interest  in  their  happiness  than  in  his  own.  It  is, 
therefore,  exclusively  for  them  that  he  thus  continues  to  address  his 
Father  :  “I  have  manifested  thy  name  to  the  men  whom  thou  hast 
given  me  out  of  the  world.  Thine  they  were,  and  to  me  thou  hast 
given  them  ;  and  they  have  kept  thy  word.  Now,  they  have  known 
that  all  things  which  thou  hast  given  me  are  from  thee  ;  because  the 
words  thou  gavest  me  I  have  given  to  them  :  they  have  received 
them,  and  have  known  in  very  deed  that  I  came  out  from  thee,  and 
they  have  believed  that  thou  didst  send  me.  I  pray  for  them  ;  I 


to  all  men — that  is  to  say,  which  he  has  offered  to  them,  so  that  on  his  side  nothing  has 
been  wanting  which  was  necessary  in  order  that  all  men  might  obtain  it. 

(8)  Eternal  life,  that  is  to  say,  faith,  which  is  the  root  thereof,  has  for  fundamental 
dogmas  the  existence  of  one  only  God,  and  the  mission  of  Jesus  Christ  as  Saviour  of  the 
world.  The  second  dogma  was  to  be  proposed  to  the  Joys,  who  already  believed  the 
first,  and  both  were  to  be  proposed  to  the  Gentiles,  who  were  ignorant  of  both. 
To  recognize  the  Father  as  the  only  true  God  is  not  excluding  from  the  divinity  they 
who  constitute  one  and  the  same  God  with  the  Father.  The  Son  and  the  Holy  Ghost 
are  not,  therefore,  excluded  by  this  text  ;  and  the  Arians,  who  sought  to  avail  themselves 
of  it,  could  turn  it  to  no  account. 

If  Jesus  Christ  is  the  ambassador  of  God,  we  should,  therefore,  have  faith  in  all  his 
words,  and  believe  that  he  is  God,  if  he  has  elsewhere  said  that  he  is  God.  Wherefore 
all  that  could  be  concluded  from  this  text  is,  that  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ  is  neither 
proved  nor  contradicted  by  it,  and  we  are  not  the  less  bound  to  believe  it,  supposing  that 
it  is  proved  by  other  texts. 

The  Ancient  Fathers  have  proved  the  divinity  by  this  same  text.  They  translate  it 
thus  :  This  is  eternal  life,  that  they  may  know  thee,  and  Jesus  Christ,  whom  thou  hast 
sent,  as  the  only  true  God.  There  is  nothing  objectionable  in  this  interpretation  ;  and 
when  Saint  Athanasius  employed  it  against  Arius,  the  latter  knew  not  how  to  answer. 

(9)  Before  the  creation  of  the  world,  the  Word  was  with  God,  where  he  possessed  the 
glory  which  belongeth  to  the  only  Son  of  the  Father.  He  asks  that  his  humanity  may 
be  associated  in  this  glory,  and  that  the  uncreated  Word  may  be  recognized  in  the  splen¬ 
dor  of  the  Word  incarnate. 


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CHAP.  LXII.] 

pray  not  for  the  world  (10),  but  for  them  whom  thou  hadst  given 
me,  because  they  are  thine.”  He  said  this,  speaking  as  man  ;  but 
he  speaks  as  God  when  he  adds  :  “  All  my  things  are  thine,  and 
thine  are  mine:  I  am  glorified  in  them  (11).” 

Let  us  not  be  surprised  at  seeing  him  urge  so  many  motives  in 
order  to  induce  his  Father  to  love  them  and  to  take  them  under  his 
protection  ;  they  are  about  to  be  deprived  of  his  presence,  and  of 
the  sensible  support  which  they  had  found  therein.  “  Now  I,”  said 
he,  “  am  not  in  the  world,  and  these  are  in  the  world,  and  I  come  to 
thee.  Holy  Father,  keep  them  in  thy  name  (12),  whom  thou  hast 
given  me,  that  they  may  be  one  (13)  as  we  also  are.  While  I  was 
with  them,  I  kept  them  in  thy  name.  Those  whom  thou  gavest  me 
have  I  kept  ;  and  none  of  them  is  lost,  but  the  son  of  perdition  (14), 
that  the  Scripture  may  be  fulfilled  (15).  And  now  I  come  to  thee, 


(10)  Jesus  Christ  does  not  here  pray  for  the  incredulous  and  perverse  world,  but  for 
his  disciples  who  had  faith  and  justice.  Thus  it  is  that  he  asks  for  them  what  it  is  suit¬ 
able  to  ask  for  just  and  faithful  men,  viz.,  perseverance  in  faith  and  justice,  and  the  con¬ 
summation  of  charity.  Upon  the  cross  he  shall  ask  for  the  wicked  and  for  the  impious 
what  should  first  be  asked  for  this  class  of  men,  viz.,  the  pardon  of  their  sins,  the  first 
effect  of  which  is  the  justification  of  sinners. 

(11)  The  glory  which  he  had  hitherto  derived  from  them  was  so  inconsiderable,  one 
would  almost  venture  to  say  that  it  was  scarcely  worth  speaking  of.  In  the  same  way 
he  has  just  been  praising  them  for  having  believed  in  his  word,  although  their  faith  was 
so  unsettled,  and  for  having  practised  the  duties  which  he  inculcated,  although  their  vir¬ 
tue  was  so  imperfect  that  he  had  been  obliged  often  to  reproach  them  with  the  weakness 
of  both  their  faith  and  their  virtue.  This  conduct  is  just  like  that  of  a  tender  and  en¬ 
lightened  mother  who  points  out  their  faults  to  her  children,  in  order  that  they  may  cor¬ 
rect  them,  and  entertains  their  father  with  an  account  of  those  praiseworthy  and  virtu¬ 
ous  qualities  which  may  make  him  love  them. 

(12)  That  is  to  say,  for  the  glory  of  thy  name.  P.  De  Ligny  translates  into  French, 
à  cause  de  votre  nom,  because  of  thy  name.  The  note  states  that  others  translate,  par 
la  vertu  de  votre  nom,  or  by  virtue  of  thy  name;  and  that  we  may  choose  between  both 
meanings. 

(13)  In  order  that  they  may  be  one  and  the  same  thing  by  union  of  heart,  as  we  are 
one  and  the  same  thing  by  unity  of  nature. 

*  If  they  have  charity,  they  shall  have  all  the  virtues  ;  and  if  they  shall  remain  perfect¬ 
ly  united,  they  are  assured  of  all  success.  And,  indeed,  Jesus  Christ  seems  to  sum  up 
in  charity  all  that  he  asks  for  them  from  his  Father. 

(14)  An  individual  may  have  been  given  by  the  Father  to  Jesus  Christ,  and  neverthe¬ 
less  be  lost. 

(15)  It  was  necessary  that  he  should  be  lost,  since  his  loss  was  foretold  in  Scripture; 


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and  these  things  I  speak  in  the  world,  that  they  may  have  my  joy 
filled  in  themselves  (16).  I  have  given  them  thy  word,  and  the 
world  hath  hated  them  (17),  because  they  are  not  of  the  world,  as 
I  am  not  of  the  world.  I  do  not  ask  that  thou  take  them  away  out 
of  the  world,  but  that  thou  preserve  them  from  evil  (18).  They 
are  not  of  the  world,  as  I  also  am  not  of  the  world.  Sanctify  them 
in  truth.  Thy  word  is  truth  (19).  As  thou  hast  sent  me  into  the 
world,  I  also  have  sent  them  into  the  world  (20).  For  them  I  do 
sanctify  myself  (21),  that  they  also  may  be  sanctified  in  truth. 

“  And  not  for  them  only  do  I  pray,  but  for  those  also  who,  through 
their  word,  shall  believe  in  me  ;  that  they  also  may  be  one,  as  thou, 
Father,  in  me,  and  I  in  thee,  that  they  also  may  be  one  in  us  (22), 


but  his  loss  had  been  foretold  only  because  be  was  to  perish  by  the  free  and  voluntary 
determination  of  his  own  heart. 

(16)  The  joy  which  I  shall  have  at  seeing  them  preserved  and  sanctified  ;  or  otherwise 
that  joy  which  they  shall  feel  when  they  first  experience,  in  my  absence,  the  same  elfects 
from  your  protection  as  when  I  was  present  with  them.  We  may  choose  between  these 
two  explanations. 

(17)  A  further  reason  why  God  should  love  them  ;  as  the  enemy  of  God  and  of  Jesus 
Christ  hates  them. 

(18)  God  does  much  for  virtuous  people,  whom  he  delivers  by  death  from  the  dan¬ 
gers  and  persecutions  of  the  world.  He  does  more  for  them  whom  he  leaves  therein 
with  grace  to  surmount  those  difficulties  :  the  first  class  constitute  the  just,  the  second 
are  the  heroes  of  religion. 

(19)  This  word  is  the  evangelical  law;  Jesus  Christ  asks  that  his  disciples  may  per¬ 
fectly  accomplish  it  :  it  alone  produces  true  and  perfect  sanctity. 

(20)  Jesus  Christ  is  the  ambassador  of  God,  the  apostles  were  the  ambassadors  of  Je¬ 
sus  Christ;  the  latter,  in  the  name  of  God  and  of  Jesus  Christ,  have  sent  their  disciples, 
who,  in  their  turn,  have  sent  others.  The  persons  employed  are  different,  but  the  source 
of  the  mission  is  always  the  same,  and  the  last  bishop  who  shall  be  consecrated  in  the 
Catholic  Church  shall  have  his  mission  from  God  as  truly  as  Jesus  Christ  had  his. 

The  apostles  sent  into  the  world  should  be  saints  :  first,  in  order  to  preserve  them¬ 
selves  from  the  corruption  of  the  world  ;  second,  in  order  to  sanctify  the  world  by  their 
example,  without  which  preaching  seldom  produces  a  salutary  effect.  Each  of  them 
should  be  enabled  to  say:  Be  ye  imitators  of  me,  as  I  am  of  Jesus  Christ. 

•  (21)  The  sanctity  of  Jesus  Christ  is  the  source  and  the  model  of  ours.  Although  as 
God  he  was  essentially  holy,  and  although  he  was  necessarily  so  as  man  personally  united* 
to  the  Word,  he  still  might  not  sanctify  himself  in  the  rigorous  sense  of  this  term,  which 
signifies  to  render  one’s  self  holy,  but  to  produce  acts  of  sanctity  in  the  sight  of  men  who 
were  to  be  sanctified  by  his  merits  and  example. 

(22)  By  means  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  one  with  God,  and  who  has  made  himself 
one  with  us,  there  is  formed  of  God,  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  of  us  so  intimate  a  union, 


j 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST, 


that  the  world  may  believe  that  thou  hast  sent  me.  And  the  glory 
which  thou  hast  given  me,  I  have  given  to  them  (23),  that  they  may 
be  one,  as  we  also  are  one.  I  in  them,  and  thou  in  me,  that  they 
may  be  made  perfect  in  one  ;  and  that  the  world  may  know  that 
thou  hast  sent  me,  and  hast  loved  them,  as  thou  hast  also  loved 
me  (24).  Father,  I  will,  that  where  I  am,  they  also  whom  thou 
hast  given  me  may  be  with  me,  that  they  may  see  my  glory,  which 
thou  hast  given  me  ;  because  thou  hast  loved  me  before  the  founda¬ 
tion  of  the  world.  Just  Father,  the  world  hath  not  known  thee  ; 
but  I  have  known  thee,  and  these  have  known  that  thou  hast  sent 
me.  And  I  have  made  known  thy  name  to  them,  and  will  make  it 
known  ;  that  the  love  wherewith  thou  hast  loved  me  may  be  in 
them,  and  I  in  them  (25).” 


that  the  term  union  scarcely  suffices  to  express  it,  so  that  the  term  “Unity"  seems  to 
be  more  properly  applicable.  The  mystery  shall  be  unveiled  in  Heaven  ;  the  union  of 
the  faithful  is  its  image  upon  earth.  Although  the  eye  doth  not  perceive  either  God, 
who  is  the  soul  and  centre  of  it,  or  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  the  connecting  link,  yet  both 
one  and  the  other  manifest  themselves  by  the  effects  in  which  we  recognize  the  author 
of  the  law  of  charity,  as  we  recognize  the  Creator  by  the  works  of  creation.  It  is  on 
this  account  that  the  Saviour  adds,  that  the  world  may  believe  that  thou  hast  sent  me. 
The  world,  in  point  of  fact,  has  recognized  him  by  this  mark,  and  many  an  infidel  who 
had  withstood  the  proof  of  miracles,  could  no  longer  resist  that  of  charity. 

(23)  By  this  glory  some  understand  the  divine  filiation,  others  the  apostolical  mission, 
and  others  still  the  participation  of  the  body  and  blood  of  Jesus  Christ.  Some  think  that 
the  Saviour  here  means  the  gift  by  anticipation  of  eternal  glory.  We  may  as  well  ob¬ 
serve  in  this  place  that  we  have  omitted  to  explain  several  expressions  in  the  Saviour’s 
prayer,  which  are  taken  in  different  senses  by  the  Fathers  and  Catholic  interpreters.  All 
these  senses  are  good  ;  none  of  them  is  so  manifestly  the  literal  sense  as  to  exclude  the 
other.  To  report  them  all  would  be  merely  multiplying  commentaries,  and  then  it  is 
scarcely  possible  but  that  some  one  of  these  commentaries  should  present  itself  to  those 
who  read  with  attention  this  admirable  prayer,  and  it  is  natural  that  each  individual 
should  be  more  affected  by  what  occurs  to  his  own  mind,  than  by  what  might  otherwise 
be  suggested  to  him. 

(24)  God  loves  us  with  the  same  love  with  which  he  has  loved  Jesus  Christ.  It  is 
properly  Jesus  Christ  whom  he  loves  in  us,  and  the  love  which  he  has  for  us  is  only  an 
extension  of  that  which  he  has  for  Jesus  Christ. 

(25)  This  love  is  in  them,  because  the  love  of  the  Father  is  no  other  than  the  Holy 
Ghost  who  is  really  given  to  those  whom  God  loves,  with  that  special  love  by  which 
they  are  made  his  children.  It  is  this  which  made  Saint  Paul  say  :  The  charity  of  God 
is  poured  forth  in  our  hearts  by  the  Holy  Ghost  who  is  given  to  us  (Rom.  v.). 


% 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  n. 


k\ 


CHAPTER  LXIII. 

GARDEN  OF  OLIVES. - KISS  OF  JUDAS. - SOLDIERS  STRUCK  DOWN. - MALCHU8. - JESUS 

IS  APPREHENDED  AND  CONDUCTED  TO  ANNAS  AND  CAIPHAS. - THE  BLOW. - FALSE 

WITNESSES. - CONFESSION  OF  JESUS  CHRIST. 

(a)  “  When  Jesus  had  said  these  things,”  having  nothing  more  to 
do  in  this  world  but  to  suffer  and  to  die,  “  he  went  forth  with  his  disci¬ 
ples  over  the  brook  Cedron.  He  went,  according  to  his  custom,  to  the 
Mount  of  Olives  ;  and  his  disciples  also  followed  him.  Then  Jesus 
came  with  them  into  a  country  place  which  is  called  Gethsemani, 
where  there  was  a  garden,  into  which  he  entered  with  his  disciples. 
And  Judas  also,  who  betrayed  him,  knew  the  place  ;  because  Jesus 
had  often  resorted  thither  together  with  his  disciples.”  Very  far 
from  avoiding  the  traitor,  he  advanced  to  meet  him  ;  and  as  the  mo¬ 
ment  of  the  combat  drew  nigh,  (b)  “  He  said  to  his  disciples  :  Sit  you 
here,  till  I  go  yonder  and  pray  ;  pray  \jje  also],  lest  ye  enter  into 
temptation.  And  \leaving  the  others  behind ]  he  taketh  Peter,  and 
James,  and  John  with  him,  and  he  began  to  grow  sorrowful  (1),  and 
to  be  sad.  And  he  saith  to  them  :  My  soul  is  sorrowful  even  unto 
death  (2)  ;  stay  you  here,  and  watch  with  me.  And  going  a  little 


(a)  St.  John,  xviii.  1,2;  St.  Luke, 
xxii.  39  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi. 
36. 


(6)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  36-38,  39  ;  St. 
Luke,  xxii.  40-44  ;  St.  Mark, 
xiv.  33,  34-36. 


(1)  He  began  to  feel  sorrow  and  also  fear.  He  might  experience  both  these  senti¬ 
ments,  because  he  was  man  ;  hut  because  he  was  the  Man- God,  he  felt  them  only  at  the 
moment  and  in  the  degree  that  he  wished,  and  these  feelings  ceased  when  he  command¬ 
ed  them  to  depart  from  him.  If  this  be  weakness,  we  may  term  it  the  weakness  of  a 
God  ;  and  the  power  of  mastering  his  passions  when  at  this  height,  evinced  greater 
strength  than  if  he  were  utterly  devoid  of  passions. 

This  is  properly  the  passion  of  the  Saviour’s  soul.  Man  had  sinned  in  his  body  and  in 
his  soul.  Fear  and  sorrow  are  not  sins;  these  two  feelings  are  no  imperfections  in  him 
who  was  one  tempted,  in  all  things  like  as  we  are,  without  sin  (Heb.  iv.  15). 

Neither  is  it  beneath  the  Man- God  to  feel  the  bitterness  of  sorrow,  any  more  than  it 
was  to  endure  pain  when  scourged  and  crucified,  since  in  reality  both  one  and  the  other 
is  grief,  and  it  is  still  the  soul  which  feels. 

(2)  My  sold  is  sorrowful,  and  it  will  be  so  until  the  moment  of  my  death  ;  or  else  my 


CHAP.  LXIH.J  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  495 

further,  he  was  withdrawn  away  from  them  a  stone’s  cast  ;  and  kneel¬ 
ing  down,  he  prayed,  saying  :  Father,  if  thou  wilt,  remove  this  chal 
ice  from  me.  But  yet  not  my  will,  but  thine  be  done.  And  being 
in  agony,  he  prayed  the  longer  ;  and  he  saith  :  (a)  Abba,  Father,  all 
things  are  possible  to  thee  ;  remove  the  chalice  from  me,  but  not 
what  I  will,  but  what  thou  wilt  (3).  And  his  sweat  became  as  drops 
of  blood  trickling  down  upon  the  ground  (4).” 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xiv.  36. 


sorrow  is  like  to  that  which  is  felt  at  the  moment  of  death  ;  or  else  again,  I  am  so  sor¬ 
rowful  as  to  be  almost  dying  with  sorrow.  The  last  of  these  three  explanations  is  the 
most  natural  and  most  generally  followed. 

It  is  very  difficult  to  reconcile  this  sorrow  with  the  intuitive  vision  of  God.  Was  he 
sorrowful  without  any  mixture  of  joy,  or  did  he  experience  the  two  opposite  extremes  of 
joy  and  sorrow  ?  Some  interpreters  advance  the  first  proposition  ;  others,  the  second  ; 
neither  appears  impossible.  God,  by  his  omnipotence,  might  have  separated  the  effect 
from  the  cause — that  is  to  say,  that  whilst  preserving  the  intuitive  vision  in  the  Saviour’s 
soul,  he  might  hinder  this  vision  from  producing  the  joy  which  is  the  natural  effect  there¬ 
of.  On  the  other  hand,  we  know  by  experience  that  two  different  causes  may  produce 
at  the  same  time,  in  the  same  person,  great  sorrow  and  great  joy  ;  and  it  is  in  this  way 
that  we  commonly  conceive  the  state  to  which  Jesus  Christ  was  reduced  during  his  agony. 

(3)  Provided  we  have  that  entire  resignation  to  the  will  of  God,  we  may  be  sensible  of 
our  woes,  lament  them,  ask  God  to  deliver  us  from  them,  and,  in  the  heavy  affliction  of 
nature,  seek  for  solace  in  the  company  of  virtuous  friends.  All  that  is  not  incompatible 
with  patience,  nor  even  with  the  most  perfect  patience,  since  Jesus  Christ  has  done  it. 

There  is  a  mode  of  suffering  which  is  apparently  more  courageous.  Jesus  Christ 
has  chosen  this  in  preference  to  it,  because  this  is  more  humiliating,  and  he  wished  to 
lower  himself — more  painful,  and  he  wished  to  suffer — more  proportioned  to  our  weak¬ 
ness,  and  he  wished  to  instruct  us.  We  may  exhort  each  other  to  suffer  in  this  way, 
and  in  doing  so  we  do  not  exhort  our  friends  to  suffer  with  joy,  because  joy  in  suffering 
is  a  miracle  which  God  operates  or  does  not  operate,  according  to  his  good  pleasure. 
We  may  desire  to  possess  this  joy  in  suffering,  supposing  that  it  should  please  God  to 
produce  it  in  us  ;  and  we  must  know  how  to  do  without  it,  if  God  withholds  it  from  us. 

He  sometimes  produces  this  joy  in  the  saints,  in  order  to  make  patience  more  easy  to 
them,  and  sometimes  he  does  not  produce  it,  in  order  that  he  may  leave  them  the  whole 
merit  of  patience.  Saint  Paul  said  (II.  Cor.  vii.),  I  exceedingly  abound  with  joy  in  all 
our  tribulation.  He  had  said  previously,  speaking  of  what  he  had  to  suffer  in  Asia  : 
We  would  not  have  you  ignorant,  brethren,  of  our  tribulation,  which  came  to  us  in  Asia; 
we  were  pressed  out  of  measure  above  our  strength,  so  that  we  were  weary  even  of  life 
(II.  Cor.  i.). 

(4)  Sweat  is  an  effect  of  fear;  this  is  not  the  only  example  which  we  know  of  fear 
being  so  great  as  to  be  followed  by  a  sweat  of  blood.  We  could  not,  therefore,  decide 
whether  this  sweat  was  or  was  not  miraculous,  unless  we  reckoned  it  a  miracle  of  charity 
in  the  Man-God  to  have  reduced  himself  for  us  to  such  a  terrible  extremity. 


jfT- 

m  . 
aW  tââ 

.  F  "TSk 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  II. 


Then,  as  if  the  support  of  the  divinity  had  been  utterly  withdrawn 
from  the  humanity,  ( a )  “  There  appeared  to  him  an  angel  from  heav¬ 
en,  strengthening  him  (5).  And  when  he  rose  up  from  prayer,  and 
was  come  to  his  disciples,  he  found  them  sleeping  for  sorrow  (6). 
He  said  to  Peter  :  Simon,  sleepest  thou  ?  couldst  thou  not  watch  one 
hour  with  me  ?  Watch  ye,  and  pray  that  ye  enter  not  into  tempta¬ 
tion.  The  spirit  indeed  is  willing,  but  the  flesh  is  weak  (7).  Going 
away  again,  he  prayed,  saying  the  same  words  :  My  Father,  if  this 
chalice  may  not  pass  away,  but  I  must  drink  it,  thy  will  be  done  ; 
and  when  he  returned,  he  found  them  again  asleep  ;  for  their  eyes 
were  heavy,  and  they  knew  not  what  to  answer  him.  Leaving  them, 
he  went  again,  and  he  prayed  the  third  time,  saying  the  self  same 
word.  Then  he  cometh  to  his  disciples,  and  saith  to  them  :  Sleep 
ye  now,  and  take  your  rest.  Behold,  the  hour  is  at  hand,  and  the 
Son  of  man  shall  be  betrayed  into  the  hands  of  sinners.  Rise,  let  us 
go  ;  behold,  he  is  at  hand  that  will  betray  me.” 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  43-45  ;  St.  Mark,  xiv.  37-39,  40;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  40-42,  44-46. 

(5)  We  are  not  informed  wnat  species  of  comfort  he  received  from  the  angel.  We 
may  conclude  that  this  celestial  messenger  strengthened  his  body,  by  restoring  to  him 
the  vigor  which  the  agony  and  the  sweat  of  blood  had  caused  him  to  lose.  Apparently 
he  also  strengthened  his  mind,  by  representing  to  him  the  principal  motives  which  should 
induce  him  to  suffer,  such  as  the  restoration  of  his  Father’s  glory,  and  the  redemption 
and  salvation  of  men.  The  visit  of  the  angel  is  also  one  of  the  circumstances  from  which 
we  infer  that  the  human  nature  in  Jesus  Christ  was  then  abandoned  to  all  its  sensibility. 

(6)  If  the  conduct  of  Jesus  Christ  teaches  us  that  it  is  not  forbidden  to  those  who  suf¬ 
fer  to  seek  human  consolation,  that  of  the  apostles  shows  plainly  the  little  reliance  we 
should  place  upon  them. 

When  men  fail  to  console  us,  let  us  return,  like  Jesus  Christ,  to  God,  who  permits 
men  to  fail  in  affording  us  consolation,  only  in  order  to  recall  us  more  effectually  to  him¬ 
self,  as  the  sole  refuge  and  the  only  consolation  of  the  afflicted. 

(7)  Those  who  deem  themselves  secure  of  victory  because  they  are  determined,  as  the 
apostles  were,  to  fight  courageously,  appear  to  be  ignorant  of  two  truths,  one  of  which 
results  from  experience,  and  the  other  is  a  matter  of  faith.  The  first  is,  that  there  is  a 
wide  difference  between  the  will  and  the  deed,  and  that  the  most  courageous  resolutions 
■  when  the  enemy  is  out  of  sight,  disappear  at  his  approach.  Such  is  the  meaning  here 
conveyed  by  the  weakness  of  the  flesh  opposed  to  the  willingness  of  the  spirit.  The  sec¬ 
ond  truth,  which  is  a  matter  of  faith,  is,  that  if  the  good-will  comes  from  grace,  the  exe¬ 
cution  should  also  proceed  from  the  same  source,  pursuant  to  this  expression  of  Saint 
Paul  :  It  is  God  who  worketh  in  you,  both  to  will  and  to  accomplish  (Philip,  ii.).  We 
must,  therefore,  pray,  in  order  that  we  may  obtain  the  second  grace,  without  which  the 
first  remains  inactive. 


CHAP.  LXm.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


\ 


(a)  “  As  lie  spoke,  behold  a  multitude,  and  he  that  was  called  Ju 
das,  one  of  the  twelve,  went  before  them  :  having  received  a  band 
of  soldiers,  and  servants  from  the  chief  priests  and  the  Pharisees,  \]ie\ 
cometh  thither  with  lanterns,  and  torches,  and  weapons,  and  staves. 
And  he  that  betrayed  him  had  given  them  a  sign,  saying  :  Whoso¬ 
ever  I  shall  kiss  (8),  that  is  he  ;  lay  hold  of  him,  and  lead  him  away 
carefully.  When  he  was  come,  immediately  going  up  to  Jesus,  he 
saith  :  Hail,  Rabbi,  and  he  kissed  him.” 

The  Lamb  of  God  did  not  refuse  this  kiss,  which  was  more  cruel 
than  all  the  insults  endured  by  him  in  his  passion  :  instead  of  treat¬ 
ing  the  wretch  as  his  perfidy  deserved,  he  was  more  affected  by  the 
loss  of  Judas  than  by  his  crime  ;  and  seeking  rather  to  save  than  to 
confound  him,  ( b )  “  Jesus  said  to  him  :  Friend,  whereto  art  thou 
come  ?  Judas,  dost  thou  betray  the  Son  of  man  with  a  kiss  ?” 

These  sweet  words  would  have  softened  a  tiger,  and  converted 
any  ordinary  villain  ;  but  a  perverted  apostle  could  not  be  otherwise 
than  the  most  wicked  and  the  most  hardened  of  all  sinners.  This 
man,  instead  of  casting  himself  at  the  feet  of  so  good  a  master,  re¬ 
turned  to  his  gang,  and  perhaps  it  was  at  this  moment  that  he  re¬ 
ceived  payment  for  his  treachery. 

They  could  no  longer  refuse  it  to  him,  since  he  had  fully  perform¬ 
ed  his  promise.  However,  the  Saviour  was  not  yet  taken  ;  it  was 
not  fitting  that  he  should  be  captured  by  surprise,  and  he  was  only 
to  be  so  arrested,  because  he  wished  it.  ( c )  “  Therefore,  knowing 
all  things  that  should  come  upon  him,  he  went  forth  and  said  to 
them:  Whom  seek  ye?  They  answered  him:  Jesus  of  Nazareth. 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi,  47  ;  St.  Luke, 
xxii.  47  ;  St.  John,  xviii.  3  ;  St. 
Mark,  xiv.  43-45. 


( b )  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  50  ;  St.  Luke, 

xxii.  48. 

(c)  St.  John,  xviii.  4. 


(8)  He  had  appointed  this  signal  in  order  that  Jesus  Christ  might  not  perceive  that  it 
was  meant  as  such.  It  was  a  custom  amongst  the  Jews  to  kiss  each  other  when  they 
met;  to  fail  in  doing  so  was  a  mark  of  indifference,  and  perhaps  of  contempt.  We  have 
seen  the  reproach  which  Jesus  Christ  made  to  Simon  the  Pharisee  for  having  given  him 
no  kiss  (St.  Luke,  vii.). 

The  primitive  Christians  still  observed  this  custom,  as  we  learn  from  the  Epistles  of 
the  apostolic  writers  ;  amongst  us  it  is  only  observed  by  women.  This  custom  is  praise¬ 
worthy,  so  long  as  it  is  confined  to  persons  of  the  same  sex  ;  otherwise  it  is  an  abuse, 
the  indecency  of  which  can  never  be  justified  by  custom. 

32 


.1 

m  a 

\  \S  'iUc 

I 


¥7 


a 


i  MHZ. 


[part  n. 

Jesus  s  ai  tli  to  them  :  I  am  he.  As  soon,  therefore,  as  he  had  said  to 
them  :  I  am  he  ;  they  went  backward,  and  fell  to  the  ground.”  He 
who  had  cast  them  down,  permitted  them  to  arise  immediately. 
“  Again,  therefore,  he  asked  them  :  Whom  seek  ye  ?  and  they  said  : 
Jesus  of  Nazareth.  Jesus  answered  :  I  have  told  you  that  I  am  he. 
If,  therefore,  you  seek  me,  let  these  go  their  way,”  he  added,  point¬ 
ing  to  his  disciples,  “that  the  word  might  be  fulfilled  which  he 
said:  Of  them  whom  thou  hast  given  me  I  have  not  lost  any 
one  (9).” 

All  that  Jesus  had  determined  to  do  previous  to  his  apprehension 
was  now  accomplished.  He  had  made  his  enemies  feel,  by  a  single 
word,  that,  alone  and  unarmed,  he  was  stronger  than  a  troop  of  arm¬ 
ed  men.  He  had  permitted  them  to  do  to  his  person  what  they 
never  could  have  done  without  his  permission,  and  by  forbidding 
them  to  touch  those  who  had  been  given  to  him,  he  had  showed  the 
bounds  which  his  Almighty  hand  had  marked  out  for  their  fury. 
( a )  “Then  they  came  up,  and  held  him  (10).” 

“  They  that  were  about  him,  seeing  what  would  follow,  said  to 
him:  Lord,  shall  we  strike  with  the  sword?  Then  Simon  Peter, 
having  a  sword,  drew  it,”  without  waiting  for  the  answer,  and  struck 
the  servant  of  the  high  priest,  and  cut  olf  his  right  ear.  The  name 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  50,  52,  54;  St.  Luke,  xxii.  49-51  ;  St.  John,  xviii.  10,  11. 


(9)  This  expression,  which  has  been  read,  page  491,  Part  II.,  is  understood  with  ref¬ 
erence  to  eternal  life  ;  the  application  which  Saint  John  here  makes  of  it  informs  us  that 
the  Saviour  wished  also  to  insinuate  that  none  of  his  disciples  should  lose  their  life  during 
his  passion.  The  prophecy  was  accomplished  in  two  ways,  and  what  is  remarkable — 
the  exception  of  Judas  took  place  in  two^.  senses — he  alone  lost  the  life  of  the  soul  and 
the  life  of  the  body.  What  is  guarded  by  God  is,  they  say,  well  guarded.  The  com¬ 
bined  fury  of  Jews  and  Romans  could  not  make  the  disciples  lose  a  hair  from  their  heads, 
and  he  who  had  ranged  himself  on  the  side  which  appeared  the  strongest  perished  mis¬ 
erably. 

God  allows  the  wicked  to  prevail  to  a  certain  point  ;  hut  he  strikes  in  his  turn,  and 
his  blows  are  so  terrible  that  they  make  the  stricken  oppressor  an  object  of  compassi  n 
even  to  the  victims  of  his  oppression. 

(10)  It  is  surprising  that  the  miracle  which  had  thrown  them  prostrate  on  the  ground 
did  not  make  them  enter  into  themselves.  Miracles  do  not  convert  people  who  are  gov¬ 
erned  by  passion  ;  they  only  serve  to  render  them  more  furious  :  so  much  for  the  mas¬ 
ters.  As  to  the  servants,  some  of  them  do  not  think  at  all  ;  others  only  consider  the  in¬ 
terest  which  they  have  in  gratifying  the  passions  of  those  who  employ  them. 


il 


cnAP.  LXIII.J 

of  the  servant  was  Malchus.  But  Jesus  said  :  Suffer  ye  thus  far  (11)  ; 
and  when  he  had  touched  his  ear  he  healed  him  (12).  He  \then\ 
said  to  Peter  :  Put  up  thy  sword  into  thy  scabbard  ;  for  all  that 
take  the  sword  shall  perish  with  the  sword  (13).  The  chalice  which 
my  Father  hath  given  me,  shall  I  not  drink  it  ?  Thinkest  thou  that 
I  cannot  ask  my  Father,  and  he  will  give  me  presently  more  than 
twelve  legions  of  angels  (14)  ?  How  then  shall  the  Scriptures  be 
fulfilled,  that  so  it  must  be  done  ?” 

If  the  two  miracles  which  Jesus  Christ  had  just  performed  were 
not  sufficient  to  disarm  the  hatred  which  pursued  him,  they  served 
at  least  as  proof  that  it  lay  with  himself  alone  either  to  encounter 
the  effects  thereof,  or  to  guard  himself  against  them.  But,  in  order 
thoroughly  to  convince  his  enemies,  he  wished  to  make  them  under¬ 
stand  that  if  they  then  succeeded  in  rendering  themselves  masters 
of  his  person,  it  was  solely  because  he  wished  it.  For,  so  long  as  he 
wished  to  avoid  them,  they  had  never  been  able  to  succeed,  although 
he  was  in  the  midst  of  them,  and  we  may  say  in  their  very  hands. 


(11)  (P.  De  Ligny  translates  into  French  thus:  tenez  vous  en  là,  which  signifies,  “re¬ 
main  where  you  are.”  He  appends  the  following  note)  :  We  have  adopted  the  com¬ 
mon  explanation.  The  Latin  words,  Sinite  usque  hue,  appear  to  signify  more  natural¬ 
ly,  laissez  venir  jusq’ici,  let  him  (or  them)  come  hither,  whether  the  Saviour  alludes 
to  those  who  came  to  arrest  him,  or  whether  he  speaks  of  Malchus,  whom  he  wished 
to  approach  him,  in  order  that  he  might  cure  him  by  his  touch.  What  makes  this 
latter  interpretation  highly  probable  are  these  words  which  follow  immediately  in  Saint 
Luke  :  And  when  he  had  touched  his  ear  he  healed  him. 

(12)  A  miracle  of  clemency  succeeds  one  of  terror.  If  they  are  neither  frightened  by 
one  nor  affected  by  the  other,  will  not  the  Lord  have  a  right  to  say  to  them  :  What  is 
there  that  I  ought  to  do  more  to  my  vineyard  that  I  have  not  done  to  it? — (Isaias,  v.) 

(13)  Shall  perish,  that  is  to  say,  shall  deserve  to  perish.  Jesus  quotes  the  law,  and 
alludes  apparently  to  that  saying  from  Genesis,  c.  x.  :  Whosoever  shall  shed  man's  blood, 
his  blood  shall  be  shed. 

(14)  He  had  not  obtained  the  request  that  the  chalice  of  his  passion  should  pass 
away  from  him  :  how  could  he  obtain  the  twelve  legions  of  angels  in  order  to  secure 
himself  against  it?  Our  reply  is  as  follows:  Jesus  freely  consented  to  redeem  mankind. 
The  Eternal  Father  commanded  him,  in  consequence,  to  suffer  death  upon  the  cross — 
the  only  price  which  he  would  receive  for  our  ransom.  Jesus  persisting  in  the  wish  to 
Bave  men,  could  not,  therefore,  be  exempted  from  drinking  the  chalice,  and  this  is  the 
reason  why  he  did  not  obtain  his  request  in  the  Garden  of  Olives.  But  he  could  have 
revoked  this  consent;  and  if  he  had  done  so,  his  Father  would  immediately  have  armed 
in  his  defence  the  entire  host  of  heaven. 


& 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[part  H. 


Therefore  (a)  “  he  said  to  the  chief  priests,  and  magistrates  of  the 
temple,  and.  the  ancients,  that  were  come  unto  him  :  Are  you  come 
out  as  it  were  against  a  thief,  with  swords  and  staves  to  apprehend 
me  ?  I  was  daily  with  you  in  the  temple  teaching,  and  you  did  not 
lay  hands  on  me  ;  but  this  is  your  hour  (15),  and  the  power  of  dark¬ 
ness  (16).  Now  all  this  was  done,  that  the  Scriptures  of  the  proph¬ 
ets  might  be  fulfilled  :  then  the  disciples  all  leaving  him,  fled.  A 
certain  young  man  followed  him,  having  a  linen  cloth  cast  about  his 
naked  body  ;  and  they  laid  hold  on  him  ;  but  he,  casting  off  the 
linen  cloth,  fled  from  them  naked.” 

( b )  “  Then  the  band,  and  the  tribune,  and  the  servants  of  the  J e ws 
took  J esus  and  bound  him.  They  led  him  away  to  Annas  first  ;  for 
he  was  father-in-law  to  Caiphas,  who  was  the  high  priest  of  that 
year.  Now,  Caiphas  was  he  who  had  given  the  counsel  to  the  Jews 
that  it  was  expedient  that  one  man  should  die  for  the  people  (17). 
Annas,”  satisfied  with  this  mark  of  his  son-in-law’s  respect,  “  sent  him 
bound  to  Caiphas  the  high  priest  (18).  They  led  him  to  Caiphas 
the  high  priest,  where  the  Scribes  and  the  ancients  were  assembled.” 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  52,  53  ;  St.  Mark,  xiv. 
48,  49,  51,  52  ;  St.  Matt:  xxvi.  56. 


(6)  St.  John,  xviii.  12-14-24  ;  St.  Mat¬ 
thew,  xxvi.  57. 


(15)  The  world  has  its  hour,  and  God  his  eternity. 

(16)  It  is  worthy  of  remark  that,  on  an  occasion  when  it  was  difficult  to  retain  self- 
possession,  Jesus  displays  neither  passion  nor  weakness.  He  speaks  to  all,  to  Judas, 
to  Peter,  to  the  priests,  and  to  their  satellites,  and  he  says  to  each  what  is  suita¬ 
ble  for  them  ;  he  instructs  and  gives  orders  until  the  moment  when  he  says  to  his  ene¬ 
mies  words  equivalent  to  these  :  Take  me  now  ;  I  restrain  you  no  farther.  What  strength 
there  is  in  this  moderation  ! 

(17)  The  seizing  of  this  young  man  gives  reason  for  thinking  that  they  had  the  design 
of  arresting  the  Saviour’s  disciples,  if  he  had  left  it  in  their  power. 

(18)  These  words,  Annas  sent  him  bound  to  Caiphas,  are  found  in  Saint  John,  imme¬ 
diately  after  he  has  related  the  first  denial  of  Saint  Peter,  and  the  blow  given  to  the  Sa¬ 
viour  by  one  of  the  high  priest’s  servants  ;  which  has  made  some  interpreters  think,  and 
amongst  them  even  Saint  Augustine,  that  both  the  blow  and  this  first  denial  occurred  at . 
the  house  of  Annas.  However,  as  the  three  denials  are  placed  by  the  other  evangelists 
in  the  house  of  Caiphas,  it  has  been  a  matter  of  inquiry  how  to  reconcile  them  with 
Saint  John;  and  the  way  to  reconcile  both  statements  has  been  obtained  by  observing 
that  the  two  events  which  we  speak  of  are  placed  by  Saint  John  in  the  house  of  him 
whom  he  calls  simply  the  high  priest,  after  having  been  satisfied  in  saying  of  Annas  that 
he  was  son-in-law  of  the  high  priest.  Now,  to  term  a  man  high  priest  immediately  after 
having  spoken  of  one  as  the  high  priest's  father-in-law,  is  evidently  speaking  of  the  son- 


I! 

V 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


501 


CHAP.  LXIII.] 

(a)  “  And  Simon  Peter,”  ashamed  of  liis  flight,  and  recovered  a 
little  from  his  fear,  “followed  Jesus  afar  off,  and  so  did  another  dis¬ 
ciple.  That  disciple  was  known  to  the  high  priest,  and  went  in  with 
Jesus  into  the  court  of  the  high  priest  (19).  But  Peter  stood  at  the 

(a)  St.  John,  xviii.  15,  16,  18;  St.  Mark,  xiv.  54  ;  St.  Luke,  xxii.  55  ;  St.  Matthew, 

xx vi.  58. 


in-law,  after  having  spoken  of  the  father-in-law.  Saint  John,  therefore,  places  these 
events  in  the  house  of  Caiphas  ;  and  if  he  says  subsequently  that  Annas  sent  Jesus  to 
Caiphas,  he  does  so  in  order  to  show  that  Jesus  had  been  sent  to  the  latter,  after  having- 
been  conducted  to  Annas. 

It  was  necessary  that  he  should  say  this  ;  and  if  he  had  previously  said  so,  there 
would  have  been  no  difficulty  in  the  matter  ;  but  the  difficulty  is  obviated  by  his  having 
subsequently  stated  it. 

In  order  to  anticipate  a  difficulty  which  might  be  started,  we  shall  remark  that,  from 
the  time  that  the  Romans  had  rendered  the  Pontificate  annual,  the  names  of  pontiffs  and 
high  priests  were  still  given  to  those  who  had  held  the  office  during  the  preceding  years. 
But  the  title  was  given  to  them  only  when  they  were  spoken  of  collectively,  as  of  an 
order  of  men  rendered  superior  to  common  priests  by  the  Pontificate  with  which  they 
had  been  invested.  For  when  a  person  said  simply  the  high  priest  or  the  pontiff,  he 
understood  him  only  who  actually  held  office. 

(19)  It  is  generally  agreed  that  this  disciple  was  Saint  John;  however,  there  is  some 
ground  for  doubting  it.  We  know  who  Saint  John  was  before  he  attached  himself  to 
the  Saviour— a  young  man  of  Galilee,  the  son  of  a  poor  fisherman,  who,  perhaps,  had 
never  left  his  own  country  until  the  time  when  he  quitted  his  boat  and  his  nets  in  order 
to  follow  Jesus  Christ.  When  and  how  could  he  have  formed  an  acquaintance  with  the 
high  priest,  who  was  the  first  man  of  the  nation,  whilst  he  was  a  young  man  from  the 
very  lowest  class — a  Galilean,  despised  on  this  account  by  the  Jews  properly  speaking — 
who  had  become  odious  to  the  whole  sacerdotal  order  by  his  avowed  attachment  to  Je¬ 
sus  Christ,  and  had  passed  only  a  few  days  of  his  life  in  Jerusalem,  during  which  he  had 
not  quitted  his  Master’s  side?  How  could  he  have  obtained  sufficient  consideration 
from  the  domestics  of  the  house  to  induce  them  to  admit,  through  his  recommendation, 
an  unknown  individual,  at  a  time  when  every  circumstance  tended  to  excite  distrust,  and 
when  it  appeared,  by  Peter’s  exclusion,  that  distrust  was  really  entertained  ?  Is  it  not 
more  natural  to  think  that  this  was  a  concealed  disciple,  and  on  this  account  unsuspect¬ 
ed — a  man  of  condition,  such  as  were  Nicodemus  and  Joseph  of  Arimathea,  who  might 
have  been  known  to  and  respected  by  the  high  priest?  It  is  true  that  Saint  John  hap¬ 
pened  to  be  present  at  the  crucifixion  ;  but  does  it  follow  that  he  had  accompanied  Jesus 
from  the  time  that  he  left  the  Garden  of  Olives  ?  It  is  also  true  that  it  is  written  that 
Peter  followed  from  a  distance,  and  with  him  another  disciple  ;  which  leads  to  the  infer¬ 
ence  that  this  other  disciple  had  started  with  Peter  from  the  Garden  of  Olives,  and,  con¬ 
sequently,  that  he  was  one  of  the  apostles,  and,  moreover,  that  he  was  probably  Saint 
John.  But  is  it  still  impossible  that  some  disciple  who  might  not  have  been  one  of  the 
apostles,  may  have  joined  Peter  in  the  streets  of  Jerusalem,  where  the  tumultuous  prog¬ 
ress  of  so  many  people  might  have  caused  him  to  inquire  what  was  going  forward,  and 


door  without.  The  other  disciple,  therefore,  who  was  known  to  the 
high  priest,  went  out,  and  spoke  to  the  portress,  and  brought  in  Pe¬ 
ter  even  into  the  court  of  the  high  priest.  Now,  the  servants  and 
ministers  stood  at  a  fire  of  coals  (because  it  was  cold),  and  warmed 
themselves,  when  they  had  kindled  the  fire  in  the  midst  of  the  hall. 
Going  in,  Peter  sat  with  the  servants,  that  he  might  see  the  end,  and 
warmed  himself  [at  the  fir e]  with  them.” 

In  the  mean  time,  Jesus  had  entered  into  the  hall,  where  all  his 
enemies  were  assembled  to  sit  in  judgment  upon  him.  It  was  sworn 
that  he  should  die  ;  but  no  action  of  his  life  gave  cause  for  a  just  con¬ 
demnation.  (a)  “  The  high  priest,  therefore,  asked  Jesus  of  his  dis¬ 
ciples  and  of  his  doctrine.  Jesus  answered  him  :  I  have  spoken  open¬ 
ly  to  the  world  ;  I  have  always  taught  in  the  synagogue,  and  in  the 
temple  whither  all  the  Jews  resort,  and  in  secret  I  have  spoke?  noth¬ 
ing  (20).  Why  askest  thou  me?  ask  them  who  have  heard  what  I 
have  spoken  unto  them.  Behold,  they  know  what  things  I  have 
said,”  added  he,  pointing  out  (as  there  is  reason  to  believe^  those 
amongst  the  assembly  who,  having  several  times  heard  him,  were  in 
a  position  to  give  evidence  concerning  his  doctrine. 

This  answer  was  worthy  of  the  Eternal  Wisdom  from  whose ’lips 
it  came.  An  accused  party  is  inadmissible  as  evidence  in  his  own 
favor  ;  and  if  the  crime  of  which  he  is  accused  be  public,  it  is  easy 
to  prove  it  by  witnesses.  To  decline  this  natural  course  was  show- 
ing  too  plainly  that  they  were  bent  upon  his  destruction,  and  Jesus 
owed  it  to  truth  and  to  his  innocence  to  make  this  apparent.  It  is 
true  that  he  could  not  effect  this  without  making  his  judges  feel  that 
they  were  in  the  wrong  ;  and  as  no  one  can  ever  be  in  the  right  with 
impunity  when  arraigned  before  prejudiced  judges,  “  when  he  had 
said  these  things,  one  of  the  servants  standing  by  gave  Jesus  a 

(a)  St.  John,  xviii.  19-23. 

to  be  informed  thereof  by  Peter  ?  It  is,  therefore,  at  least  doubtful  whether  or  not  this 
disciple  was  Saint  John. 

(20)  Jesus  Christ  often  taught  his  disciples  in  private.  Nevertheless,  he  could  say 
with  truth  that  he  taught  nothing  in  secret,  because  the  doctrine  which  he  taught  in  pri¬ 
vate  was  the  same  as  that  which  he  taught  in  public  :  we  are  to  understand  that  it  was 
substantially  the  same,  and  that  he  did  but  expound  it  further  in  the  familiar  discourses 
which  he  had  with  his  apostles. 


CHAP.  LXin.] 

blow  (21),  saying:  Answerest  thou  the  high  priest  so?  Jesus  an¬ 
swered  him  :  If  I  have  spoken  evil  (22),  give  testimony  of  the 
evil  (23)  ;  but  if  well,  why  strikest  thou  me  ?” 

The  judges  approved,  at  least  by  their  silence,  of  this  most  brutal 
act.  Nevertheless,  what  the  Saviour  had  said  was  so  reasonable,  that 
they  deemed  themselves  bound  to  proceed  against  him  in  the  man¬ 
ner  which  he  himself  had  just  proposed.  Accordingly,  («)  “  the 
chief  priests  and  the  whole  council  sought  false  witness  against  Je¬ 
sus,  that  they  might  put  him  to  death,  and  they  found  not”  any  who 
had  even  the  semblance  of  truth,  “  whereas  many  false  witnesses  had 
come  in  ;  (fj)  for  many  bore  false  witness  against  him” — manifestly 
false,  “  and  their  evidence  were  not  agreeing.  Last  of  all  there  came 
two  false  witnesses,  and  they  said  :  We  heard  him  say  :  I  am  able  to 
destroy  the  temple  of  God,  and  after  three  days  to  rebuild  it.  I  will 
destroy  this  temple  made  with  hands,  and  within  three  days  I  will 
build  another  not  made  with  hands  (24).  And  their  witness  did  not 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  59,  60. 

( [b )  St.  Mark,  xiv.  56-58-61  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  60,  61. 


(21)  We  are  ignorant  whether  this  man  is  or  is  not  saved  ;  but  we  know  that  he  may 
have  been  saved,  that  is  to  say,  we  know  that  it  is  not  impossible  that  he  may  enjoy  in¬ 
effable  and  eternal  delight  in  the  contemplation  of  that  adorable  face  which  he  so  gross-  ' 
ly  outraged.  Oh  !  abyss  of  mercy,  more  profound  and  more  impenetrable  than  all  those 
of  justice. 

(22)  There  are  circumstances  wherein  reason,  justice,  and  sometimes  even  charity, 
forbid  you  to  present  the  left  cheek  to  him  who  has  struck  you  on  the  right.  Jesus 
Christ  now  found  himself  placed  in  just  such  a  position.  But  circumstances  shall  soon 
change  ;  and  a  thousand  blows  which  he  shall  receive  without  averting  his  face,  and 
without  uttering  a  single  word,  shall  make  it  manifest  that  he  has  taught  nothing  which 
he  has  not  practiced. 

(23)  Amongst  the  various  reasons  which  the  Saviour  might  have  had  for  replying  to 
the  individual  who  had  struck  him,  that  which  first  presents  itself  is,  that  he  did  not 
wish  to  let  it  be  thought  that  he  was  deficient  in  respect  towards  the  legitimate  authori¬ 
ties,  even  when  they  are  persecuting  and  unjust. 

We  may  give  as  a  second  reason  that  Jesus,  who  availed  himself  of  every  opportunity 
of  giving  instruction,  wishes  to  inform  this  man,  who  was  a  sort  of  beadle,  that  he  should 
not  abuse  the  right  which  the  laws  or  common  custom  gave  him  to  strike  those  who, 
whilst  answering  the  magistrates,  deviated  from  the  respect  due  to  them. 

(24)  Jesus  Christ  had  said  (St.  John,  ii.  19):  Destroy  this  temple,  and  in  three  days 
l  will  raise  it  up.  These-  words,  I  am  able  to  destroy,  and  I  will  destroy,  placed  in¬ 
stead  of  this  word,  destroy,  were  what  chiefly  rendered  these  men  false  witnesses.  When 


1; 


504 


THE  HISTORY  OF  TILE  LIFE 


[part  H. 


agree.  And  the  high  priest  rising  up  in  the  midst,  asked  Jesus,  say¬ 
ing:  Answerest  thou  nothing  to  the  things  that  are  laid  to  thy 
charge  by  these  men  ?  But  Jesus,”  sufficiently  justified  by  the  mu¬ 
tual  contradictions  of  his  accusers,  “held  his  peace,  and  answered 
nothing.” 

He  must  speak,  notwithstanding,  because  he  must  perish,  and 
they  could  no  longer  find  a  pretext  for  his  condemnation  except  in 
his  own  words  ;  (a)  “  Again  [therefore]  the  high  priest  asked  him, 
and  said  to  him  :  I  adjure  thee  by  the  living  God,  that  thou  tell  us 
if  thou  be  the  Christ  the  Son  of  the  blessed  God.” 

Jesus  might  still  remain  silent,  or  get  rid  of  a  question  so  embar¬ 
rassing  by  giving  one  of  those  answers  with  which  he  had  so  often 
confounded  the  malice  of  his  enemies  ;  but  he  wished  on  this  occa¬ 
sion  to  confess  the  truth  of  which  he  was  to  be  the  first  martyr,  and 
the  confession  of  which  was  to  make  so  many  martyrs  after  him. 
Thus,  although  fully  aware  that  it  would  cost  him  his  life  :  “  Thou 
hast  said  it,”  he  saith  to  him  who  summoned  him  to  declare  whether 
he  was  the  Christ:  Yes,  “I  am.”  Then,  addressing  himself  to  all 
those  who  were  present,  he  adds:  “Nevertheless,  I  say  to  you,  here¬ 
after  you  shall  see  the  Son  of  man  sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  the 
power  of  God,  and  coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven  (25).” 

(/;)  “Then  the  high  priest,”  concealing  his  joy  under  the  appear- 

(а)  St.  Mark,  xiv.  61,  62  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  63,  64. 

(б)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  65,  66. 


a  person  wishes  to  accuse  and  to  condemn  any  one  on  account  of  his  words,  if  he  do 
not  report  these  words  precisely  as  they  came  from  the  mouth  or  the  pen  of  the  accused, 
the  accuser  is  a  false  witness  and  an  unjust  judge. 

(25)  There  is  a  profound  meaning  in  these  latter  words.  Jesus  Christ  does  not  utter 
them  solely  for  the  purpose  of  intimidating  his  judges,  by  warning  them  that  he  shall 
in  his  turn  be  their  judge  ;  he  informs  them  further,  that  every  thing  which  has  been 
foretold  with  reference  to  his  glorious  coming  shall  have  its  fulfilment,  and  this  took 
away  all  pretext  for  their  incredulity  ;  for  the  matter  stands  as  if  he  said  to  them  :  You 
think  yourselves  authorized  not  to  acknowledge  me,  because  I  have  not  as  yet  one  of 
the  principal  characters  appertaining  to  the  Messiah  foretold  by  the  prophets  ;  but  wait 
a  little — this  mark  shall  appear  as  well  as  the  others  ;  and  in  the  mean  time  recognize 
me  in  the  humiliating  state  to  which  you  see  me  reduced,  since  it  is  not  less  foretold 
than  that  state  of  glory  and  of  power  which  the  Scripture  truly  announces,  but  the  time 
for  it  has  not  yet  arrived.  This  supposes  that  Jesus  Christ  had  proved  elsewhere  that 
he  was  the  true  Messiah,  and  of  this  his  miracles  were  more  than  sufficient  proof. 


CHAP.  LXIV.J 

ance  of  a  hypocritical  sorrow,  “rent  his  garments  (26),  saying:  He 
hath  blasphemed  ;  what  further  need  have  we  of  witnesses  ?  Be¬ 
hold,  now  you  have  heard  the  blasphemy  ;  what  think  yon  ?  They 
all  answering,  said:  He  is  guilty  of  death  (2 '7).” 


to 


CHAPTER  LXIV. 

• 

INSULTS  AND  OUTRAGES. - DENIAL  OF  SAINT  PETER,  AND  HIS  TEARS. - JESUS  INTER¬ 
ROGATED  A  SECOND  TIME  BY  THE  PRIESTS. - REPENTANCE  OF  JUDAS,  AND  HIS  DE¬ 

SPAIR. 

After  this  first  examination  they  withdrew,  postponing  till  the 
following  morning  the  conclusion  of  this  affair — the  successful  issue 
of  which  appeared  no  longer  doubtful.  Jesus  was  left  in  the  custo¬ 
dy  of  the  servants  and  domestics.  These  satellites  would  have 
thought  that  they  served  their  masters  badly  if  they  contented 
themselves  with  guarding  him.  They  believed  that  it  was  part  of 
their  duty  to  outrage  him.  (a)  “  Some  began  to  spit  on  him.  The 
men  that  held  him  mocked  him  and  struck  him.  They  blindfolded 
him  (1),  and  smote  his  face,  saying  :  Prophesy  unto  us,  O  Christ, 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xiv.  65  ;  St.  Luke,  xxii.  63-65  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  68. 

• 

(26)  This  was  a  wretch  who  acted  the  religious  man  ;  but  his  action  serves  to  show 
us  that  the  Jews,  when  they  heard  blasphemy,  rent  their  garments,  whilst  we  see  Chris¬ 
tians  hear  without  emotion  the  blasphemies  of  the  impious.  We  shall  not  say  that  they 
applaud,  for  could  those  who  applaud  such  language  be  still  called  Christians  ? 

(27)  In  a  numerous  assembly  of  judges,  the  most  iniquitous  of  all  judgments  was 
unanimous.  After  that,  there  is  no  iniquity  that  need  cause  surprise. 

Were  all  these  judges,  then,  equally  wicked  ?  No  ;  amongst  the  wicked  there  were 
some  weak,  and  the  weak  were  hurried  away  by  the  wicked.  The  latter  were,  without 
doubt,  the  most  culpable,  which  does  not  prevent  sentence  of  death  from  being  pro¬ 
nounced  against  the  others,  by  these  words  of  Saint  Paul  (Rom.  i.  32):  They  who  do 
such  things  are  worthy  of  death  ;  and  not  only  they  that  do  them,  hut  they  also  that  con¬ 
sent  to  them  that  do  them. 

(1)  This  insolence  is  imitated  as  closely  as  possible  by  those  who,  in  order  to  offend 
God  with  hardihood,  persuade  themselves  that  he  does  not  see  them,  and  who  say,  at 
least  in  their  heart,  these  words  which  the  prophet  places  in  their  mouth  :  The  Lord 
shall  not  see  ;  neither  shall  the  Ood  of  Jacob  understand  (Psalm  xciii.  7). 


rwn — f  '  riipTif  ^  pwnw 


3 


as  a  o  o  o 


Ml 


506  THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIEE  [PART  H. 

who  is  he  that  struck  thee  :  and  blaspheming,  many  other  things 
they  said  against  him.” 

This  scene  occupied  the  rest  of  the  night,  and  during  all  that  time 
he  whom  the  angels  adore  served  as  a  butt  for  the  ridicule  of  this 
low  rabble.  We  do  not  read  in  the  history  of  our  Saviour’s  passion 
that  he  opposed  one  single  word  to  so  many  outrages,  because,  in 
point  of  fact,  he  did  not  utter  one.  If  the  evangelists  do  not  always 
directly  say  so,  the  prophets  assure  us  of  it  ;  and  this  miracle  of  pa¬ 
tience  is  contradicted  by  no  one.  But  what  renders  the  fact  still 
more  wonderful,  and  what  we  shall  here  remark  with  reference  to 
all  the  Saviour  endured  during  the  whole  course  of  his  passion  is, 
that  he  suffered  nothing  which  was  not  felt  on  his  part  as  exquisite¬ 
ly  as  it  could  be  felt.  We  speak  not  only  of  his  corporal  pains  to 
which  the  perfect  constitution  of  his  body  rendered  him  so  sensitive. 
All  that  is  most  humiliating  in  contempt,  most  insulting  in  derision, 
most  contumelious  in  injury — all  the  most  revolting  details  of  the 
outrages  which  he  endured,  penetrated  to  the  innermost  depths  oi 
his  soul.  He  tasted  this  accumulation  of  bitterness,  and  filled  him¬ 
self  with  it  even  unto  satiety,  according  to  what  is  written  that  he 
should  be  saturated  with  opprobrium.  We  may  judge,  therefore, 
what  he  had  to  suffer  during  that  fearful  night — the  mere  remem¬ 
brance  of  which  produces  in  pious  souls  such  lively  compassion,  and 
calls  forth  such  an  abundance  of  tears.  But  what  gave  the  finishing 
stroke  to  his  sorrow,  and  what  was  to  him  the  most  painful  of  all 
outrages,  is,  that  while  he  was  thus  in  the  power  of  his  cruel  ene¬ 
mies,  the  first  and  the  most  favored  of  his  disciples,  the  chief  of  his 
apostles,  chose  to  renounce  him. 

We  have  seen  that  Peter,  after  having  entered  through  the  in¬ 
terference  of  one  of  the  disciples,  (a)  “  sat  without  in  the  court 
below,  warming  himself.  There  cometh  one  of  the  maid-servants 
of  the  high  priest,  and  when  she  had  seen  Peter  warming  himself, 
looking  on  him,  she  saith  :  Thou  also  wast  with  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ; 
but  he  denied  before  them  all  (2),  saying:  Woman,  I  know  him 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  69-72  ;  St.  Mark,  xiv.  66-68  ;  St.  John,  xviii.  25  ;  St.  Luke, 

xxii.  57,  58. 


(2)  The  weakest  being  in  nature,  and  the  least  imposing  in  worldly  estimation — a  fe- 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


50Ï 


CHAP.  LXIY.] 

not  (3)  ;  I  neither  know  nor  understand  what  thou  sayest.  And,” 
wdshing  to  avoid  a  second  interrogation,  “  he  went  forth  before  the 
court,  and  the  cock  crew.  As  he  went  out  of  the  gate,  another  maid 
saw  him,  and  she  saith  to  them  that  w^ere  there  :  This  man  also  was 
with  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ;  and  after  a  little  while  another,  seeing  him, 
said  :  Thou  also  art  one  of  them.  They  said,  therefore,  to  him  :  Art 
not  thou  also  one  of  his  disciples  ?” 

The  fear  of  Peter  increased  with  his  danger,  and  his  crime  with 
his  fear.  His  first  denial  was  but  a  lie  ;  to  the  second  he  added  per¬ 
jury.  “  Again  he  denied  with  an  oath  \_saying~\  :  I  am  not  :  I  know 
not  the  man.” 

It  appears  that  they  believed  him,  inasmuch  as  they  did  not  in¬ 
sist,  and  he  should  have  availed  himself  of  this  opportunity  in  order 
to  withdraw  unperceived.  The  very  fear  which  had  made  him  re¬ 
nounce  his  Master  was  an  urgent  motive  for  him  to  quit  a  place 
where  he  might  be  recognized  at  any  moment  for  one  of  his  chiet 
disciples.  But  Peter  still  loved  him  whom  he  renounced  :  he  loved 
him,  I  say,  less  than  his  life  ;  and  in  this  did  his  crime  consist  ;  but 
still  he  loved  him  too  well  to  make  up  his  mind  to  go  away  from 
him,  in  the  uncertainty  in  which  he  was  as  to  what  might  be  his 
fate.  Therefore,  as  he  thought  that  he  had  dissipated  all  suspicion, 
he  flattered  himself  that  he  might  remain  with  impunity,  and  he 
may  have  entertained  this  notion  for  a  short  time,  while  they  ap¬ 
peared  to  forget  him.  But  (a)  “  after  the  space  as  it  were  of  one 
hour,  one  of  the  servants  of  the  high  priest,  a  kinsman  to  him  whose 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  59-61  ;  St.  John,  xviii.  26,  2*7  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvi.  73-75  ;  St. 

Mark,  xiv.  70-72. 

male-slave — succeeds  in  overthrowing  an  apostle,  nay,  the  chief  of  the  apostles,  and  he 
who  of  all  others  had  hitherto  evinced  the  greatest  courage. 

Her  condition  would  have  been  of  no  consequence,  and  beauty  alone  would  have  been 
all-powerful — if  the  object  were  to  seduce  him  by  her  attractions  ;  but  it  is  by  fear  alone 
that  she  overpowers  him — and  one  word  suffices.  Nothing  is  weaker  than  the  presump¬ 
tuous  man. 

When  Peter  subsequently  undertook  to  plant  the  cross  upon  the  Capitol,  and  to  bring 
idolatrous  Rome  to  adore,  instead  of  its  gods,  a  Jew  crucified  by  the  Romans,  he  never 
could  be  tempted  to  believe  that  his  courage  could  have  inspired  him  with  such  a  project, 
or  that  he  could  surmount  all  obstacles  by  his  own  strength. 

(3)  He  did  not  internally  disown  him,  but  he  renounced  him  externally.  This  it  was 
which  constituted  his  crime. 


/T 


ear  Peter  cut  off,  saith  to  him  :  Did  I  not  see  thee  in  the  garden 
with  him  ?  Another  certain  man  affirmed,  saying  :  Of  a  truth  this 
man  was  also  with  him,  for  he  is  also  a  Galilean.”  The  matter  being 
thus  debated,  “  they  came  that  stood  by,  and  said  to  Peter  :  Surely 
thou  also  art  one  of  them,  for  thou  art  also  a  Galilean  ;  thy  speech 
doth  discover  thee.  Again,  therefore,  for  the  third  time,  Peter  de¬ 
nied.  He  began  to  curse  (4)  and  to  swear,  saying  :  I  know  not  the 
man  of  whom  you  speak.  Immediately,  as  he  was  yet  speaking,  the 
cock  crew  again  \_for  the  second  time Q,  and  the  Lord  turning,  looked 
on  Peter  (5).  Peter  remembered  the  word  that  Jesus  said  unto  him  : 
Before  the  cock  ,crow  twice  thou  shalt  thrice  deny  me  ;  and  going 
forth,  he  wept  bitterly.” 

We  know  not  how  it  was  that  the  Saviour  happened  to  be  in  the 
court,  where  he  cast  upon  his  apostle  this  saving  glance.  But  as  we 
know  nothing  positive  as  to  the  place  where  the  servant  of  the  high 
priest  inflicted  upon  him  the  outrages  which  we  have  related,  it  may 
possibly  have  been  the  case  that,  in  order  to  diversify  their  enter¬ 
tainment,  they  might  have  led  Jesus  into  this  court  at  the  very  mo¬ 
ment  when  Peter  denied  him  for  the  third  time.  For,  although  it 
has  been  said  that  this  glance  of  Jesus  was  purely  spiritual,  the  most 
common  opinion  is,  that  Jesus  looked  upon  Peter  with  the  eyes  of 
the  body,  and  this  meaning  is  that  which  the  text  naturally  presents 
to  the  mind. 

Whilst  Peter  bewailed  his  sin,  the  servants  went  on  with  their  sac¬ 
rilegious  sport,  which  continued  all  the  rest  of  the  night,  (a)  “  As 
soon  as  it  was  day,  all  the  ancients  of  the  people  and  the  chief  priests 
and  Scribes  came  together,  and  took  counsel  against  Jesus,  that  they 
might  put  him  to  death.”  His  confession  of  the  preceding  evening 
sufficed  them  for  that  purpose.  Apparently  they  considered  it  ne- 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  66-72. 


(4)  It  is  not  stated  whether  Peter  made  these  imprecations  against  himself  or  against 
Jesus  Christ.  As  we  are  in  ignorance  with  reference  to  this  matter,  we  would  do  best 
to  believe  that  he  directed  them  against  himself,  and  that  he  apparently  made  use  of 
some  fashion  of  speech  similar  to  these  :  May  I  be  crushed  with  thunder,  or,  may  the 
earth  swallow  me  up,  if  I  know  him. 

(5)  It  was  this  look,  and  the  grace  wherewith  it  was  accompanied,  which  wrought  th« 
conversion  of  Peter. 


//f 


CHAP.  LXIV.] 


cessary  that  he  should  repeat  it,  in  order  to  establish  the  guilt  and 
the  obstinacy  of  the  pretended  criminal.  They  well  knew,  more¬ 
over,  that  they  had  no  need  to  fear  lest  the  Saviour  should  embar¬ 
rass  them  by  retracting.  Besides  that  this  was,  perhaps,  the  very 
thing  which  they  most  desired,  they  knew  him  too  well — we  might 
say  they  esteemed  him  too  highly  in  the  depth  of  their  hearts — to 
apprehend  that  he  could  ever  retract  what  he  had  once  declared. 
Thus,  well  assured  of  the  answer,  (a)  “  they  brought  him  into  their 
council,  saying,”  with  a  false  show  of  moderation,  “  If  thou  be  the 
Christ,  tell  us.  He  saith  to  them  :  If  I  shall  tell  you,  you  will  not 
believe  me  ;  and  if  I  shall  ask  you”  by  what  marks,  according  to  the 
Scriptures,  the  Christ  is  to  be  recognized,  “  you  will  not  answer  me, 
nor  let  me  go.  But  hereafter  the  Son  of  man  shall  be  sitting  on  the 
right  hand  of  the  power  of  God.”  All  present  understood  what  was 
meant  by  this  “  sitting.”  For  this  reason  “  then  said  they  all  :  Art 
thou,  then,  the  Son  of  God  (6)  ?  Who  said  :  You  say  that  I  am.” 
This  was  the  same  answer  which  he  had  already  given  to  the  same 
question.  The  inference  was  also  the  same  :  “  What  need  we  any 
further  testimony,”  they  said  like  Caiphas,  “  for  we  ourselves  have 
heard  it  from  his  own  mouth  ?” 

The  sentence  of  death  was  already  pronounced  ;  it  now  only  re¬ 
mained  to  carry  it  into  execution,  and  in  this  they  lost  no  time. 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  66-69. 


(6)  Grave  authors  have  thought  that  this  examination  and  that  of  Caiphas  had  taken 
place  at  the  same  time,  and  on  the  same  morning.  We  prefer  the  opinion  of  those  who 
separate  the  occasions,  and  who  place  that  of  Caiphas  on  the  evening  before,  putting  oS 
this  until  the  following  morning.  Here  are  the  reasons  which  have  led  us  to  believe  this 
the  most  probable  opinion  ;  all  agree  as  to  two  things  :  1st.  That  the  interrogatory  which 
we  are  actually  reporting  took  place  in  the  morning.  2d.  That  it  was  during  the  night 
preceding  that  morning  that  the  Saviour  was  outraged  by  the  officers  and  the  servants 
of  the  high  priest.  Now,  the  examination  by  Caiphas  preceded  these  outrages.  Two 
reasons  prove  this  :  1st.  After  Saint  Matthew  has  related  the  confession  of  Jesus  before 
Caiphas,  and  the  sentence  which  followed,  he  presently  adds  :  Then  (tunc)  did  they  spit 
in  his  face  and  buffet  him,  <& c.  Now,  this  word  then  connects  so  closely  what  follows 
with  what  precedes,  that  to  detach  it  therefrom  would  seem  to  be  offering  violence  to 
the  text.  2d.  Who  is  there  that  does  not  see  that  these  words,  Prophesy  unto  us,  0 
Christ,  who  is  he  that  struck  thee?  make  allusion  to  the  confession  which  Jesus  Christ 
had  just  made,  and  for  which  they  had  condemned  him?  consequently,  that  the  confes¬ 
sion  had  preceded  the  mockery. 


SX 


3 


ilSiiii  1 

gf 


510  THE  HISTORY  OP  THE  LIEE  [PART  IL 

( a )  “  The  whole  multitude  of  them  rising  up,  led  J esus  bound,  and 
delivered  him  to  Pontius  Pilate  the  governor.” 

Then  the  traitor  who  had  sold  him  saw  the  greatness  of  his  crime, 
and  began  to  feel  remorse.  He  had  flattered  himself  either  that  the 
enemies  of  Jesus  would  not  attempt  his  life,  or  that  his  power  would 
nullify  their  efforts  :  he  now  saw  the  contrary  happen.  The  Lamb 
of  God  delivered  himself  up  without  defence  to  the  rage  of  his  per¬ 
secutors,  who,  it  appeared,  could  only  be  satiated  by  his  blood.  It 
is  true  that  the  governor,  who  could  alone  give  judgment  in  cases  of 
life  and  death,  had  not  as  yet  pronounced,  but  the  judgment  of  the 
priests  might  be  regarded  as  the  sure  forerunner  of  that  which  he 
was  to  pass.  “  Seeing  that  he  was  condemned,  Judas,  who  betrayed 
him,”  without  fully  anticipating  the  consequences  of  his  treachery, 
could  no  longer  control  his  grief,  and  “  repenting  himself,  brought 
back  the  thirty  pieces  of  silver  to  the  chief  priests  and  ancients  (7), 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  1  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  2-5. 


(7)  His  repentance  when  he  saw  his  Master  condemned  proves  that  he  had  retained  a 
sort  of  love  for  him  ;  but  he  loved  money  still  more.  Thus  we  have  seen  that  Saint  Pe¬ 
ter,  when  he  denied  Jesus  Christ,  loved  him  still;  but  he  loved  him  less  than  his  own 
life.  In  order  to  be  capable  of  committing  the  greatest  crimes,  it  is  not  necessary  to  be 
utterly  devoid  of  the  love  of  God  ;  it  is  sufficient  that  one  loves  any  thing  more  than 
God. 

Any  affection,  although  otherwise  legitimate,  if  it  gain  an  ascendency  in  the  heart  over 
the  love  of  God,  is  a  criminal  love. 

This  fatal  disposition  is  formed,  and  goes  on  without  being  perceptible.  Thou  hast 
the  name  of  being  alive,  and  thou  art  dead  (Apoc.  iii.).  The  occasion  does  not  give  birth 
to  it  ;  in  ordinary  cases  it  only  brings  it  to  light.  To  review  our  attachments,  to  ask  our¬ 
selves  often  what  we  would  do  if  it  were  impossible  to  retain  these  attachments  without 
offending  God,  is,  perhaps,  the  only  means  of  discovering  this  evil  where  it  is  concealed  ; 
of  preventing  it  if  it  be  near  ;  of  making  fresh  additions  to  the  love  of  God,  if  this  love  is 
already  predominant  ;  to  fortify  ourselves  against  great  temptations,  which  are  always 
less  to  be  feared  when  they  are  foreseen,  and  which  are  more  easily  surmounted  when 
one  has  assumed  the  habit  of  forming  the  acts  by  which  they  are  overcome.  This  is 
preparing  for  war  during  peace,  and  anticipates  victory  by  making  a  trial  of  the  combat. 

If  any  person  say  that  it  is  dangerous  to  make  suppositions  of  this  sort,  we  venture  to 
reply  that  it  is  more  dangerous  not  to  make  them.  Every  attack  is  then  a  surprise,  and 
whoever  is  surprised  is  almost  sure  to  be  vanquished. 

If  Judas,  as  soon  as  he  perceived  that  he  loved  money,  had  thus  tested  himself,  it  is 
to  be  presumed  that  he  never  would,  from  being  a  man  interested  in  money  matters, 
turn  out  to  be  a  robber  ;  from  being  a  robber,  become  a  traitor,  and  end  in  despair  and 
reprobation. 


V  ' 


OHAP.  LXIV.J  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  511 

saying  :  I  have  sinned  in  betraying  innocent  blood.  What  is  that  tc 
us  ?”  said  these  cruel  men  (8)  :  “  look  thou  to  it.”  This  dry  and  dis* 
dairiful  answer  gave  the  finishing  stroke  to  his  despair.  “  Casting 
down  the  pieces  of  silver  in  the  temple,  he  departed,  and  went  and 
hanged  himself  with  a  halter.”  God  willed  it  so,  that  so  infamous  a 
death  was  followed  by  an  accident  which  rendered  it  still  more  igno¬ 
minious.  The  unfortunate  wretch  (a)  “  being  hanged,  burst  asunder 
in  the  midst,  and  all  his  bowels  gushed  out.” 

He  executed  justice  upon  himself;  but  this  cruel  justice  which  he 
thus  executed  was  the  greatest  of  his  crimes,  because  to  despair  of 
the  mercy  of  the  Lord  is  the  most  grievous  injury  which  we  can  do 
him.  It  still  remained  to  be  considered  in  what  way  they  should 
appropriate  his  money  :  the  wicked  are  sometimes  scrupulous  observ¬ 
ers  of  propriety.  These  men  (&)  “  having  taken  the  pieces  of  silver, 
said  :  It  is  not  lawful  for  us  to  put  them  into  the  Corbona,  because  it 
is  the  price  of  blood.  And  after  they  had  consulted  together,  they 
bought  with  them  the  potter’s  field,  to  be  a  burying  place  for  stran¬ 
gers.  For  this  cause  that  field  was  called  Haceldama,  that  is,  the 
field  of  blood,  even  to  this  day.”  Whence  it  has  become  the  lasting 
proof  of  their  crime  and  the  monument  of  their  incredulity;  for 
“  then  was  fulfilled  that  which  was  spoken  by  Jeremias  the  prophet, 
saying  :  They  took  the  thirty  pieces  of  silver,  the  price  of  him  that 
was  prized,  whom  they  prized  of  the  children  of  Israel  ;  and  they 
gave  them  unto  the  potter’s  field,  as  the  Lord  appointed  to  me  (9).” 

(a)  Acts,  i.  18.  ( b )  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  6-10. 


(8)  It  strikes  one  that  they  might  have  replied  to  Judas:  You  repent  of  having  done 
a  good  action  ;  the  man  whom  you  have  delivered  up  was  seditious,  and  a  blasphemer. 
Why  do  they  not  speak  thus  ?  The  reason  is,  because  they  themselves  believe  no  such 
thing.  When  the  wicked  have  conspired  to  effect  the  ruin  of  the  just,  they  take  care 
to  circulate  the  report,  “  He  is  a  wicked  man,  and  a  malefactor,”  but  amongst  each  other 
they  speak  frankly  :  we  find  him,  they  say,  an  obstacle  in  our  way  ;  we  must  get  rid  of  him. 

(9)  This  prophecy  is  not  found  in  Jeremias;  but  we  read  it  in  equivalent  terms  in 
Zac/iarias,  chap.  xi.  Saint  Jerome  says  that  he  read  it  in  a  Hebrew  volume  of  Jeremias, 
which  was  shown  him  by  a  Jew.  Saint  Augustine  had  seen  some  copies  wherein  nei¬ 
ther  Jeremias  nor  any  other  prophet  was  found  named.  It  might,  therefore,  have  oc¬ 
curred  that  the  name  of  Jeremias  had  been  superadded  by  some  copyist.  However  that 
may  be,  we  have  on  one  hand  the  prophecy,  since  it  is  read  at  least  in  Zacharias  ;  on  the 
other  hand,  we  see  its  fulfilment  in  the  Gospel.  That  should  be  sufficient  for  faith,  and 
even  for  reason,  which  should  only  seek  to  know  what  it  is  really  important  to  know. 


3 

1 

i\ 

f?f0 

Aj 

512 


THE  HISTORY  OF  TIIE  LIFE 


[part  n. 


CHAPTER  LXV. 

JESUS  CONDUCTED  BEFORE  PILATE. - PILATE  INTERROGATES  HIM,  AND  SENDS  HIM  TO 

HEROD. 

(a)  “  Then  they  led  Jesus,”  as  we  have  said,  “  from  Caiphas  to  the 
governor’s  hall.  Their  feet  are  swift  to  shed  blood  for  “  it  was 
morning,”  and  immediately  after  the  holding  of  the  consultation.  A 
scruple  stopped  them  short  at  the  gate.  The  law,  which  forbade  the 
murder  of  the  innocent,  did  not  forbid  them  to  enter  into  the  house 
of  a  Gentile  ;  but  these  men,  religious  beyond  what  was  prescribed, 
( b )  “  went  not  into  the  hall,  that  they  might  not  be  defiled,  but  that 
they  might  eat  the  pasch  (1).  Pilate,”  apprised  of  the  cause  of  their 
coming,  “  went  out  to  them,  and  said  :  What  accusation  bring  you 
against  this  man  ?  They  answered  :  If  he  were  not  a  malefactor  we 
would  not  have  delivered  him  up  to  thee.”  It  was  hatred  which 
spoke,  and  Pilate  knew  that  very  well.  “  He  therefore  said  to  them  : 
Take  him  you,  and  judge  him  according  to  your  law.  The  Jews, 
therefore,  said  to  him  :  It  is  not  lawful  for  us  to  put  any  man  to 
death.” 

The  Romans  had  deprived  them  of  the  right  of  so  doing,  and  by 
this  avowal  of  the  fact  they  acknowledged  that  the  sceptre,  in  what¬ 
ever  way  it  be  understood,  had  at  last  passed  away  from  the  house 
of  Juda  (<?).  They  should,  consequently,  have  acknowledged  that 
“  he  came  who  was  to  be  sent,  the  expectation  of  nations  ;”  but,  blind¬ 
ed  by  passion,  they  could  no  longer  see  what  their  own  avowal  made 
plainer  than  ever.  Yet  as  passion,  which  misleads  on  every  other 
subject,  is  but  too  clear-sighted  with  regard  to  whatever  may  satisfy 
itself,  it  is  surprising  that  they  did  not  wish  to  avail  themselves  of 

(a)  St.  John,  xviii.  28;  Psalm  (b)  St.  John,  xviii.  28-31. 

xiii.  3.  (c)  Genesis,  xlix.  10. 


(1  )  Whether  it  was  that  they  were  to  eat  the  paschal  lamb  one  day  later  than  the 
Lord  ;  or  whether  the  partaking  of  the  victims  which  were  immolated  on  the  following 
day,  was  still  called  eating  the  pasch. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


513 


CHAP.  LXV.  | 

the  permission  which  Pilate  gave  to  them  to  judge  him  whose  death 
they  so  eagerly  desired.  Whatever  hope  they  may  have  had  of  ob¬ 
taining  it  from  his  condescension,  or  extorting  it  from  his  weakness, 
this  hope  was  not  worth  the  security  which  they  could  give  to  them¬ 
selves,  and  which  they  thus  renounced.  Hence  it  has  been  thought 
that  the  governor  spoke  ironically,  and  that  the  Jews,  who  under¬ 
stood  this,  did  not  think  of  availing  themselves  of  a  right  which  was 
not  seriously  granted  to  them.  However,  it  is  more  commonly  be¬ 
lieved  that  the  offer  was  serious,  but  that  several  reasons  prevented 
it  from  being  accepted.  The  priests  could  only,  according  to  the 
law,  condemn  Jesus  to  be  stoned,  and  they  wished  him  to  be  cruci¬ 
fied  ;  the  hatred  which  they  bore  him  could  only  be  satiated  by  the 
most  infamous  and  the  most  painful  of  all  punishments.  Moreover, 
they  apprehended  that  the  populace,  not  yet  gained  over,  might  im¬ 
pute  to  them  the  death  of  the  just,  and  would,  perhaps,  proceed  to 
some  violence  against  those  who  might  be  the  authors  thereof.  If 
the  Romans  should  authorize  it,  they  would  serve  to  justify  it,  or  at 
least  the  blame  might  be  cast  upon  them  ;  and  if  the  people  did 
mutiny,  Pilate  then,  interested  in  supporting  his  own  decision,  had 
more  authority  and  power  than  was  necessary  to  quell  the  outbreak. 
Such  were  the  motives  whereon  they  acted,  and  Grod  permitted  them 
to  be  successful,  because  they  led  to  the  execution  of  his  decrees  and 
the  verification  of  his  oracles.  For  if  Pilate,  yielding  to  their  clam¬ 
ors,  finally  determined  to  judge  the  Saviour,  and  to  condemn  him 
to  crucifixion,  it  was  (a)  “  that  the  word  of  Jesus  might  be  fulfilled, 
which  he  said,  signifying  what  death  he  should  die.” 

Obliged,  however,  by  the  first  refusal  of  Pilate,  to  produce  and 
to  prove  crimes,  the  enemies  of  Jesus  ( b )  “  began  to  accuse  him,  say¬ 
ing:  We  have  found  this  man  perverting  our  nation,  and  forbidding 
to  give  tribute  to  Cæsar,  and  saying  that  he  is  Christ  the  king  (2).” 

(a)  St.  John,  xviii.  32.  ( b )  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  2. 

(2)  Only  five  days  had  elapsed  since  Jesus  Christ,  when  questioned  about  the  tribute, 
had  publicly  replied  :  Render  to  Cæsar  the  things  that  are  Cæsar' s.  What  impudence 
to  accuse  him  of  prohibiting  this  !  It  was  they  themselves  who  did  not  wish  to  pay  the 
tribute  which  Jesus  Christ  had  made  it  incumbent  upon  them  to  pay.  It  was  they  also 
who  sought  for  a  Messiah  who  would  constitute  himself  a  king  in  the  sense  which  they 
accused  the  Saviour  of  desiring,  and  in  which  sense  he  did  not  desire  it. 

33 


514 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


‘[part  n. 

Of  these  three  distinct  charges,  the  first  was  vague,  the  second 
was  false,  and  the  third,  which  was  true  in  reality,  was  maliciously 
misrepresented.  For  Jesus,  who  had  rather  owned  than  declared 
that  he  was  the  Christ,  had  not  hitherto  said  that  he  was  king,  and 
his  conduct  gave  evidence  that  he  had  never  pretended  to  "be  such, 
in  the  sense  which  might  render  that  pretension  a  state  offence. 
This  charge,  however,  produced  the  effect  which  they  had  reason  to 
anticipate.  The  mere  suspicion  of  aspiring  to  sovereignty,  even  if 
ill-founded,  arrests  the  attention  of  the  magistrate,  and  he  must 
never  appear  to  make  light  of  it.  ( a )  “  Pilate,  therefore,”  as  soon 
as  he  heard  the  allusion  to  royalty,  “  went  into  the  hall,  and  called 
Jesus.  Jesus  stood  before  the  governor,  and  the  governor  asked 
him,  saying:  Art  thou  the  king  of  the  Jews?  Jesus  answered: 
Sayest  thou  this  thing  of  thyself,  or  have  others  told  it  thee  of  me  ? 
Pilate  answered  :  Am  I  a  Jew  ?  Thy  own  nation  and  the  chief 
priests  have  delivered  thee  up  to  me  :  what  hast  thou  done  ?” 

This  reply  of  the  governor  was  an  avowal,  on  his  part,  that  he  in¬ 
terrogated  as  judge,  since  he  framed  it  so  as  to  make  it  bear  upon 
the  accusations  brought  before  his  tribunal.  The  Saviour  drew  from 
him  this  explanation  of  the  matter,  because  he  wished  to  undergo 
the  disgrace  of  a  public  condemnation.  Thus,  as  soon  as  Pilate  had 
declared  to  him  in  what  quality  he  spoke,  ( b )  “  J esus,”  always  sub¬ 
missive  to  lawful  authority,  “  answered  :  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this 
world  (3).  If  my  kingdom  were  of  this  world,  my  servants  would 
certainly  strive  that  I  should  not  be  delivered  to  the  Jews  ;  but  now 

(a)  St.  John,  xviii.  33-35  ;  St.  Mat-  ( b )  St.  John,  xviii.  33-35  ;  St.  Luke, 

thew,  xxvii.  11.  xxiii.  4. 


The  wicked  impute  crimes  to  virtuous  men,  as  every  one  is  aware  ;  but  it  should  be 
further  noticed  that  the  crimes  which  they  most  frequently  impute  are  their  own  very 
crimes.  We  shall  seldom  be  mistaken,  by  judging  from  their  accusations,  what  they 
either  do  or  propose  to  do. 

(3)  Jesus  Christ  was  not  king  of  this  world,  because  he  did  not  wish  it.  The  king¬ 
dom  which  he  reserved  to  himself  is  the  Church.  This  kingdom  is  in  the  world,  but  it 
is  not  of  the  world  ;  it  cometh  from  heaven,  and  must  return  thither.  Heaven  is  its 
country,  and  the  earth  is  the  place  of  its  pilgrimage.  Jesus  Christ  governs  it  by  his  doc¬ 
trine,  by  his  sacraments,  and  by  his  ministers.  These  means  procure  him  subjects,  but 
they  are  voluntary,  and  they  are  all  the  more  submissive  to  their  temporal  rulers,  whom 
Jesus  Christ  wishes  that  they  should  obey  as  they  do  himself. 


fpÏÏVpYi 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST, 


my  kingdom  is  not  from  lienee.  Pilate  said  to  him  :  Art  thou  a  king, 
then  (4)  ?  Jesus  answered  :  Thou  sayest  that  I  am  a  king  (5).  For 
this  was  I  born,  and  for  this  came  I  into  the  world  ;  that  I  should 
give  testimony  to  the  truth.  Every  one  that  is  of  the  truth  heareth 
my  voice.  Pilate  saith  to  him  :  What  is  truth  (6)  ?  and  when  he 
said  this  he  went  out  again  to  the  Jews,  to  the  chief  priests,  and  to 
the  multitudes,  and  saith  to  them  :  I  find  no  cause  in  this  man.” 

Doth  it  not  seem  that  he  should  rather  have  announced  to  them 
that  he  found  him  guilty?  The  Saviour  had  just  declared  that  he 
was  king,  and  this  was  the  crime  of  which  they  had  accused  him. 
How  could  Pilate,  after  having  elicited  this  avowal,  proceed  imme* 
diately  to  declare  him  innocent  ?  The  reason  is,  that,  without  pene¬ 
trating  all  the  mystery  of  his  royalty,  he  had  discovered  that  it  was 
at  least  not  of  a  nature  to  give  offence  to  the  powers  of  earth.  In 
point  of  fact,  it  was  not  exercised  by  command,  but  by  persuasion  5 
and  till  then  it  had  given  disciples  and  not  subjects  to  the  Saviour. 


(4)  Pilate  comprehended  two  things  :  one  that  Jesus  Christ  was  king  ;  the  other  that 
his  royalty  was  in  no  way  prejudicial  to  the  rights  of  sovereigns.  He  must  needs  have 
come  to  this  conclusion,  because,  immediately  after  the  avowal  that  Jesus  made,  Pilate 
declares  that  he  finds  no  cause  for  condemnation  in  him.  We  infer  that  he  believed  him 
really  to  be  king  from  the  earnestness  with  which  he  gives  him  this  quality.  Behold 
your  King  !  shall  I  crucify  your  King,  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  King  of  the  Jews  ?  for  the 
circumstances  show  that  this  was  said  seriously  and  without  irony. 

Although  Pilate  did  not  well  understand  in  what  sense  the  Saviour  styled  himself  a 
king,  we  can  scarcely  doubt  but  he  took  it  in  some  mystical  sense  relative  to  the  religion 
of  the  Jews.  Whence  this  expression  :  Am  I  a  Jew,  that  I  can  speak  of  my  chief  in  an 
affair  of  this  nature  ? 

But  although  this  royalty  appeared  innocent  to  him,  there  is  every  appearance  that 
the  confession  thereof  which  Jesus  made  contributed  to  his  condemnation.  After  all,  he 
has  acknowledged  that  he  is  king,  this  weak  judge  may  have  said  to  himself,  when  he 
yielded  in  the  end  to  the  clamors  of  the  Jews.  The  Saviour,  who  foresaw  this,  did  not, 
therefore,  suppress  a  truth,  the  avowal  of  which  must  cost  him  his  life.  We  may  be¬ 
lieve  that  it  is  for  this  reason  that  Saint  Paul  (I.  Tim.  vi.)  praises  the  generous  confession 
which  Jesus  Christ  made  before  Pontius  Pilate,  although  he  may  be  understood  as  re¬ 
ferring  to  all  the  truths  which  he  announced,  and  of  which  he  was  the  martyr. 

(0)  This  royalty  of  Jesus  Christ  is  described  in  the  second  Psalm  as  he  describes  it 
here  himself:  I  am  appointed  king  by  him  over  Sion,  his  holy  mountain  (the  Church), 
preaching  his  commandment. 

(6)  What  is  this  truth  to  which  you  render  testimony  ?  He  was  not  over-anxious  to 
know  it,  since  he  did  not  wait  for  the  reply.  We  must  not  be  surprised  at  this.  Pilate 
was  one  of  the  great  ones  of  the  world,  and  he  had  a  confused  notion  that  this  truth  be¬ 
longed  either  to  morality  or  religion. 


mm 


W' 


Pilate  could  not  but  know  this.  A  man  of  public  notoriety  as  Jesus 
was  could  not  possibly  have  escaped  the  attention  of  the  governor. 
We  shall  soon  see  that  he  was  cognizant  of  the  most  secret  motive 
which  urged  the  Saviour’s  enemies  to  seek  his  ruin  ;  ant:  for  a  much 
stronger  reason  must  the  detail  of  his  life  and  of  his  actions  have 
been  known  to  him.  He  had  only  been  able  to  see  therein  wh 
the  Saviour  had  just  given  him  to  understand,  and  his  answers  only 
confirmed  Pilate  in  the  opinion  which  he  had  already  formed  or 
the  subject.  Besides,  those  who  accused  him  of  making  himself 
king  did  not  produce  one  positive  fact  which  could  serve  to  prrTc 
it.  There  was  not,  therefore,  a  single  positive  fact  ;  for  if  there  were 
it  could  not  have  escaped  such  furious  and  envenomed  hatred  ;  and 
was  it  not  natural  to  decide  that  Jesus  was  irrépréhensible  on  all 
the  counts  of  accusation  set  forth  against  him  ?  Therefore  we  should 
not  be  surprised  that,  even  after  so  short  an  examination,  Pilate  did 
not  hesitate  to  pronounce  that  he  found  nothing  in  him  worthy  of 
death.  He  was  sufficiently  enlightened  to  know  what  he  should 
rely  upon  ;  and  the  vague  reproaches  to  which  the  accusers  were  re¬ 
duced,  thoroughly  convinced  him  how  matters  stood. 

These  accusers  continued  in  the  same  tone,  and,  according  to  the 
custom  of  all  calumniators,  when  they  could  prove  no  fact  they  mul¬ 
tiplied  crimes.  Jesus  did  not  oppose  a  single  word  to  their  accusa¬ 
tions,  (a)  “  and  when  he  was  accused  in  many  things  by  the  chief 
priests  and  the  ancients,  he  answered  nothing.”  It  was  not  for  Him 
to  speak;  it  was  the  duty  of  the  judge,  who  had  only  to  say:  It  is 
not  sufficient  to  accuse,  you  must  prove  ;  but  we  do  not  find  that  he 
said  so  even  once.  He  well  knew  that  this  would  be  requiring  from 
them  much  more  than  they  could  perform.  Still,  that  he  might  not 
remain  entirely  silent  in  a  scene  wherein  he  ought  to  play  the  most 
prominent  part,  ( b )  “  he  again  asked  Jesus  :  Dost  thou  not  hear  how 
great  testimonies  they  allege  against  thee  ?  Answerest  thou  nothing  ? 
Behold  in  how  many  things  they  accuse  thee.  And  he  answered  him 
to  never  a  word,  so  that  the  governor  wondered  exceedingly  (7).” 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  12  ;  St.  Mark, 
XT.  3. 


( b )  St.  Mark,  xv.  4  ;  St.  Matthew, 
xxvii.  13,  14. 


(V)  He  could  have  had  only  compassion  for  a  silence  which  proceeded  from  weakness 


<?■ 


A 


m 

» 


CHAP.  LXV.]  OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  517 

lie  must,  indeed,  have  wondered,  knowing  as  he  did  the  wisdom 
of  Jesus,  at  seeing  him  deliver  himself  up,  without  any  defence,  to 
all  the  shafts  of  calumny — he  who  had  so  often  confounded  it  by  a 
single  word.  Pilate  knew  not,  indeed  he  was  not  bound  to  know, 
that  Jesus  had  resolved  to  die  ;  that,  in  consequence  of  this  resolu¬ 
tion,  he  could  not  say  a  single  word  which  might  serve  to  save  his 
life,  although  he  must  say  every  thing  that  was  absolutely  neces¬ 
sary  to  the  confession  of  the  truth  and  the  declaration  of  his  inno¬ 
cence.  Pilate,  in  point  of  fact,  did  acknowledge  him  to  be  innocent. 
This  was  sufficient  to  make  it  obligatory  on  Pilate  to  acquit  Jesus, 
and  Jesus  was  not  bound  to  give  him  any  further  information..  He 
had  sufficiently  enlightened  his  conscience.  It  now  lay  entirely  with 
Pilate  to  decide  justly,  and  if  he  did  not,  he  could  only  blame  him¬ 
self.  Other  means  would  have  infallibly  succeeded  with  the  Saviour. 
He  might  join  issue  with  his  accusers,  and  turn  their  accusations 
against  themselves.  He  might  appeal  to  the  people,  and  set  before 
their  eyes  the  purity  of  his  morals  and  the  sanctity  of  his  doctrine  ; 
move  them  to  pity  by  the  recital  of  all  the  benefits  which  he  had 
conferred  upon  them  ;  or  exasperate  them  against  his  adversaries, 
by  the  contrast  of  their  vices  with  his  virtues.  All  these  means, 
employed  with  that  divine  eloquence  whereof  it  was  said  that  no 
man  had  ever  spoken  like  unto  him,  would  have  made  an  incalcula¬ 
ble  impression  upon  their  minds  ;  and  who  knows  but  this  storm, 
excited  by  passion,  might  have  burst  on  those  who  had  raised  it  ? 
But  the  work  with  which  the  Man-God  was  charged  would  not  then 
have  been  accomplished  ;  the  world  would  not  have  been  redeemed  ; 
and  Jesus  would  not  have  given  to  his  disciples  the  example  of  that 
heroic  silence  which  endures  without  a  murmur  what  God  has  de¬ 
termined  that  they  shall  suffer,  ( a )  “  hoping  in  the  shadow  of  his 
wings,  until  iniquity  pass  away.” 

Pilate,  having  acknowledged  the  innocence  of  the  accused,  had 
nothing  more  to  do  than  impose  silence  upon  the  accusers,  and  to 

(a)  Psalm  lvi.  2. 


or  imbecility.  A  silence  proceeding  from  pride  or  contumacy  would  have  excited  his  in¬ 
dignation.  What  surprised  him,  and  called  forth  his  admiration,  could  be,  therefore,  but 
a  silence  of  patience  and  intrepidity. 


\ 


dismiss  them  with  the  confusion  which  they  deserved.  This  he  did 
not  do,  simply  because  he  did  not  dare  to  do  so.  The  enemies  of 
the  Saviour,  who  w'ere  thoroughly  conscious  of  this  weakness,  hoped 
that  by  urging  him  they  might  effect,  through  importunity,  that 
W'hich  the  judge’s  conscience  did  not  permit  him  to  grant  them  ; 
wherefore,  without  producing  fresh  crimes,  (a)  u  they  were  more 
earnest,  saying  :  He  stirreth  up  the  people,  teaching  throughout  all 
Judea,  beginning  from  Galilee  to  this  place  (8).” 

A  happy  chance  for  a  man  who  no  longer  knew  how  to  extricate 
himself  from  his  embarrassment  !  “  Pilate,  hearing  Galilee,  asked  if 

the  man  were  of  Galilee  ;  and  when  he  understood  that  he  was  of 
Herod’s  jurisdiction,  he  sent  him  away  to  Herod,  who  was  also  him¬ 
self  at  Jerusalem  in  those  days.” 

The  murderer  of  Saint  John  the  Baptist  might  easily  become  the 
murderer  of  Jesus  ;  and  he  who  had  sacrificed  a  prophet  to  the  re¬ 
sentment  of  a  woman,  was  but  too  capable  of  immolating  another  to 
the  hatred  of  the  chief  men  of  the  nation.  At  first,  therefore,  these 
chief  men  must  have  been  elated  with  joy,  when  they  saw  that  the 
affair  was  referred  to  him  ;  the  more  so  as  immediately  after  the  pre¬ 
cursor’s  death  it  had  been  said  that  Herod  caused  Jesus  to  be  sought 
for,  for  the  purpose  of  putting  him  to  death.  The  Saviour  had  got 
notice  of  the  design,  and  the  rumor  of  it  may  have  reached  these 
men.  Notwithstanding  all  that,  the  outset  did  not  appear  favorable 
to  their  views  ;  the  prince’s  dispositions  were  changed.  Admiration, 
heightened  by  curiosity,  had  succeeded  in  Herod’s  mind  to  the  ha¬ 
tred  or  policy  which  had  made  him  seek  the  Saviour’s  life.  “  See¬ 
ing  Jesus,  he  was  very  glad  ;  for  he  was  desirous  of  a  long  time  to 
see  him,  because  he  had  heard  many  things  of  him,  and  he  hoped  to 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  5-10. 


(8)  Calumny  must  here  allow  us  to  give  it  the  lie  direct.  No,  he  did  not  go  about 
stirring  up  the  people  into  insurrection.  He  went  about,  saith  Saint  Peter  (Acts,  x.)  do¬ 
ing  good,  and  healing  all  that  were  oppressed  by  the  devil.  And  he  who  speaks  thus  does 
not  speak  in  ignorance  of  the  fact,  since  he  adds  :  We  are  witnesses  of  all  things  that  he 
did  in  the  land  of  the  Jews  and  in  Jerusalem.  Since  they  wished  to  proceed  judicially 
against  the  Saviour,  they  should  have  commenced  by  examining  his  disciples  ;  but  peo¬ 
ple  are  not  anxious,  when  they  wish  to  ruin  the  innocent,  to  call  on  well-informed  and 
truth-telling  witnesses. 


^  CHAP.  LXV.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  519 

see  some  sign  wrought  by  him  ;  and  he  questioned  him  in  man}' 
words,  but  Jesus  answered  him  nothing.  The  chief  priests  and  the 
scribes”  who  saw  that  his  fate  lay  in  the  hands  of  Herod,  and  that 
he  would  escape  from  them  if  he  set  himself  to  gratify  the  desires  of 
that  prince,  “  stood  by  earnestly  accusing  him.”  Jesus  made  no  re¬ 
ply  to  their  accusations,  any  more  than  to  the  questioning  of  Herod. 

He  wrought  two  miracles  :  one  of  wisdom,  by  not  satisfying  the 
frivolous  curiosity  of  this  bad  prince  ;  the  other  of  patience,  in  not 
opposing  a  single  word  to  the  outrageous  calumnies  of  his  enemies  ; 
miracles  which  are  never  sought,  and  which  are  always  held  in  little 
estimation  by  the  world,  and  above  all  in  the  high  places  of  the 
world,  the  courts  of  the  great.  There  people  may  sometimes  be  daz¬ 
zled  by  those  peculiar  exhibitions  of  virtue  which  partake  of  the  won¬ 
derful,  and  startled  by  their  lustre  ;  but  they  are  incapable  of  appre¬ 
ciating  the  true  and  solid  qualities  of  virtue.  “  Herod,”  still  more 
corrupted  than  the  great  usually  are,  “  with  his  army  (9)  set  him  at 
nought,  and  mocked  him.”  Vexation  at  seeing  his  curiosity  foiled 
made  him  add  derision  and  insult  to  contempt.  “  Putting  on  him  a 
white  garment,  he  sent  him  back  to  Pilate”  in  this  apparel,  indica¬ 
tive  of  a  fool,  or  a  visionary,  or  perhaps  a  theatrical  king.  It  was  in 
order  to  free  himself  from  embarrassment  that  the  governor  had 
sent  him.  Herod  readily  believed  that  it  was  done  out  of  deference, 
and  in  acknowledgment  of  his  rights,  which  had  hitherto  been  but 
little  regarded.  This  fancy  appeased  his  resentment  :  “  Herod  and 
Pilate  were  made  friends  that  same  day  ;  for  before  they  were  ene¬ 
mies  to  one  another.” 


(9)  When  the  prince  mocked  him,  it  was  quite  natural  that  the  courtiers  should  mock 
him  in  like  manner.  We  may  also  advance  another  reason,  viz.  :  a  disposition  to  scoff  is 
peculiarly  that  of  the  courtier.  The  more  grave  and  serious  the  objects  are,  the  more  is 
he  disposed  to  make  them  subjects  of  laughter  ;  and  if  he  mocks  at  religion  more  than 
at  any  thing  else,  the  reason  is,  because  it  is  the  most  serious  thing  in  the  world.  Yet 
the  courtier  is  capable  of  acting  a  serious  part,  but  he  does  so  when  the  subjects  are 
frivolous.  These  courtiers  mocked  at  the  silence  of  Jesus,  whose  gravity  and  dignity 
had  produced  an  imposing  effect  upon  Pilate  himself  ;  if  they  had  had  before  them  a 
charlatan  who  had  performed  in  then-  presence  some  clever  trick,  which  he  had  set  off 
with  the  eloquence  peculiar  to  such  men,  they  would  have  regarded  him  with  the  most 
intense  and  the  most  serious  admiration.  They  would  have  been  heard  to  cry  out  :  What 
an  admirable  man  !  May  he  live  long,  and  may  the  prince  have  the  glory  of  having  pre¬ 
served  him  to  the  world  ! 


520 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  H. 


CHAPTER  LXVI 

JESUS  CONDUCTED  AGAIN  BEFORE  PILATE. - BARABBAS. - PILATE’S  WIFE. - FLAGEL¬ 
LATION. - CROWNING  WITH  THORNS. 

Meantime  the  intention  of  the  governor  had  not  "been  carried  out  ; 
the  levity  and  heedlessness  of  Herod  left  the  matter  in  its  original 
state,  and  Pilate  in  the  same  perplexity  as  before.  He  still  retained 
the  desire,  and  had  not  yet  lost  the  hope  of  rescuing  the  innocent 
from  the  injustice  which  pursued  him.  He  had  one  infallible  means 
of  securing  this  end,  viz.,  to  exert  his  authority  ;  but  this  he  had  not 
fortitude  enough  to  do  ;  and  the  other  means,  whilst  they  betrayed 
Pilate’s  weakness,  very  far  from  saving  Jesus,  served  only  to  multi¬ 
ply  and  increase  his  torments.  This  shows  that  a  partial  protection 
may  produce  as  cruel  effects  as  downright  oppression.  Pilate  com¬ 
menced,  therefore,  by  making  a  remonstrance  ;  (a)  “  calling  together 
the  chief  priests,  the  magistrates,  and  the  people,  he  said  to  them  : 
You  have  presented  unto  me  this  man,  as  one  that  perverted  the 
people,  and  behold  I  having  examined  him  before  you,  find  no  cause 
in  this  man,  in  those  things  wherein  you  accuse  him.  No,  nor  Herod 
neither,  for  I  sent  you  to  him  ;  and  behold,  nothing  is  done  to  him” 
which  can  prove  him  “  worthy  of  death.  I  will  chastise  him,  there¬ 
fore,  and  release  him.” 

The  chastisement  to  which  he  alluded  was  the  scourge,  a  painful 
and  infamous  penalty,  which  a  man  of  honor  could  not  survive.  The 
hope  that  the  Saviour’s  enemies  would  be  thereby  satisfied  had  sug¬ 
gested  this  expedient  to  Pilate’s  mind.  Such  was  the  protection 
which  the  timid  politician  extended  to  the  innocent  man  whom  he 
wished  to  save.  However,  whether  he  perceived  that  this  tempor¬ 
izing  would  still  not  satisfy  these  sanguinary  men,  or  that  he  did  not 
wish  to  make  use  of  it  until  the  last  extremity,  he  hit  upon  another 
expedient,  the  success  of  which  appeared  to  him  certain,  but  which 
had  no  other  effect  than  to  draw  down  upon  Jesus  the  grossest  of  all 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  13-16. 


CHAP.  LXVI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


521 


affronts,  and  the  greatest  confusion  which  man  ever  had  to  endure  on 
earth. 

(a)  “  Now,  on  the  festival  day  he  was  wont  to  release  unto  them 
one  of  the  prisoners,  whomsoever  they  demanded.”  This  custom 
had  been  added  to  ceremonies  which  the  law  prescribed,  in  order  to 
celebrate  the  deliverance  from  the  captivity  of  Egypt,  and  from  the 
sword  of  the  destroying  angel.  Although  the  preceding  histories 
say  nothing  of  it,  there  is  every  appearance  that  it  was  much  more 
ancient  than  the  domination  of  the  Romans  in  Judea.  These  new  mas¬ 
ters  had  preserved  it  to  the  Jews  by  way  of  a  privilege,  and  Pilate 
“  was  wont”  to  grant  them  this  favor.  He  desired  it  on  this  occa¬ 
sion  more  than  they  did  themselves.  Here  is  the  way  in  which  he 
sought  to  turn  it  to  his  own  account,  (b)  “  He  had  then  a  notori 
ous  prisoner  that  was  called  Barabbas.”  Barabbas  was  a  robber, 
“who,  for  a  certain  sedition  made  in  the  city,  and  for  murder, 
was  cast  into  prison.  When  the  multitude  was  come  up”  to  the 
judgment  hall,  “  they  began  to  desire  that  he  would  do  as  he  had 
ever  done  unto  them.  They,  therefore,  being  gathered  together,  Pi¬ 
late  said  :  You  have  a  custom  that  I  should  release  one  unto  you  at 
the  pasch  :  whom  will  you  that  I  release  to  you,  Barabbas,  or  Jesus, 
that  is  called  Christ  ?” 

The  more  odious  the  comparison  was,  the  more  did  the  governor 
deem  it  suitable  to  his  design.  Jesus,  placed  on  a  par  with  a  well- 
known  and  universally-detested  criminal,  ought  naturally  to  be  unani¬ 
mously  preferred.  But  what  raised  Pilate’s  hopes  still  higher  was, 
that  he  was  then  treating  with  the  people.  If  he  had  only  to  deal 
with  the  priests,  he  would  not  have  had  the  same  confidence,  (c)  “  for 
he  knew  that  for  envy  they  had  delivered  him  ;”  and  he  was  not  un¬ 
aware  that  envy  is  capable  of  every  thing,  and  blushes  at  nothing. 
But  the  people,  who  had  never  been  opposed  to  Jesus — who  had 
even  declared  so  loudly  in  his  favor  as  to  keep  his  enemies  in  check 
— who,  a  few  days  previously,  had  decreed  him.  a  species  of  triumph 
— could  it  reasonably  be  expected  that  this  very  people  would  pre¬ 
fer  to  him  a  robber,  an  assassin  still  reeking  with  the  last  murder 
which  he  had  committed  ?  Encouraged  by  all  these  reasons,  Pilate 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xv.  6.  (6)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  16, 1 7  ;  St.  Mark, 

xviii.  39. 


T 


522 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIEE 


[part  H. 

wished  to  employ  further  the  terms  most  likely  to  gain  them  over  ; 
and  adding  to  the  name  of  Christ  which  he  had  already  given  to  the 
Saviour,  that  of  king  of  the  Jews,  a  name  always  welcome  to  their 
ears,  he  said  to  them  for  the  second  time  :  (a)  “  Will  you,  therefore, 
that  I  release  unto  you  the  king  of  the  Jews  ?” 

He  was  still  awaiting  the  answer,  when  an  unforeseen  message 
postponed  it  for  some  moments.  (5)  “  As  he  was  sitting  in  the  place 
of  judgment”  to  hear  the  people’s  request,  and  to  pronounce  the  par¬ 
don  of  the  criminal  whose  liberation  was  to  be  asked  for,  “  his  wife 
sent  to  him,  saying  :  Have  thou  nothing  to  do  with  that  just  man, 
for  I  have  suffered  many  things  this  day  in  a  dream,  because  of 
him  (1).” 

History  does  not  inform  us  whether  this  warning  made  any  im 
pression  on  Pilate’s  mind,  or  whether  he  appeared  at  first  to  pay 
any  attention  to  it.  He  may,  indeed,  finding  himself  so  circum¬ 
stanced,  have  sent  word  to  his  wife  that  she  might  be  easy  in  her 
mind — that  the  measures  which  he  had  taken  would  infallibly  save 

(a)  St.  John,  xviii.  39.  ( l )  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  19. 


(1)  Notwithstanding  the  authority  of  some  ancient  interpreters,  who  have  thought 
that  this  dream  came  from  the  devil,  the  common  opinion  is,  that  it  came  from  God. 
There  is  no  appearance  that  the  devil,  who  had  suggested  to  Judas  the  design  of  betray¬ 
ing  his  Master,  had  acquired  any  further  information  from  that  time,  that  is  to  say,  in  the 
course  of  a  few  hours,  with  reference  to  the  effects  which  Jesus  Christ’s  Passion  was  to 
have.  This  dream  was  of  a  fearful  character,  since  she  who  had  it  declares  that  it  made 
her  suffer  much.  It  is  conjectured,  and  with  great  probability,  that  the  dream  presaged 
to  her  the  misfortunes  which  Pilate  would  draw  down  upon  himself  and  his  family,  if  he 
imbrued  his  hands  in  the  blood  of  the  Just.  Every  one  knows  that  he  was  subsequent¬ 
ly  disgraced  and  banished,  and  that  he  perished  by  his  own  hand. 

It  may  be  asked  what  could  be  the  design  of  God  in  sending  this  dream  ?  To  give 
additional  testimony  to  the  innocence  of  his  Son,  and  to  offer  another  grace  to  Pilate  in 
order  to  withhold  him  upon  the  brink  of  injustice  into  which  he  was  falling,  are  of  them¬ 
selves  two  motives  worthy  of  the  wisdom  and  the  goodness  of  God.  But  if  he  had 
merely  in  view  the  salvation  of  this  woman,  this  reason  was  more  than  sufficient  for  him  ; 
and,  although  the  vision  may  not  have  had  the  effect  for  which  it  appears  to  have  been 
more  directly  intended,  viz.,  to  hinder  the  judge  from  condemning  the  innocent — God, 
nevertheless,  would  still  have  reaped  from  it  the  fruit  which  his  heart  most  earnestly  de¬ 
sired,  since  the  salvation  of  a  single  soul  is  dearer  to  J esus  Christ  than  his  own  life  ;  for 
it  is  held  that  Pilate’s  wife  is  saved.  Very  ancient  authors  give  her  the  name  of  Claudia 
Procula.  This  is  also  the  name  which  the  Greeks  give  her  in  their  menologies,  wherein 
they  have  placed  her  in  the  rank  of  the  saints. 


CHAP.  LXVI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


this  just  man  for  whom  she  was  interested.  If  such  was  his  answer, 
he  deceived  her  ;  hut  it  was  because  he  had  deceived  himself.  The 
cabal  prevailed,  and  the  mob  was  seduced,  (a)  “  The  chief  priests 
and  ancients  moved  the  people,  and  persuaded  them  that  they 
should  ask  Barabbas,  and  make  Jesus  away.” 

We  know  that  the  people  are  equally  violent  in  their  likings  and 
dislikings  ;  and  also  with  what  rapidity  those  who  know  how  to 
manage  them,  can  bring  them  from  one  extreme  to  the  other.  This 
was  but  the  work  of  a  moment  for  the  Saviour’s  enemies.  For  it  is 
probable  that  they  only  commenced  their  intrigues  when  Pilate  pro¬ 
posed  the  choice  between  Jesus  and  Barabbas,  as  it  was  only  then 
that  the  destiny  of  Jesus  began  to  depend  on  the  popular  will  ;  and 
the  moment  after,  as  we  are  going  to  show,  this  work  was  already 
completed.  When,  therefore,  he  had  returned  his  wife’s  message, 
( h )  “  the  governor  said  to  them  :  Whether  will  you  of  the  two  to  be 
released  unto  you?  The  whole  multitude  cried  out:  Away  with 
this  man,  and  release  unto  us  Barabbas.”  Pilate,  astonished,  and 
wishing  still  to  save  Jesus,  “  again  answering,  saith  to  them  :  What 
will  you,  then,  that  I  do  to  the  king  of  the  Jews — with  Jesus,  that 
is  called  Christ  ?  but  they  all  again  cried  out,  saying  :  Crucify  him  ! 
crucify  him  !  He  said  to  them  the  third  time  :  Why,  what  evil  hath 
this  man  done  ?  I  find  no  cause  of  death  in  him  :  I  will  chastise  him, 
therefore,”  added  he,  falling  back  on  his  first  idea,  “  and  let  him  go. 
But  they  were  instant  with  loud  voices,  requiring  that  he  might  be 
crucified  ;  and  they  cried  out  the  more,  saying  :  “  Crucify  him  !  let 
him  be  crucified  !” 

“  Pilate,  seeing  that  he  prevailed  nothing,  but  that  rather  a  tu¬ 
mult  wras  made,  taking  water,  washed  his  hands  before  the  people, 
saying  :  I  am  innocent  of  the  blood  of  this  just  man  :  look  you  to  it  ; 
and  the  whole  people  answering,  said  :  His  blood  be  upon  us  and 
upon  our  children.” 

The  Eternal  heard  this  horrible  imprecation,  and  ratified  it.  More 
than  eighteen  centuries  have  passed  away,  and  still  this  blood  de¬ 
mands  vengeance,  and  obtains  it  against  the  posterity  of  this  unhappy 
people — God  wishing  to  show  the  universe  that  a  seduced  multitude, 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  20  ;  St.  Mark, 
xv.  11. 


(6)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  21-27  ;  St.  Luke, 
xxiii.  18-23  ;  St.  Mark,  xv.  12—14. 


*  il 


% 


4 


w 


ri 


although  incomparably  less  culpable  than  its  seducers,  may  still  be 
sufficiently  guilty  to  merit  a  fearful  chastisement. 

That  furious  populace  at  length  overcame  the  governor,  and  the 
result  might  be  anticipated.  He  who  had  been  shaken  by  the  soli¬ 
citations  of  the  priests,  which  he  might  have  cut  short  by  a  single 
word,  had  not  firmness  enough  to  resist  a  seditious  people  who  ap¬ 
peared  to  threaten  rebellion.  Thus,  after  the  vain  ceremony  of  wash¬ 
ing  his  hands,  or  rather  after  having  rendered  against  himself  that 
glaring  testimony  of  the  injustice  which  he  was  about  to  commit, 
( a )  “  Pilate,  being  willing  to  satisfy  the  people,  gave  sentence  that 
it  should  be  as  they  required.” 

Consequently  “he  released  unto  them  him  who,  for  murder  and 
sedition,  had  been  cast  into  prison,  whom  they  had  desired.” 

It  is  questionable  whether  the  sentence  of  death  against  the  Sa¬ 
viour  be  comprised  in  these  general  terms  which  the  governor  em¬ 
ployed.  The  flagellation  which  followed  leaves  this  matter  unde¬ 
cided  :  the  scourging  should  precede  the  crucifixion  according  to  the 
Roman  laws,  from  which  Pilate  may  not  have  wished  to  deviate 
upon  this  occasion.  If  we  view  it  in  this  light,  we  must  believe  that 
Jesus  was  already  condemned  to  the  death  of  the  cross  ;  but,  on  the 
other  hand,  we  have  seen  that  Pilate  entertained  the  notion  of  hav¬ 
ing  him  scourged  with  the  design  of  saving  his  life,  by  affording  this 
satisfaction  to  those  who  demanded  his  death  ;  and  we  are  soon  to 
find  him  again  endeavoring  to  turn  it  to  this  account.  But  was  he 
still  carrying  out  his  original  intention,  or  else,  after  having  aban¬ 
doned  it  by  condemning  the  Saviour,  did  he  recur  to  it  out  of  com¬ 
passion,  or  from  remorse  ?  It  would  be  difficult  to  form  an  opinion 
on  this  subject.  Whatever  the  case  may  be,  at  the  very  time  when 
they  were  liberating  Barabbas,  (b)  “  Pilate  took  Jesus,  and  scourged 
him.”  The  evangelists  say  nothing  more  about  this  affair,  but  the 
common  opinion  is,  that  this  flagellation  was  carried  to  the  last  ex¬ 
treme  of  cruelty.  There  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  it  was  extremely 
cruel,  since  Pilate  thought  that,  by  exhibiting  to  the  Jews  the  con¬ 
dition  to  which  it  had  reduced  the  Saviour,  he  should  at  last  succeed 
in  melting  them  into  compassion  ;  but  it  does  not  appear  to  have 


(a)  St.  Mark,  xv.  15  ;  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  24,  25. 


(b)  St.  John,  xix.  1. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


been  so  extremely  severe  that  Jesus  could  not  survive  it  without  a 
miracle.  If  such  had  been  the  case,  Pilate  would  not  have  testi¬ 
fied  so  much  surprise  when  it  was  reported  to  him,  three  hours 
after  the  Saviour  had  been  crucified,  that  he  had  already  breathed 
his  last. 

This  torment  was  immediately  followed  by  another,  either  sug¬ 
gested  by  the  hatred  of  the  Jews,  or  invented  by  the  brutality  of 
the  soldiers.  The  latter,  (a)  “  taking  Jesus  into  the  court  of  the  pal¬ 
ace,  gathered  together  unto  him  the  whole  band,  and  stripping  him, 
they  put  a  scarlet  cloak  about  him.  And  platting  a  crown  of  thorns, 
they  put  it  upon  his  head,  and  a  reed  in  his  right  hand.  Then  they 
came  to  him,  and  bowing  the  knee  before  him,  they  mocked  him, 
saying  :  Hail,  king  of  the  Jews  ;  and  spitting  upon  him,  they  took 
the  reed  and  struck  his  head,  and  they  gave  him  blows.” 


CHAPTER  LXVII. 

ecce  homo. — pilate’s  second  interrogation. — jesus  is  condemned. — he  car¬ 
ries  HIS  CROSS. - SIMON  THE  CYRENEAN. - DAUGHTERS  OF  JERUSALEM. - JESUS 

CRUCIFIED  BETWEEN  TWO  THIEVES. - TITLE  OF  THE  CROSS. - LOTS  CAST  FOR  THE 

GARMENT. 

After  so  many  torments  and  so  much  contumely,  the  Jews  should 
at  last  have  been  content.  ( b )  “  Pilate,  therefore,  went  forth  again, 
and  saith  to  them  :  Behold,  I  bring  him  forth  unto  you,  that  you 
may  know  that  I  find  no  cause  in  him.  Jesus,  therefore,  came  forth, 
bearing  the  crown  of  thorns  and  the  purple  garment,  and  Pilate 
saith  to  them  :  Behold  the  man  !”  The  people  became  silent,  and 
perhaps  compassion  began  to  work  upon  them  ;  but  “  when  the  chief 
priests  and  the  servants  had  seen  him,  they  cried  out  :  Crucify  him  ! 
crucify  him  !  Pilate,”  feeling  himself  once  more  mistaken,  and  piqued 
at  this  discomfiture,  “  saith  to  them,”  in  a  sharp  tone  :  “  Take  him 

(а)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  27-30;  St.  Mark,  xv.  16-19;  St.  John,  xix.  3. 

(б)  St.  John,  xix.  4-7. 


526 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  H. 

you,  and  crucify  him  ;  for  I  find  no  cause  in  him.  The  Jews  answer¬ 
ed  him:  We  have  a  law,  and  according  to  the  law  he  ought  to  die, 
because  he  made  himself  the  Son  of  God.” 

Thus,  they  substituted  for  the  state  offence  of  which  Pilate  did 
not  find  him  guilty,  a  crime  against  religion,  which,  it  seems,  he  must 
take  on  their  testimony — not  being  sufficiently  conversant  with  their 
law  to  judge  the  case  himself  ;  however,  this  expression,  which  es¬ 
caped  them  in  the  heat  of  their  passion,  was  very  near  depriving 
them  of  their  victim.  The  governor  did  not  regard  Jesus  as  an  or¬ 
dinary  man.  The  wisdom  of  his  answers,  his  unalterable  patience, 
his  heroic  firmness — all  this,  combined  with  Pilate’s  own  avowal  of 
his  innocence,  and  what  he  had  learned  concerning  his  miracles,  had 
already  inspired  him  with  sentiments  of  veneration  for  the  Saviour’s 
person.  He  learned,  moreover,  that  he  announced  himself  as  the  Son 
of  God  ;  was  he  not  such,  in  point  of  fact  ?  Not  in  the  sense  of  eter¬ 
nal  generation,  which  was  far  above  the  comprehension  of  a  Pagan  ; 
but  such  as  paganism  might  fancy  him  to  be — begotten  by  some  of 
the  immortals  (1) — whose  vengeance  would  not  fail  to  burst  upon 
those  who  should  imbrue  their  hands  in  the  blood  of  his  Son. 
“  When  Pilate,  therefore,  had  heard  this  saying,  he  feared  the  more, 
and  he  entered  into  the  hall  again,  and  he  said  to  Jesus  :  Whence 
art  thou  ?  But  Jesus  gave  him  no  answer.  Pilate,  therefore,  said 
to  him  :  Speakest  thou  not  to  me  ?  Knowest  thou  not  that  I  have 
power  to  crucify  thee,  and  I  have  power  to  release  thee  ?” 

This  power,  which  hath  never  yet  intimidated  the  just  man  who 
fears  not  death,  could  still  less  affect  the  Man-God,  who  rather  desired 
it.  Wherefore,  very  far  from  flattering  the  governor’s  pride,  Jesus 
gave  him  a  lesson  very  proper  to  inspire  men  in  office  with  modes¬ 
ty,  by  reminding  them  from  whom  they  hold  their  authority,  and 
to  whom  they  are  responsible  :  “Thou  shouldst  not  have  any  power 
against  me,  unless  it  were  given  thee  from  above  ;  therefore,”  added 
the  Saviour,  “  he  that  hath  delivered  me  to  thee  hath  the  greater 
sin.” 

This  last  expression,  which  regarded  his  accusers,  seems  to  signify 
that  the  most  criminal  of  all  murders  is  that  of  delivering  up  an  in- 


(1)  Saint  Cyrillus,  lib.  12,  cap.  20. 


j  CHAP.  LXYII.]  OP  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  52 1 

’> 

nocent  individual  to  legitimate  judges,  so  as  to  deprive  him  by  their 
sentence  of  both  honor  and  life.  But  the  judge  who  is  weak  enough 
or  corrupt  enough  to  be  instrumental  in  the  execution  of  such  de¬ 
signs,  if  he  be  not  always  the  most  wicked  of  all  assassins,  is  he  not 
at  least  the  most  infamous  ?  This  inference,  which  the  Saviour  did 
not  formally  express,  might  easily  have  been  drawn  by  Pilate  ;  and 
as  it  came  directly  home  to  him,  it  is  not  surprising  if  “  from  hence¬ 
forth  Pilate  sought  to  release  him.”  But  he  sought  in  vain.  The 
people  had  too  well  discovered  the  ascendency  which  their  clamors 
had  secured  them  over  this  weak  judge,  to  allow  themselves  to  be 
turned  aside  from  their  purpose.  “  The  Jews  cried  out  [ therefore ], 
saying  :  If  thou  release  this  man,  thou  art  not  Cæsar’s  friend  ;  for 
whosoever  maketh  himself  a  king,  speaketh  against  Cæsar.”  Pilate 
could  not  withstand  this  last  attack.  “  When  Pilate  had  heard  these 
words,  he  brought  Jesus  forth,  and  sat  down  in  the  judgment-seat, 
in  the  place  that  is  called  Lithostrotos,  and  in  the  Hebrew  Gabba- 
tha.  It  was  the  parasceve  of  the  pasch,  about  the  sixth  hour,  and 
he  saith  to  the  Jews  :  Behold  your  king.  But  they  cried  out  :  Away 
with  him  !  away  with  him  !  crucify  him  !  Shall  I  crucify  your  king  ? 
Pilate  saith  to  them”  again,  and  this  expression  was,  as  it  were,  the 
last  sigh  of  expiring  justice.  (A) “The  chief  priests  answered  :  We 
have  no  king  but  Cæsar.  Then,  therefore,  he  delivered  up  Jesus  to 
their  will  that  is  to  say,  “  he  delivered  him  unto  them  to  be  cru¬ 
cified.”  Behold,  then,  the  issue  of  Pilate’s  judgment,  after  he  had 
so  many  times  declared  him  innocent.  What  more  could  he  have 
done  if  he  had  found  him  guilty?  And  what  does  justice  avail  in 
the  heart  of  a  man  who  has  not  courage  to  defend  it  against  unjust 
passion,  only  to  render  himself  unjust  whilst  he  yields  with  a  repug¬ 
nance  which  does  not  save  the  innocent,  and  which  renders  himself 
only  the  more  inexcusable  ? 

Meanwhile  Jesus  (5)  “ delivered  himself,”  without  murmur,  “to 
him  that  judged  him  unjustly,”  and,  by  his  silence,  he  verified  still 
further  the  prophecy  which  compared  him  to  a  lamb,  which,  far  from 
defending  itself,  does  not  even  oppose  a  cry  to  the  knife  that  is  go¬ 
ing  to  slaughter  it  (c).  The  soldiers,  charged  with  the  execution, 

( a )  St.  John,  xix.  15-17  ;  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  (6)  I.  St.  Peter,  ii.  23. 

25  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  26.  (c)  St.  John,  xix.  16, 17  ;  St.  Mark,  xv.  20. 


Ml'. 


b*  As!3v£' 

7/iW\ 


“  took  Jesus,”  and  did  as  they  liked  with  him.  “  They  took  off  the 
purple  from  him  ;  they  put  his  own  garments  on  him,  and  they  led 
him  out  to  crucify  him.  J esus,  bearing  his  own  cross,  went  forth  to 
that  place  which  is  called  Calvary,  but  in  Hebrew  Golgotha.” 

There  was  a  custom  amongst  the  Romans,  that  those  who  were  to 
be  crucified  should  themselves  carry  their  cross  to  the  place  of  exe¬ 
cution.  There  was,  therefore,  nothing  extraordinary  in  this  with 
regard  to  the  Saviour.  But  Jesus,  exhausted  with  loss  of  blood, 
soon  sank  under  the  burden.  His  excessive  weakness  gave  reason 
to  fear  that  he  might  escape  the  extreme  penalty,  or  at  least  retard 
the  moment  of  execution  so  earnestly  desired  by  his  enemies.  This 
apprehension  prompted  them  to  relieve  him,  when  chance,  or  rather 
Providence,  presented  to  them  the  man  whom  God  had  chosen  to 
succor  his  Son  in  this  mournful  emergency.  “As  they  led  Jesus 
away  («),  going  out,”  from  the  city  (2),  “  they  found  a  man  of 
Cyrene,  named  Simon,  the  father  of  Alexander  and  of  Rufus,  who 
passed  by,  coming  out  of  the  country.  Him  they  forced  to  take  up 
his  cross,  and  they  laid  the  cross  on  him,  to  carry  after  Jesus.”  We 
should  think  that  he  yielded  to  force  alone,  and  with  the  utmost 
repugnance  ;  but  when  he — through  the  light  of  faith  which  subse¬ 
quently  illumined  his  mind — discovered  that  he  had  the  honor  of 
relieving  his  Saviour,  of  co-operating  in  the  world’s  salvation,  and 
of  being  the  figure  of  those  who  should  carry  the  cross  after  Jesus 
Christ  and  follow  him — that  is  to  say,  of  the  predestined  in  every 
age — we  can  conceive  that  his  lot  seemed  truly  enviable  to  him,  as 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  26  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  32  ;  St.  Mark,  xv.  21. 


(2)  St.  Matthew  says  only,  and  going  out,  they  found. . . .  Simon. . .  .him  they  forced 
to  carry  the  cross.  And  on  the  other  hand  St.  John  says  :  Jesus  went  forth  bearing  his 
owri  cross — which  obliges  us,  for  the  purpose  of  reconciling  these  two  evangelists,  to 
distinguish  two  egresses,  one  from  the  court-house,  and  then  Jesus  carried  his  cross  ;  the 
other  from  the  city,  at  which  latter  egress  the  executioners  took  the  cross  from  him  in 
order  to  make  Simon  carry  it.  Thus  Jesus  earned  his  cross  all  the  way  through  Jeru¬ 
salem,  and  Simon  was  afterwards  made  to  bear  it  from  the  city  gates  to  the  top  of  Cal¬ 
vary.  They  apparently  thought  that  Jesus,  who  had  had  strength  enough  to  bear  it 
when  he  walked  upon  level  ground,  had  not  sufficient  strength  to  carry  it  up  the  moun¬ 
tain-side.  Perhaps  his  strength  failed  him,  in  point  of  fact  ;  for  we  must  recollect  that 
human  nature  was  then  abandoned  to  all  its  natural  weakness. 


pR  æï , 


IK. 


v/mv 


it  has  always  appeared  to  those  pious  souls,  who  have  wished  that 
they  could  have  been  associated  with  him  in  so  glorious  a  ministry. 

Meantime,  (a)  “  there  followed  Jesus  a  great  multitude  of  peo¬ 
ple,  and  of  women,  who  bewailed  and  lamented  him.  But,  turning 
to  them,  he  said  :  Daughters  of  Jerusalem,  weep  not  over  me,  but 
weep  for  yourselves  and  for  your  children.  For  behold  the  days 
shall  come  wherein  they  will  say  :  Blessed  are  the  barren  !  and  the 
wombs  that  have  not  borne,  and  the  paps  that  have  not  given  suck  ! 
Then  shall  they  begin  to  say  to  the  mountains  :  Fall  upon  us  ;  and 
to  the  hills  :  Cover  us.  For,  if  in  the  green  wood  they  do  these 
things,  what  shall  be  done  in  the  dry  ?” 

(3)  “  There  were  also  two  other  malefactors,”  loaded,  no  doubt, 
with  their  crosses  according  to  the  usual  custom,  “  led  with  him  to 
be  put  to  death.”  It  was  in  such  company  as  this  that  “  They  bring 
him  into  the  place  called  Golgotha,  which,”  as  we  have  already  said, 
“  being  interpreted,  is  the  place  of  Calvary.” 

(e)  “  When  they  were  come  to  the  place,  they  gave  him  wine  to 
drink,  mingled  with  myrrh  [ and~\  gall  (3).  And  when  he  had 
tasted,  he  would  not  drink.  It  was  the  third  hour  they  crucified 
him  (4).  With  him  they  crucified  two  thieves  ;  the  one  on  his  right 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  27—31. 

(b)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  32  ;  St.  Mark,  xv. 

22  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  33. 


(c)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  33  ;  St.  Matthew, 
xxvii.  34  ;  St.  Mark,  xv.  25,  27, 
28  ;  St.  John,  xix.  18. 


(3)  St.  Matthew  speaks  only  of  the  gall,  and  not  of  tho  myrrh  ;  St.  Mark  of  the 
myrrh  and  not  of  the  gall  ;  one  does  not  exclude  the  other,  and  this  is  the  reason  why 
we  have  combined  them.  Was  this  beverage  in  use  in  similar  circumstances,  or  was  it 
not  ?  was  it  given  with  a  view  to  strengthen  the  patient,  or  to  stupefy  him,  or  perhaps 
to  torment  him  the  more  ?  was  gall  always  mingled  with  it,  or  was  it  mixed  with  it  on 
this  occasion  through  the  malice  of  the  Saviour’s  enemies  ?  Nothing  certain  can  be 
advanced  upon  these  several  heads.  Jesus  tasted  it  in  order  to  obey,  in  order  to  suffer, 
in  order  to  expiate  our  acts  of  intemperance,  and  in  order  to  accomplish  the  prophecies. 
We  are  unaware  of  the  reason  why  he  did  not  wish  to  swallow  it,  if  it  was  not,  accord¬ 
ing  to  a  pious  interpretation,  in  order  to  show  that  he  has  tasted  the  bitterness  of  sin, 
because  he  bore  the  pain  thereof,  but  that  he  has  not  swallowed  its  poison,  because  sin 
has  never  penetrated  into  his  soul,  always  pure  and  always  holy. 

(4)  It  is  St.  Mark  who  makes  this  statement,  and  it  seems  to  be  in  contradiction  to 
St.  John,  who  conveys  that  the  sentence  of  condemnation  was  pronounced  about  the  sixth 
hour.  St.  Jerome,  and  after  him  Theophylactus,  have  thought  that  there  existed  in  the 
text  of  St.  Mark  an  error  made  by  the  copyists,  that  the  Greek  letter  which  expresses 

34 


-*r  Jk 


a  a  a  o  o  o  ■ 


530 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[PART  II. 

hand,  and  the  other  on  his  left,  and  Jesus  in  the  midst.  [Thus~\ 
the  Scripture  was  fulfilled,  which  saith  :  With  the  wicked  was  he 
reputed.” 

The  Deicide  was  consummated  ;  all  that  remained  was — to  avenge 
it.  Jesus  had  only  to  speak.  It  seems  that  he  had  only  to  remain 
silent,  and  to  allow  the  thunderbolt  to  fall  and  crush  the  authors 
and  the  executioners  of  a  crime  so  atrocious.  One  would  almost 
say  that  he  feared  such  a  result,  so  eager  was  he  to  ward  it  off. 
Scarcely  was  he  fastened  to  the  cross,  and  it  elevated  upon  the 
mountain,  when  (a)  “  he  said,”  and  this  was  the  first  word  which  he 
pronounced,  “  Father,  forgive  them,  for  they  know  not  what  they  do.” 

We  should  not  omit  a  circumstance  of  the  Saviour’s  passion 
that  the  Holy  Ghost  has  judged  worthy  to  be  inserted  in  the 
recital  thereof  dictated  by  him  to  the  sacred  writers.  ( b )  “  Pilate 
wrote,”  according  to  the  prevailing  custom,  “  a  title,  and  he  put  it 
upon  the  cross.  The  inscription  of  his  cause  was  written  over”  it  in 
these  terms:  “This  is  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  the  King  of  the  Jews. 
This  title,  therefore,  many  of  the  Jews  did  read  ;  because  the  place 
where  Jesus  was  crucified  was  nigh  to  the  city,  and  it  was  written 
in  Hebrew,  in  Greek,  and  in  Latin.  The  chief  priests”  considered 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  34. 

( b )  St.  John,  xix.  19,  20  ;  St.  Mark,  xxv.  26  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  37. 


the  number  three  had  slipped  into  the  place  of  that  which  expresses  the  number  six. 
Nothing  is  more  easy  in  appearance.  Nevertheless  this  conjecture  has  been  abandoned, 
because  no  copy  of  St.  Mark  has  been  found  in  which  we  read  that  the  Saviour  was 
crucified  at  the  sixth  hour.  Now  what  is  read  in  all  the  copies  should  be  retained,  and 
it  is  allowable  to  correct  one  by  the  other  only  when  variations  occur.  If  we  did  not 
respect  this  limitation  at  least,  what  could  remain  entire  in  the  text  ?  Other  interpreters 
have  imagined  ways  of  dividing  the  day  into  four  parts  ;  according  to  these,  the  third 
hour  of  St.  Mark  would  correspond  with  the  sixth  hour  of  St.  John.  The  real  and 
known  division  of  the  night  into  four  watches  has  suggested  this  notion  to  them  and 
seems  to  support  it.  Unfortunately  they  do  not  cite  examples  of  this  division  of  the  day 
into  four  parts,  nor  of  the  name  hours  having  been  given  to  these  parts,  each  of  which 
should  be  composed  of  three  hours.  We  must  acknowledge  that  the  difficulty  has  not 
been  cleared  up,  and  let  it  suffice  for  us  to  believe  that  according  to  a  certain  way  of 
reckoning  which  is  unknown  to  us,  but  which  was  not  unknown  at  the  time  when  St. 
Mark  wrote,  this  evangelist  may  have  called  the  third  that  which  St.  John  called  the 
sixth  hour.  It  is  sufficient  for  faith  that  a  thing  is  not  impossible,  and  assuredly  tliis 
is  not. 


CHAP.  LXVII.J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


531 


themselves  insulted  by  this  ;  and  probably  with  some  reason,  accord¬ 
ing  to  their  construction  of  the  matter.  It  was  offering  an  insult  to 
the  nation  to  style  him  king  of  the  Jews,  whom  the  chief  men  of 
the  nation,  followed  by  the  majority  of  the  people,  had  just  delivered 
over  to  the  extreme  penalty.  They  (a)  “  said,  therefore,  to  Pilate  : 
Write  not,  The  king  of  the  Jews  ;  but  that  he  said,  I  am  the  king 
of  the  Jews.  Pilate  answered  :  “  What  I  have  written,  I  have  writ¬ 
ten,”  and  dismissed  them  with  this  curt  reply. 

It  might  have  been  that  the  governor  then  thought  only  of  get¬ 
ting  rid  of  their  importunities,  which  he  must  have  found  extremely 
tiresome  ;  perhaps,  also,  that  after  his  previous  cowardice,  he  wished 
at  last  to  make  a  show  of  firmness  :  the  pleasure  also  of  being 
revenged  for  the  violence  which  the  Jews  had  just  offered  to  him, 
may  also  have  had  its  share  in  producing  this  effect.  Whatever  his 
motive  may  have  been — and  it  is  not  very  easy  to  ascertain — he 
executed,  without  knowing  it,  the  orders  of  the  Most  High.  It  was 
God  who  had  dictated  what  the  judge  had  written,  and  restrained 
his  hand  so  that  the  inscription  was  not  effaced.  It  was  by 
means  of  the  rood  that  the  Man-God  was  to  reign  ;  and  by  affixing 
him  to  it  they  had  placed  him,  if  we  may  use  the  expression,  upon 
the  throne  of  his  royalty.  It  was  also  necessary  to  proclaim  him 
king,  and  Pilate — a  Gentile — did  this  officially,  notwithstanding  the 
opposition  and  the  indignation  of  the  Jewish  people.  This  was  a 
sensible  figure  of  what  soon  after  occurred,  when  these  murderers 
obstinately  refusing  to  have  Jesus  reign  over  them,  the  Gentile  peo¬ 
ple  willingly  recognized  him  not  only  for  their  king,  but  for  their 
God  and  Saviour.  In  vain  did  the  Jews  do  their  utmost  to  prevent 
this  recognition,  and  they  were  made  the  unwilling  witnesses  of  the 
Saviour’s  triumph,  unwittingly  adding  to  the  lustre  of  his  glory  by 
their  impotent  rage  and  deadly  animosity. 

Nothing  is  of  trifling  importance  in  so  great  an  event  ;  and,  if  it 
were  only  for  this  reason,  wTe  ought  not  be  surprised  that  the  sacred 
writers  should  have  reported  the  fact  which  the  reader  is  about  to 
see.  But  there  is  another  reason  which  renders  it  worthy  of  notice, 
viz.  :  the  literal  fulfilment  of  the  prophecies  in  a  circumstance  so 
slight  and  so  accidental,  that  the  mind — which  has  foreseen  and 

(a)  St.  John,  xix.  21,  22. 


I)  (v 

%::è 


i'fjà 


MUu, 


predicted  it — can  alone  be  that  infinite  intelligence,  to  whom  all 
ages  are  present,  and  who,  in  all  events,  perceives  even  tbe  most  im¬ 
perceptible  and  most  arbitrary  details.  Here  is  tbe  fact  which  has 
occasioned  these  reflections  :  (a)  “  The  soldiers,  therefore,  when  they 
had  crucified  him,  took  his  garments  [and  they  made  four  parts,  to 
every  soldier  (5)  a  part]  and  also  his  coat  (6).  Now  the  coat  was 
without  seam,  woven  from  the  top  throughout.  They  said  then  one 
to  another:  Let  us  not  cut  it  ;  but  let  us  cast  lots  (7)  for  it,  whose 
it  shall  be  ;  that  the  Scriptures  might  be  fulfilled,  saying  :  They 
have  parted  my  garments  among  them,  and  upon  my  vesture  they 
have  cast  lots.  The  soldiers  indeed  did  these  things.  After  which ] 
they  sat  and  watched  him.” 

(a)  St.  John,  xix.  23,  24  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  35,  36. 


(5)  Four  soldiers  were  therefore  engaged  at  the  execution,  which  gives  greater  prob¬ 
ability  to  the  opinion  of  those  who  think  that  Jesus  Christ  was  fastened  to  the  cross  by 
four  nails. 

(6)  This  coat  or  tunic  had  been  woven,  it  is  said,  by  the  Blessed  Virgin,  when  Jesus 
was  still  a  child.  It  therefore  grew  with  his  growth,  and  was  not  worn  away.  We 
have  no  positive  proof  of  this  fact  ;  but  the  tradition  thereof  is  very  ancient  ;  it  has  never 
been  contradicted,  and  there  is  nothing  here  in  miracles  which  should  surprise  us.  It  is 
not  at  all  unreasonable,  and  it  is  always  more  pious  to  respect  such  traditions  than  to 
despise  them. 

The  coat  or  tunic  of  the  Saviour,  was  a  figure  of  his  spouse  the  church,  which  is  one 
and  indivisible,  because  it  always  maintains  itself  in  one  and  the  same  faith,  and  in  one 
and  the  same  charity. 

It  is  said  of  those  who  create  schism  in  the  church,  that  they  rend  the  garment  of 
Jesus  Christ  ;  that  is  to  say,  that  they  try  to  do  so,  though  they  never  can  succeed. 
We  may  regard  them  as  rags,  badly  assorted  and  worse  stitched,  which,  when  they  de¬ 
tach  themselves  from  it  take  away  nothing  of  its  integrity,  and  are  themselves  no  longer 
good  for  any  thing  but  to  be  cast  into  the  fire. 

(7)  It  is  commonly  held  that  the  garments  were  also  divided  by  lot,  because  it  was 
scarcely  possible  that  the  parts  could  be  perfectly  equal.  This  may  lead  us  to  conclude 
that  ,the  Saviour’s  apparel,  without  being  rich,  had  still  some  value,  and — as  many  think 
— that  it  was  suitable  and  becoming. 


<  1 


\VJ  U/. 


•3, 


7/l 


m 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


CHAPTER  LXVIIL 

BLASPHEMIES  AND  INSULTS. - THE  GOOD  THIEF. - THE  WORDS  OF  JESUS  TO  HIS 

MOTHER. - DARKNESS. - JESUS  DIES. - PRODIGIES. - THE  SAVIOUR’S  SIDE  PIERCED. 

- BURIAL. - DESCENT  INTO  HELL. 

Jesus,  a  prey  to  tlie  most  excruciating  pain,  was  also  exposed  to 
the  most  harrowing  insults,  (a)  “  They  that  passed  by  blasphemed 
him,  wagging  their  heads,  and  saying:  Bah,  thou  that  destroyeSt 
the  temple  of  God,  and  in  three  days  dost  rebuild  it,  save  thy  own 
self  ;  if  thou  be  the  Son  of  God,  come  down  from  the  cross.  The 
people  stood  beholding,  and  the  rulers  with  them  derided  him  (1),” 
for  they  were  not  ashamed  to  join  the  multitude  ;  and — forgetting 
what  they  owed  to  themselves — they  gave  vent  to  their  joy  with 
the  same  coarseness  and  the  same  effrontery.  Thus  they  were  not 
ashamed  to  do  that  which  would  have  disgraced  the  very  lowest 
rabble.  ( b )  “  In  like  manner  also,  the  chief  priests,  with  the  Scribes 
and  ancients,  mocking,  said  :  He  saved  others  (2)  ;  himself  he  can¬ 
not  save.  If  he  be  the  king  of  Israel,  let  him  now  come  down  from 
the  cross,  and  we  will  believe  him.  He  trusted  in  God  :  let  him 
now  deliver  him  if  he  will  have  him  ;  for  he  said  :  I  am  the  Son  of 
God.” 

(c)  David  had  them  in  view  when  he  put  these  words  into  the 


(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  39,  40  ;  St. 
Luke,  xxiii.  35. 


( b )  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  41. 

(c)  Psalm  xxi.  9. 


(1)  A  fresh  proof  of  his  innocence.  Justice  has  no  longer  any  other  sentiment  than 
compassion  for  the  criminal  whom  it  is  obliged  to  punish.  Passion  alone  continues  to 
insult  the  innocent  victim  whom  it  immolates  to  its  fury.  Whilst  they  thus  outraged 
the  Just  by  excellence,  they  said  nothing  to  the  two  robbers,  or  if  they  thought  of  them 
at  all  it  was  apparently  but  to  pity  them.  There  is  a  measure  of  suffering  which  satisfies 
justice,  hut  there  is  none  that  can  glut  envy  and  hatred. 

(2)  He  saved  others,  that  is  to  say,  he  has  wrought  miracles  for  others,  and  he  cannot 
work  them  for  himself.  This  was  tacitly  acknowledging  the  truth  of  his  miracles,  and 
taking  occasion  therefrom  to  insult  him  the  more.  It  is  not  for  want  of  miracles,  nor  is 
it  often  for  want  of  believing  in  miracles  that  the  wicked  are  wicked  ;  it  is  solely  because 
they  wish  to  be  so. 


534 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


Tpart  II. 


mouth  of  the  impious  oppressors  of  the  just  ;  and,  without  wishing 
or  knowing  it,  they  were  instrumental  in  accomplishing  this  pro¬ 
phecy.  They  were  also  heard  to  say  :  (a)  “  Let  him  also  save  him¬ 
self,  if  he  be  Christ  the  elect  of  God  ;  let  Christ  the  king  of  Israel 
come  down  now  from  the  cross  that  we  may  see  and  believe  (3). 
The  soldiers  also  mocked  him,  coming  to  him  and  offering  him  vine¬ 
gar  ;  and  saying:  If  thou  be  the  king  of  the  Jews,  save  thyself.” 
And  to  put  the  finishing  stroke  to  these  outrages,  “  the  self-same  thing 
the  thieves  also  that  were  crucified  with  him  reproached  him  with.” 

He  whom  they  treated  so  unworthily  was  only  anxious  to  save 
them,  and  his  grace  effected  at  this  moment  one  of  its  most  illustrious 
conquests.  ( b )  Whilst  “  one  of  those  robbers  who  were  hanged, 
blasphemed  him,  saying  :  If  thou  be  Christ,  save  thyself  and  us  ;  the 
other,”  suddenly  enlightened,  and  changed  into  another  man,  “  an¬ 
swering,  rebuked  him,  saying  :  Neither  dost  thou  fear  God  !  see¬ 
ing  thou  art  under  the  same  condemnation  ?  And  we  indeed  justly, 
for  we  receive  the  due  reward  of  our  deeds  ;  but  this  man  hath  done 
no  evil.” 

The  work  of  conversion  is  far  advanced,  when  the  sinner  confesses 
his  iniquity  and  the  justice  of  the  chastisement  which  he  receives  for 
it.  The  knowledge  of  God’s  goodness,  and  a  loving  confidence  in 
his  mercies,  finish  and  perfect  the  change.  Penetrated  with  this 
second  sentiment,  which,  in  this  fortunate  man,  was  the  consequence 
and  perhaps  the  reward  of  the  first, — “  He  said  to  Jesus  :  Lord,  re¬ 
member  me  when  thou  shalt  come  into  thy  kingdom.”  By  this 
prayer  he  confessed  that  Jesus  is  the  king  of  the  world  to  come  ; 
and  the  sense  of  the  mysterious  answer  given  by  the  Saviour  to  Pi¬ 
late  was  fully  revealed  to  him.  All  faith  is  comprised  in  this  con¬ 
fession,  but  what  renders  it- most  surprising  is  the  occasion  whereon  he 
rendered  to  Jesus  so  glorious  a  testimony.  His  salvation  was  the 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  35—3*7  ;  St.  Mark,  xv.  32  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  44. 

( b )  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  39-43. 


(3)  No,  it  is  not  true  that  they  would  have  believed  in  him  if  he  had  come  down 
from  the  cross  ;  for,  as  we  shall  soon  see,  they  were  convinced  of  the  truth  of  his  resur¬ 
rection,  and  yet  were  only  the  more  hardened.  All  those  who  ask  for  miracles  do  not 
speak  sincerely. 


CHAP.  LXVIII.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


535 


reward  which  it  obtained  for  him,  and  he  received  at  the  moment  an 
assurance  thereof.  “  Jesus  said  to  him  :  Amen,  I  say  to  thee,  this 
day  thou  shalt  be  with  me  in  paradise  (4).” 

An  object  still  more  interesting  to  Jesus  soon  attracted  his  atten¬ 
tion,  and  gave  him  the  opportunity  of  fulfilling  one  of  the  first  duties 
prescribed  by  nature,  in  order  to  teach  us  that  he  is  not  come  to 
destroy,  but  to  perfect  the  natural  law.  “  His  mother,”  whom  the 
most  excruciating  anguish  ever  felt  by  mortal  could  not  deter 
from  following  him  to  the  fatal  spot  ;  (a)  “  his  mother  and  his 
mother’s  sister,  Mary  of  Cleophas,  and  Mary  Magdalen,  stood 
by  the  cross  of  Jesus.  When  Jesus  therefore  had  seen  his  mother 
and  the  disciple  standing  whom  he  loved,  he  saith  to  his  mother  : 
Woman,  behold  thy  son.  After  that  he  saith  to  his  disciple:  Be¬ 
hold  thy  mother  (5).  And  from  that  hour  that  disciple  took  her  to 
his  own  (6).” 

(a)  St.  John,  xix.  25—27. 


(4)  It  may  be  asked  wbat  this  paradise  was,  which  could  neither  be  heaven,  for  it 
was  not  open  to  men  until  ascension-day,  nor  the  terrestrial  paradise,  which  no  longer 
existed,  at  least  since  the  deluge.  It  appears  to  be  the  bosom  of  Abraham,  which,  for 
the  just,  entirely  purified,  was  a  place  of  repose,  and  might  be  regarded  as  that  of  im¬ 
perfect  felicity.  Might  we  not  say  that  it  is  no  longer  permissible  to  doubt,  after  this 
expression  of  Jesus  Christ  :  This  day  thou  shalt  be  with  me  in  paradise  ;  for  it  is  a  matter 
of  faith  that  upon  that  day  Jesus  Christ  descended  into  Limbo,  and  he  declares  formally, 
that  he  and  the  robber  shall  be  reunited  on  that  very  day  in  the  same  place. 

(5)  We  have  already  said  that  it  was  very  probable  that  St.  Joseph  had  died  before 
the  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ  :  this  proves  at  least  that  he  was  dead  at  the  time  of  the 
Passion  ;  for  if  he  had  then  been  alive,  there  would  have  been  no  need  of  the  Saviour’s 
recommending  his  mother  to  another. 

The  virgin  mother  was  given  in  charge  to  the  virgin  disciple.  The  holy  Fathers  assign 
also  as  a  cause  for  this  favor  the  tender  and  generous  attachment  of  the  disciple,  which 
made  him  follow  his  master  to  the  place  of  execution.  He  fled  at  first,  like  the  other 
disciples,  but  he  was  the  only  one  who  returned.  With  God,  there  is  always  an  oppor¬ 
tunity  for  returning. 

(6)  A  difficulty  is  here  raised  on  the  ground  that  the  apostles,  who  had  quitted  all, 
had  no  longer  any  residence  to  call  their  own.  St.  John  had  still  his  mother  Salome, 
with  whom  he  doubtless  lodged,  and  to  her  house  he  would  naturally  conduct  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  to  whom  the  society  of  this  holy  woman  could  not  be  otherwise  than  agreeable. 

Interpreters  say  that  St.  John  here  represented  all  the  faithful,  and  that  in  adopting 
him  Mary  adopted  us  all.  It  is  from  this  that  Mary’s  panegyrists  have  taken  occasion 
to  say  that  the  Eternal  Father,  having  chosen  her  to  be  the  mother  of  his  only  Son, 
wished  that  she  should  be  also  the  mother  of  all  those  who,  by  the  character  of  divine 


y  -  - 


'/■nvfl 


yv 


\ 


i'j 


( a )  “  It  was  almost  the  sixth  hour  ;  and  there  was  darkness  (7 ) 
over  all  the  earth  (8)  until  the  ninth  hour,  when  the  sun  was  dark¬ 
ened  (9).  At  the  ninth  hour  Jesus  cried  out  with  a  loud  voice,  say¬ 
ing  :  Eloi,  Eloi,  lamma  sabacthani  ?  which  is,  being  interpreted  :  My 
God,  my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken  me  (10)  ?” 

This  desertion  was  undoubtedly  the  most  grievous  of  all  his  pains. 
But,  as  this  pain  was  wholly  interior,  it  could  not  be  seen  as  his 
bodily  sufferings  were  ;  and  it  was  to  make  it  known  to  us  that  he 
spoke  these  mournful  words.  The  expression  was  very  far  from 
being  then  understood  ;  so  much  so,  that  through  ignorance  of  the 
sacred  language  in  which  Jesus  spoke,  ( b )  “some  of  the  standers-by 
hearing,  said  :  Behold  he  calleth  Elias.” 

(c)  “  Afterwards,  Jesus  knowing  that  all  things  were  now  ac- 


( a )  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  44,  45  ;  St.  Mark, 

xv.  34. 

( b )  St.  Mark,  xv.  35. 


(c)  St.  John,  xix.  28-30  ;  St.  Matt., 
xxvii.  48,  49  ;  St.  Mark,  xv. 
36  ;  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  46. 


adoption,  became  his  own  children,  and  that  Mary’s  maternity  is  as  unlimited  as  the 
paternity  of  God. 

(7)  This  darkness  commenced  a  little  after  the  crucifixion,  and  cleared  away  shortly 
before  Jesus  expired.  It  was  the  mourning  of  nature  for  the  death  of  its  author. 

(8)  Several  interpreters  understand  by  the  whole  earth,  the  whole  country,  that  is  to 
say,  Judea.  The  most  common  opinion  is  that  the  darkness  was  actually  spread  over 
the  whole  earth.  The  scanty  information  gleaned  from  history  with  reference  to  this 
memorable  fact,  proves  that  it  extended  far  beyond  J udea.  This  was  not  palpable  dark¬ 
ness  such  as  fell  upon  Egypt  :  it  was  the  obscurity  of  a  clear  night  during  which  we 
can  see  the  heavens  and  the  stars,  for  they  were  then  visible,  as  is  reported  by  Phlegon, 
a  pagan  author,  who  was  then  living,  and  wrote  an  account  of  what  he  saw. 

(9)  Some  say  that  it  ceased  to  give  fight  because  of  the  subtraction  of  its  rays  ;  others 
assert  that  the  moon,  having  changed  her  natural  course,  was  placed  miraculously 
between  the  sun  and  the  earth.  The  second  cause  is  that  which  is  spoken  of  in  the 
letter  of  St.  Denis  the  Areopagite  to  St.  Polycarpe.  The  first  seems  to  have  been  neces¬ 
sary  in  order  that  the  darkness  should  be  universal,  as  we  are  given  to  understand  by  all 
the  chronicles  wherein  mention  is  made  of  this  prodigy.  This  point,  like  many  others, 
remains  undecided. 

(10)  These  words,  are  the  first  of  Psalm  xxi.  We  find  in  this  psalm  the  principal 
circumstances  of  the  passion  so  clearly  marked  out,  that  it  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  most 
striking  prophecies  thereof.  It  is  the  human  nature  in  Jesus  Christ  that  complains  to 
the  Eternal  Father  of  being  abandoned  by  him  without  defence  to  the  rage  of  his  enemies, 
and  left  a  prey  to  the  most  acute  sufferings  without  any  sensible  consolation.  This  com¬ 
plaint  was  accompanied  with  resignation,  and  was,  moreover,  respectful.  It  was  not 
therefore  a  cry  of  despair,  as  was  said  by  Calvin,  who  added  this  new  blasphemy  to  all 
those  which  Jesus  Christ  had  to  bear  from  the  Jews. 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


537 


CIIAP.  LXYIH.] 

complislied,”  with  the  exception  of  a  slight  circumstance  which  his 
infinite  penetration  singled  out  from  amidst  that  crowd  of  prophe¬ 
cies  which  regarded  his  person,  “  that  the  Scripture  might  be  ful¬ 
filled  (11)”  without  failing  in  a  single  point,  “said  :  I  thirst.  There 
was  a  vessel  set  there  full  of  vinegar.  Immediately  one  of  them 
running,  took  a  sponge,  filled  it  with  vinegar,  and  putting  it  upon 
a  reed  gave  him  to  drink.  And  the  others  said  :  Let  be,  let  us  see 
whether  Elias  will  come  to  deliver  him.”  He  who  presented  the 
drink  said  with  the  others  :  “  Stay,  let  us  see  if  Elias  come  to  take 
him  down.  Jesus,  when  he  had  taken  the  vinegar,”  and  having 
ascertained,  by  a  last  glance,  that  nothing  was  wanting  to  his  sacri¬ 
fice,  “  said  :  It  is  consummated.  And,  crying  with  a  loud  voice  (12), 
he  said  :  Father,  into  thy  hands  I  commend  my  (13)  spirit.  And 
saying  this,  bowing  his  head,  he  gave  up  the  ghost.” 

Here  ended  the  powei*  of  evil.  The  divine  power,  which  had 


(11)  What  was  then  accomplished  is  the  second  part  of  this  versicle  of  Psalm  lxviii: 
They  gave  me  gall  for  my  food,  and  in  my  thirst  they  gave  me  vinegar  to  drink.  The 
first  part  had  its  fulfillment  before  the  crucifixion,  when  they  offered  to  the  Saviour  wine 
mingled  with  gall. 

(12)  The  death  on  the  cross  was  one  which  drained  the  body  of  all  its  strength  and 
blood.  This  cry  was  therefore  supernatural  :  and  was  regarded  as  miraculous  by  those 
who  heard  it.  The  Centurion ....  seeing  that  crying  out  in  this  manner  he  had  given 
up  the  ghost,  said  :  indeed  this  man  was  the  Son  of  God.  Such  a  display  of  strength  in 
a  state  of  extreme  exhaustion  showed  well  that  Jesus  died  because  he  wished  it,  and  at 
the  moment  when  he  wished.  It  verified  that  expression  which  he  had  previously  made 
use  of  :  I  have  power  to  lay  it  (my  life)  down  ;  and  I  have  power  to  take  it  up  (St.  J ohn, 
x.  18).  The  expression  it  is  consummated  also  signified  the  same  thing,  for  Jesus  Christ 
meant  to  say  :  I  have  suffered  all  that  I  had  to  suffer,  and  now  I  have  only  to  die.  To 
speak  thus,  and  to  die  immediately  after,  was  evidently  dying  when  he  wished  to  die. 

(13)  All  Christians  should  die  with  this  expression  on  their  lips,  although  when 
uttered  by  them  it  has  a  different  meaning  from  that  which  it  had  when  coming  from  the 
lips  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  Man-God  recommended  his  soul  to  his  Father  as  a  deposit 
confided  to  the  person  most  beloved,  until  the  moment  when  it  is  proper  to  resume  it. 
Sinful  man  is  always  uncertain  of  his  salvation,  and  he  recommends  his  soul  to  the  mercy 
of  God,  in  order  that  he  may  not  treat  him  according  to  the  rigor  of  his  justice. 

We  recommend  the  soul,  and  not  the  body  ;  because  the  destiny  of  the  body  depends 
upon  that  of  the  soul.  If  the  soul  be  saved,  so  also  is  the  body  ;  and  if  the  soul  be  lost, 
the  body  is  lost  with  it. 

The  Church  has  placed  the  In  manus  at  the  end  of  the  evening  office.  The  reason  is 
because  the  sleep  which  we  are  going  to  take  is  the  image  of  death — and  that  it  has 
occurred  more  than  once  that  the  figure  was  changed  into  reality. 


Pi  V  ^  i 

pK 


& 


a 


H 


a. 


kept  itself  concealed  until  the  consummation  of  the  sacrifice,  burst 
forth  on  the  instant,  and  displayed  the  glory  of  the  Man-God  amid 
all  the  horrors  of  extreme  punishment,  and  from  out  the  shades  of 
death.  He  had  scarcely  expired,  (a)  “and  behold  the  veil  of  the 
temple  was  rent  in  two  from  the  top  even  to  the  bottom  ;  the  earth 
quaked  ;  the  rocks  were  rent,  and  the  graves  were  opened.  ’  This 
latter  prodigy  was  preparatory  to  another  which  did  not  occur  until 
the  third  day  after.  “  Many  bodies  of  the  saints  that  had  slept 
arose  (14),  and  coming  out  of  the  tombs  after  his  resurrection,  came 
into  the  holy  city,  and  appeared  to  many.” 

Thus  did  insensible  creatures  testify  sensibility  at  the  death  of 
their  author.  Their  example,  if  we  may  so  speak,  produced  its 
effect.  Would  to  God  that,  in  general,  it  had  been  lasting  !  But  it 
did  happen  that — in  this  crisis  of  all  nature  and  this  shock  of  the 
entire  universe — men  appeared  to  blush  at  being  harder  than  the 
stones  and  rocks.  First  of  all,  (b)  “  The  centurion  who  stood  over 
against  him,  seeing  what  was  done,  that  crying  out  in  this  manner 
he  had  given  up  the  ghost,  glorified  God,  saying  :  Indeed  this  was 
a  just  man  ;  indeed  he  was  the  Son  of  God.  They  that  were  with 
him  watching  Jesus,  having  seen  the  earthquake  and  the  things  that 
were  done,  were  sore  afraid,  saying  :  Indeed,  this  was  the  Son  of 
God  (15).  And  all  the  multitude  of  them  that  were  come  together 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  51-53. 

(b)  St.  Mark,  xv.  39  ;  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  47,  48  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  54. 

(14)  It  is  not  decided  whether  these  saints  arose  before  Jesus  Christ  did,  or  whether 
they  arose  so  as  never  to  die  again.  We  must  hold  as  certain  that,  in  the  latter  case, 
their  resurrection  could  only  have  taken  place  after  that  of  the  Saviour,  who  is  called  in 
Scripture  the  first-fruits  of  them,  that  sleep  (1  Cor.  xv.),  and  the  first-born  of  the  dead 
(Colos.  i.  Apoc.  i.).  The  most  common  opinion  is  that  they  arose  after  the  resurrection 
of  Jesus  Christ,  never  to  die  again,  and  that  they  followed  him  to  heaven  on  the  day  of 
his  ascension.  Thus  they  were  the  pledge,  and,  as  it  were,  the  figure  of  the  second 
ascension,  which  shall  take  place  at  the  end  of  ages,  when,  after  having  judged  the  living 
and  the  dead,  Jesus  Christ  shall  ascend  again  into  heaven,  and  shall  conduct  thither  all 
the  elect,  in  body  and  soul,  that  they  may  reign  there  eternally  with  him. 

(15)  He  was  reproached  for  having  stated  falsely  that  he  was  the  Son  of  God,  because 
he  had  allowed  himself  to  be  fastened  to  the  cross,  and  that  he  could  not  descend  there¬ 
from.  He  is  still  fastened  to  the  cross,  and  dies  thereon,  yet  we  have  a  public  announce¬ 
ment  made  that  indeed  this  was  the  Son  of  God.  Already  are  the  blasphemies  of  his 
enemies  conveited  into  a  confession  of  his  Divinity. 


mm 


& 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


539 


CHAP.  LXVHI.] 


to  that  sight,  and  saw  the  things  that  were  done,  returned  striking 
their  breasts.” 

Others,  who  were  still  more  afflicted,  but  without  remorse,  could 
not  tear  themselves  away  from  so  dear  an  object,  (a)  “All  his 
acquaintance,  and  many  women  stood  afar  off  looking  on  and  be¬ 
holding  these  things.  Among  whom  were  Mary  Magdalen,  Mary  (1 6) 
the  mother  of  James  the  less  and  of  Joseph,  and  Salome,  the  mother 
of  the  sons  of  Zebedee,  who  also  when  he  was  in  Galilee  followed 
him  and  ministered  to  him.  Many  other  women  that  came  up  with 
him  to  Jerusalem”  were  also  present. 

The  Jews,  in  all  that  they  had  attempted  against  the  Saviour,  had 
only  been  enabled  ( b )  “  to  do  what  thy  hand  and  thy  counsel  decreed 
to  be  done.”  They  could  never  make  him  suffer  any  thing  else  but 
what  God  had  resolved  that  he  should  suffer  ;  and  because  God  did 
not  wish  that  he  should  suffer  another  kind  of  punishment  which 
they  further  destined  for  him,  the  idea  did  not  strike  them  until 
after  his  death.  It  was  still  zeal  for  the  law  which  appeared  to  ani¬ 
mate  them  upon  this  occasion.  The  law  ordained  (g)  that  the  bodies 
of  those  who  had  been  fastened  to  a  gibbet,  should  be  taken  thence 
before  the  close  of  day.  They  must  needs  hurry,  because  the  time 
for  doing  such  a  deed  was  very  soon  to  expire.  Then,  ( d )  “  because 
it  was  the  parasceve”  (the  solemnity  of  which  commenced  at  sunset) 
“  that  the  bodies  might  not  remain  upon  the  cross  on  the  Sabbath- 
day  (for  that  was  a  great  Sabbath-day)  the  Jews  besought  Pilate 
that  their  legs  might  be  broken,  and  that  they  might  be  taken 
away.  The  soldiers  therefore  came,  and  they  broke  the  legs  of  the 


(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  49  ;  St.  Matt, 
xxvii.  55,  56  ;  St.  Mark,  xv. 
40,  41. 


( b )  Acts,  iv.  28. 

(c)  Deuteronomy,  xxi.  23. 

(d)  St.  John,  xix.  Sl-ST. 


(16)  The  same  who  has  just  been  called  Mary,  the  wife  of  Cleophas,  and  sister  to  the 
Blessed  Virgin.  We  have  followed  the  recital  of  St.  John,  who  places  her  with  Mary 
Magdalen  at  the  foot  of  the  cross.  Others  of  the  evangelists  represent  them  as  keeping 
at  a  distance.  There  is  yet  no  contradiction  in  this.  St.  John  informs  us  where  they 
were  stationed  immediately  after  Jesus  had  been  fastened  to  the  cross.  St.  Matthew, 
St.  Mark,  and  St.  Luke  tell  us  where  they  stood  after  Jesus  had  expired.  In  the  space 
of  three  hours  it  might  easily  have  happened  that  they  were  obliged  to  change  their 
position. 


540 


TTIE  HISTOEY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  H. 

first,  and  of  the  other  that  was  crucified  with  him.  When  they* 
came  to  Jesus,  and  saw  that  he  was  already  dead,  they  did  not 
break  his  legs,  but  one  of  the  soldiers  opened  his  side  with  a  spear, 
and  immediately  there  came  out  blood  and  water  (17).  And  he 
that  saw  it,  gave  testimony,  and  his  testimony  is  true.  And  he 
knoweth  that  he  saith  true,  that  you  also  may  believe.  For  these 
things  were  done  that  the  Scripture  might  be  fulfilled  :  You  shall 
not  break  a  bone  of  him.  Again,  another  Scripture  saith  :  They 
shall  look  on  him  whom  they  pierced  (IB).” 

Meantime,  it  was  necessary  to  think  of  the  interment  of  the 
Saviour,  and  it  was  thought  of  by  two  men,  who  rendered  to 
him  this  last  duty  with  all  the  zeal  inspired  by  an  ardent  affection 
for  his  person,  and  with  a  splendor  worthy  of  their  opulence.  God 
who  began  to  glorify  the  flesh  of  his  Son,  had  inspired  them  with 
the  design,  and  gave  them  courage  to  carry  it  into  execution. 
About  an  hour  had  elapsed  after  Jesus  had  expired,  (a)  “  and  when 
it  was  evening,  there  came  a  certain  rich  man  of  Arimathea,  named 
Joseph.  \He  was ]  a  noble  counsellor,  a  good  and  a  just  man,  who 
also  himself  was  a  disciple  of  Jesus,  but  secretly  (19),  for  fear  of  the 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  57  ;  St.  Mark,  xv.  43-46  ;  St.  Luke,  xxiii.  50-52  ;  St.  John, 

xix.  38-40. 


(17)  Natural  and  elementary  water.  If  it  he  said  that  such  could  not  take  place 
without  a  miracle,  we  acknowledge  the  truth  of  the  assertion.  If  it  be  said  that  this 
was  not  natural  and  elementary  water,  such  an  assertion  would  be  opposed  to  all  tradi¬ 
tion,  and  might  also  be  regarded  as  erroneous. 

According  to  the  explanation  of  the  Holy  Fathers,  baptism  was  signified  by  the  water, 
and  the  Eucharist  by  the  blood.  This  is  the  reason  why  they  add  that  the  Church  has 
come  forth  from  the  side  of  Jesus  Christ  when  dead,  as  Eve  had  originated  from  the  side 
of  Adam  when  asleep,  because  the  faithful  who  compose  the  body  of  the  church  are 
formed  by  baptism  and  nourished  by  the  Eucharist  ;  and  because  baptism  and  the  Eu¬ 
charist  are  the  two  principal  sacraments,  and  those  to  which  all  the  others  have  refer 
ence.  '  This  has  also  made  the  Holy  Fathers  say  that  all  the  sacraments  have  proceeded 
from  the  side  of  Jesus  Christ. 

(18)  They  looked  upon  him  in  the  very  place  where  they  had  pierced  him.  They 
shall  see  him  again,  but  with  what  inexpressible  terror  !  they  shall  look  upon  him,  but 
it  shall  be  upon  the  last  day  when  he  shall  present  to  his  murderers  the  scars  of  his 
wounds  in  testimony  of  their  Deicide.  It  is  St.  John  who  in  the  Apocalypse,  refers  to 
this  period,  the  perfect  accomplishment  of  this  prophecy  :  Behold,  he  cometh  with  the 
clouds,  and  every  eye  shall  see  him,  and  they  also  that  pierced  him  (Apoc.  i.). 

(19)  There  are  therefore  circumstances  wherein  one  may  be  justified  in  keeping  his 


CHAP.  LX vm.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  541 

Jews.  The  same  liad  not  consented  to  their  counsel  and  doings,  who 
also  himself  looked  for  the  kingdom  of  God.  This  man  came  and 
went  in  boldly  to  Pilate,  and  begged  the  body  of  Jesus.  But  Pilate 
wondered  that  he  should  be  already  dead,  and  sending  for  the  cen¬ 
turion,  he  asked  him  if  he  were  already  dead.  When  he  had  under¬ 
stood  it  of  the  centurion,  he  gave  the  body  to  Joseph,  [ who ]  came 
and  took  away  the  body.  And  Nicodemus  also  came — he  who  at 
first  came  to  Jesus  by  night,  bringing  a  mixture  of  myrrh  and 
aloes  (20),  about  an  hundred  pound  weight.  Joseph  buying  fine 
linen  (21),  and  taking  Jesus  down,  wrapped  him  up  in  the  fine 
linen  ; — they  bound  the  body  in  linen  cloths  with  the  spices,  as  the 
manner  of  the  Jews  is  to  bury.” 

(a)  “  Now  there  was  in  the  place  where  he  was  crucified,  a 
garden  ;  and  in  the  garden  a  new  sepulchre,  wherein  no  man  yet 
had  been  laid.  There  therefore,  because  of  the  parasceve  of  the 
Jews,  because  the  sepulchre  was  nigh  at  hand  (22)  he  laid  the  body 
in  his  own  new  monument  which  he  had  hewed  out  in  a  rock  ;  and 
he  rolled  a  great  stone  to  the  door  of  the  monument,  and  went  his 
way.  It  was  the  day  of  the  parasceve,  and  the  Sabbath  drew  on. 

(a)  St.  John,  xix.  41,  42  ;  St.  Mark,  xv.  46  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  60,  61  ;  St.  Luke, 

xxiii.  54-56. 


religion  secret  without  ceasing  to  be  a  good  and  a  just  man.  Since  Scripture  thus  denom¬ 
inates  Joseph  of  Arimathea,  this  is  a  truth  which  we  are  not  permitted  to  doubt,  hut  it 
is  very  easy  to  make  an  abuse  of  it. 

(20)  Whilst  the  declared  disciples  fly  and  conceal  themselves,  the  concealed  appear 
and  declare  themselves.  The  first  is  a  proof  of  human  infirmity  ;  the  second  displays 
the  virtue  of  the  cross. 

.  (21)  The  sheet  was  also  of  linen.  Hence  arose  the  custom,  at  the  sacrifice  of  the 
Mass,  to  lay  the  body  of  Jesus  Christ  upon  linen,  to  the  exclusion  of  every  other  texture. 
St.  Jerome  made  this  remark  nearly  1400  years  ago. 

(22)  Every  occurrence  which  appears  here  accidental,  is  arranged  by  Providence  ;  for 
it  was  requisite  that  the  sepulchre  should  be  near  to  Calvary,  in  order  to  give  time  for 
hearing  thither  the  body  of  Jesus,  and  inclosing  it  therein,  before  the  repose  of  the  Sab¬ 
bath  commenced.  It  was  also  proper  that  this  sepulchre  should  be  entirely  new,  and 
that  no  person  should  have  been  hitherto  interred  there,  in  order  that  it  might  imitate  in 
its  way  the  purity  of  Mary,  and  that  no  question  might  ever  be  mooted  as  to  whether 
the  man  who  arose  from  the  dead  was  not  some  other  person  besides  Jesus.  It  was 
also  necessary  that  it  should  be  hewn  out  of  a  rock,  lest  any  suspicion  should  arise  of  its 
having  been  broken  open,  and  the  body  carried  secretly  away. 


542  THE  HISTOEY  OE  THE  LIEE  [pAET  H. 

There  were  there  Mary  Magdalen  and  the  other  Mary  that  were 
come  with  Jesus  from  Galilee,  sitting  over  against  the  sepulchre. 
They  saw  the  sepulchre,  and  how  his  body  was  laid,”  for  it  was  with 
this  design  that  they  “  were  following  after”  the  funeral  procession. 
“  And,  returning,  they  prepared  spices  and  ointments  ;  and  on  the 
Sabbath-day  they  rested,  according  to  the  commandment  (23).” 

The  enemies  of  Jesus  were  not  so  scrupulous.  These  rigid  ob¬ 
servers  of  rest  on  the  holy  day — who  had  so  often  impeached  the 
Saviour  with  the  crime  of  having  violated  it  by  operating  miracu¬ 
lous  cures — now  violated  it  in  their  turn  with  the  design  of  burying 
his  religion  and  its  author  in  the  same  tomb.  Jesus,  as  we  have 
seen,  had  often  foretold  that  he  would  rise  again  the  third  day  after 
his  death.  His  disciples  had  forgotten  it  ;  but  not  so  his  persecu¬ 
tors.  Doubtless  they  had  no  idea  that  the  prophecy  would 
be  accomplished  ;  therefore  they  could  scarcely  have  any  other 
intention  than  to  attest  the  non-accomplishment,  in  order  to  demon¬ 
strate  thereby  to  the  whole  universe  that  Jesus  was  a  false  prophet  : 
for,  the  apprehension  of  any  attempt  on  the  part  of  his  disciples  had 
too  little  foundation  to  be  any  thing  else  than  a  pretext.  Whatever 
might  have  been  their  motive,  (a)  “  The  next  day,  which  followed 
the  day  of  the  preparation,  the  chief  priests  and  the  Pharisees  came 
together  to  Pilate,  saying:  Sir,  we  have  remembered  that  that 
seducer  (24)  said,  while  he  was  yet  alive  :  After  three  days  I  will 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxvii.  62-66. 


(23)  The  bodies  were  usually  embalmed  by  women.  These  women  could  not  effect 
it.  Circumstances  bad  obliged  them  to  relinquish  the  care  to  men.  They  hoped  indeed 
to  return  to  it,  and  to  finish  perfectly  an  operation  which  they  deemed  to  have  been 
rather  precipitately  done.  Jesus  Christ  was  well  pleased  with  their  zeal,  hut  he  did 
not  permit  them  to  proceed  with  the  execution  of  their  project. 

(24)  Jesus  Christ  has  suffered  himself,  said  St.  Augustin,  to  be  called  a  seducer, 
for  the  consolation  of  his  servants,  whenever  it  occurs  that  the  same  denomination  is 
affixed  to  them.  The  name  is  also  given  to  real  seducers  ;  and  in  all  disputes  concerning 
faith,  the  orthodox  and  the  heretic  mutually  assign  the  epithet  to  each  other.  It  is  truth 
upon  one  side,  and  calumny  upon  the  other.  Nor  is  it  always  easy  for  the  people  to 
discriminate  between  both  ;  and  yet  it  is  of  paramount  importance  to  them  not  to 
be  mistaken  in  the  matter.  To  whom,  then,  shall  the  people  have  recourse  ?  To  the 
Church.  Let  the  people  consult  the  Church,  and  let  them  rest  assured  that  he  whom 
the  Church  recognizes  as  orthodox  is  orthodox,  no  matter  who  may  style  him  a 


OF  OUli  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


543 


CHAP.  L  XVIII.  J 

rise  again.  Command  tlierefore  the  sepulchre  to  be  guarded  until 
the  third  day  inclusively,  lest  his  disciples  come,  and  steal  him  away, 
and  say  to  the  people  :  He  is  risen  from  the  dead  ;  so  the  last  error 
shall  be  worse  than  the  first.  Pilate  said  to  them  :  You  have  a 
guard  ;  go,  guard  it  as  you  know  (25).  They  departing  made  the 
sepulchre  sure,  sealing  the  stone  and  setting  guards.” 

All  these  measures  were  necessary  to  render  incontestible  the 
miracle  of  the  resurrection,  and  never  did  human  passions  better 
second  the  designs  of  Divine  Providence.  Nevertheless,  him  whom 
they  so  carefully  guarded  was  ( a )  “  free  amongst  the  dead,  being 
put  to  death  indeed  in  the  flesh,  but  enlivened  in  the  spirit  and 
he  whom  the  Jews  regarded  as  their  captive,  was  actually  breaking 
the  fetters  of  a  whole  people.  ( b )  “  Descended  into  the  lower  parts 
of  the  earth,  he  preached  to  those  spirits  that  were  in  prison,”  and 
the  Gospel  penetrated  with  him  into  those  gloomy  regions.  It  is 
thought  that  his  holy  soul  spent  there  all  the  time  that  it  was  sepa¬ 
rated  from  his  sacred  body.  It  was  occupied  there  in  unfolding  to 
the  just  therein  detained,  the  great  mystery  of  the  redemption  which 
had  just  been  wrought,  and  announcing  to  them  their  deliverance 
and  their  approaching  entry  into  heaven  which  was  now  at  last  to 
be  thrown  open,  after  having  been  so  long  closed  against  human 
nature.  Of  this  they  had  already  a  foretaste  in  the  joy  which  his 
presence  gave  them.  It  is  even  held,  and  this  opinion  is  the  most 
common  and  the  best  authorized,  that  he  communicated  to  them 
even  then  the  clear  vision  of  God,  which  constitutes  the  essential 
felicity  of  paradise,  and  that  it  was  also  in  this  sense  that  he  prom¬ 
ised  to  the  good  thief  that  on  that  very  day  he  should  be  with  him 
in  paradise. 


(a)  Psalm  lxxxvii.  5  ;  1  Peter,  iii.  18. 


(5)  Ephes.,  iv.  9  1  Peter,  iii.  19. 


seducer  ;  and  that  he  whom  the  Church  treats  as  a  seducer  is  a  seducer,  even  if  he  were 
regarded  as  orthodox  by  the  rest  of  the  world. 

(25)  They  had  a  guard  at  their  command,  for  the  purpose  of  guarding  the  temple. 
Pilate’s  answer  naturally  leads  us  to  believe  that  this  is  the  guard  which  he  permits  them 
to  make  use  of.  What  may  have  rendered  his  permission  necessary  is,  that  this  guard 
was  not  to  be  employed  beyond  the  precincts  of  the  temple  without  the  consent  of  the 
governor. 


m. 


\ 


EV- 


CHAPTER  LXIX. 

THE  RESURRECTION. - THE  ANGEL  OF  THE  LORD. - THE  SOLDIERS  FRIGHTENED. - THE 

STONE  RAISED. - JOURNEY  OF  THE  WOMEN. - RACE  OF  PETER  AND  OF  JOHN. _ _ 

APPARITION  TO  MAGDALEN. - APPARITION  TO  THE  OTHER  WOMEN. - RETURN  OF 

THE  GUARDS  TO  JERUSALEM,  AND  THEIR  DEPOSITION. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  that  great  event  which  the  Saviour’s 
enemies  had  so  dreaded,  and  for  which  his  disciples  scarcely  dared 
to  hope.  His  humiliations  ended  with  his  mortal  life.  His  glory, 
which  shall  never  end,  commences  with  the  immortal  life  which  he 
resumes  on  the  third  day  after  his  death  and  burial.  God  has  not 
chosen  to  reveal  to  us  the  precise  moment  of  its  occurrence,  so  that 
we  can  only  form  conjectures  on  this  point.  It  is  commonly  thought 
that  the  resurrection  took  place  before  sunrise,  but  not  till  after  the 
dawn.  We  have  already  remarked  that  Jesus  had  declared  in 
formal  terms  that  he  should  be  three  days  and  three  nights  in  the 
bowels  of  the  earth.  In  order  that  the  prophecy  might  be  literally 
accomplished,  it  was  necessary  that  he  should  still  be  there  on  the 
third  day  until  there  was  already  light  upon  the  earth  to  enable  a 
person  to  say  positively — it  is  day.  As  one  instant  was  sufficient  for 
this,  so  the  appearance  of  the  light  was  quite  enough.  It  was  there¬ 
fore  in  the  interval  between  dawn  and  sunrise  that  Jesus  Christ 
arose  by  his  own  power,  leaving  on  the  floor  of  his  sepulchre  the 
linen  cloths  in  which  he  had  been  wrapped,  so  that  they  might  be 
as  witnesses  both  of  his  death  and  his  resurrection.  He  arose  with¬ 
out  noise  and  without  any  visible  splendor,  and  went  forth  from  the 
tomb  without  hurt  or  fracture,  even  as  he  had  come  from  the  womb 
of  his  blessed  mother.  The  stone  was  not  displaced,  but  penetrated 
by  the  subtility  of  his  glorified  body.  The  guards  did  not  perceive 
it,  and  the  terror  in  which  they  are  represented  at  the  sight  of  the 
Man-God  emerging  from  the  tomb  is  merely  the  imagination  of 
painters.  That  which  caused  their  fear  was  the  earthquake  and  the 
apparition  of  the  angel,  as  we  are  now  about  to  see  in  the  recital  of 
what  occurred  immediately  after  the  Saviour’s  resurrection. 


To  a  »  ® 


ff 

D  V 


5* 


CHAP.  LXIX.] 

(a)  “  When  the  Sabbath  was  past”  (that  is  to  say  after  sunset  on 
the  Sabbath  day),  “  Mary  Magdalen,  and  Mary  the  mother  of  James, 
and  Salome,  bought  sweet  spices,  that  coming,  they  might  anoint 
Jesus.”  They  had  prepared  them  on  the  previous  evening  ;  but, 
obliged  by  the  repose  of  the  holy  day  to  interrupt  their  prepara¬ 
tions,  they  availed  themselves,  in  order  to  complete  their  work,  of  the 
first  moment  when  it  was  permitted  them  so  to  do.  It  was  neces¬ 
sary,  however,  before  they  set  out  on  their  journey,  to  tarry  until 
the  night  was  past  ;  but  yet  they  did  not  wait  for  the  clear  light  of 
day.  (£)  “  The  first  day  of  the  week,  when  it  was  yet  dark,  they 
came  very  early  in  the  morning,  bringing  the  spices  which  they  had 
prepared,  to  the  sepulchre,  the  sun  being  now  risen.”  They  were 
not  aware  that  the  Jews  had  set  guards  there  :  wherefore,  fancying 
that  they  had  no  other  obstacle  to  meet,  “  they  said  one  to  another  : 
Who  shall  roll  us  back  the  stone  from  the  door  of  the  sepulchre  ? 
For  it  was  very  great.”  They  were  thus  expressing  their  embarrass¬ 
ment,  when  the  Lord  removed  in  a  moment  every  obstacle,  (c)  “  Be¬ 
hold  there  was  a  great  earthquake.  For  an  angel  of  the  Lord 
descended  from  heaven,  and  coming,  rolled  back  the  stone,  and  sat 
upon  it.  His  countenance  was  as  lightning,  and  his  raiment  as  snow. 
For  fear  of  him,  the  guards  were  struck  with  terror  and  became  as 
dead  men.”  But  they  speedily  recovered  the  use  of  their  senses,  and 
fled  with  all  haste.  Meantime,  ( d )  “  the  women  came  and  found 
the  stone  rolled  back  from  the  sepulchre.”  The  angel — the  sight  of 
whom  would  have  terrified  them — being  not  yet  visible  to  their 
eyes,  nothing  appeared  any  longer  to  hinder  the  execution  of  their 
pious  designs.  But,  “  going  in,  they  found  not  the  body  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  (1).” 


(а)  St.  Matt.,  xxviii.  1  ;  St.  Mark,  xvi.  1. 

(б)  St.  Mark,  xvi.  2  ;  St.  John,  xx.  1  ;  St. 

Luke,  xxiv.  1. 


(c)  St.  Matthew,  xxviii.  2-4. 

(d)  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  2,  3. 


(1)  The  visit  of  Magdalen  and  the  holy  women  to  the  sepulchre,  and  the  coming 
of  the  two  disciples;  the  apparitions  of  the  angels,  and  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  as  well  to 
Magdalen  as  to  the  holy  women,  are  positive  facts,  i  tnce  they  are  reported  by  the  sacred 
writers  ;  but  it  is  extremely  difficult  to  arrange  them  all  in  order,  and  we  think  we  may 
say,  that  not  one  of  all  the  systems  imagined  by  the  interpreters  is  free  from  some  objec¬ 
tion.  Neither  can  we  assert  that  that  which  we  have  followed  is  preferable  to  others  : 
it  is  arbitrary  like  all  the  others,  but  it  was  necessary  for  us  to  adopt  some  system. 

35 


Qi?a<300i3a 


4s 


M 


"% 


546 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIEE 


[part  n. 


We  may  infer  that  they  then  withdrew,  and  it  is  not  unlikely 
that,  supposing  the  body  to  have  been  removed  to  some  neighbor¬ 
ing  place,  they  may  have  dispersed  in  order  to  seek  it.  Magdalen, 
more  impatient  than  the  others,  proceeded  immediately  in  quest  of 
those  whom  she  imagined  could  give  her  information  concerning  it. 
(a)  “  She  ran,  therefore,  and  cometh  to  Simon  Peter,  and  to  the 
other  disciple  whom  Jesus  loved,  and  saith  to  them  :  They  have 
taken  away  the  Lord  out  of  the  sepulchre,  and  we  know  not  where 
they  have  laid  him.  Peter,  therefore,  went  out,  and  that  other  dis¬ 
ciple,  and  they  came  to  the  sepulchre  (2).  They  both  did  run 
together,  and  that  other  disciple  out-ran  Peter,  and  came  first  to 
the  sepulchre,  and  when  he  stooped  down,  he  saw  the  linen  cloths 
lying  ;  but  yet  he  went  not  in.  Then  cometh  Simon  Peter,  follow¬ 
ing  him,  and  went  into  the  sepulchre,  and  saw  the  linen  cloths  lying, 
and  the  napkin,  that  had  been  about  his  head,  not  lying  with  the 
linen  cloths,  but  apart  wrapped  up  into  one  place.  Then  that  other 
disciple  also  went  in,  who  came  first  to  the  sepulchre  ;  and  he  saw 
and  believed  ;  for  as  yet  they  knew  not  the  Scripture,  that  he  must 
rise  again  from  the  dead  (3).  So  the  disciples  went  away  again  to 
their  home.  Peter,”  who  was  not  yet  thoroughly  persuaded,  “  went 
away,  wondering  in  himself  at  that  which  was  come  to  pass.” 

(a)  St.  John,  xx.  2-10  ;  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  12. 

(2)  Peter  demeans  himself  as  if  he  had  not  sinned  :  he  does  so  because  he  is  penitent, 
and  that  he  knows  his  Master’s  goodness  too  well  to  doubt  that  the  penitent  sinner  holds 
the  same  place  in  his  heart  as  if  he  had  never  sinned.  Experience  fully  proved  that  he 
was  not  mistaken  in  this.  He  was  the  first  of  the  apostles  to  whom  Jesus  Christ  appeared, 
and  his  emotions  of  joy  and  grief  on  seeing  this  prodigy  of  mercy  are  difficult  to  be 
imagined,  and  impossible  to  be  described. 

(3)  This  expression,  as  yet  they  knew  not  the  Scripture,  refers  to  the  two  disciples, 
but  with  some  difference.  With  regard  to  St.  Peter,  who  did  not  as  yet  believe,  it  sig¬ 
nifies  that  because  he  did  not  understand  what  was  written  concerning  the  resurrection 
of  Jesus  Christ,  he  returned  thence  without  believing  it.  With  regard  to  St.  John  who 
then  commenced  to  believe,  this  expression  means — that  inasmuch  as  he  did  not  com¬ 
prehend  what  was  written  of  the  resurrection,  he  then  believed  it  only  because  he  found 
the  tomb  open,  the  linen  without  the  body,  and  the  shroud  folded  back.  Now,  if  he 
had  understood  what  is  written,  he  would  have  believed  in  the  resurrection  because  it 
was  foretold,  and  solely  on  the  testimony  of  God,  which  would  have  produced  a  much 
more  perfect  faith.  For  believing  solely  on  account  of  the  inferences  drawn  from  what 
he  saw,  was  believing  merely  on  the  testimony  of  reason,  which  gave  him  no  other  ad¬ 
vantage  over  St.  Peter  than  that  of  having  a  clearer  and  more  penetrating  mind. 


(S 


Magdalen,  detained  by  her  love,  could  not  bring  herself  to  follow 
them,  “  but  stood  without  at  the  sepulchre,  weeping.  Now  as  she 
was  weeping,  she  stooped  down,  and  looked  into  the  sepulchre,  and 
she  saw  two  angels  in  white,  sitting,  one  at  the  head  and  one  at  the 
feet,  where  the  body  of  Jesus  had  been  laid.  They  say  to  her: 
Woman,  why  weepest  thou  ?  She  saith  to  them  :  Because  they  have 
taken  away  my  Lord,  and  I  know  not  where  they  have  laid  him. 
When  she  had  said  these  words  she  turned  herself  back,  and  saw 
Jesus  standing,  and  she  knew  not  that  it  was  Jesus  (4).  He  saith 
to  her  :  W oman,  why  weepest  thou  ?  whom  seekest  thou  ?  She, 
thinking  that  it  was  the  gardener,  saith  to  him  :  Sir,  if  thou  hast 
taken  him  away,  tell  me  where  thou  hast  laid  him,  and  I  will  take 
him  away.  Jesus  saith  to  her  :  Mary.  She  turning,  saith  to  him  : 
Babboni,  that  is  to  say,  Master.”  She  instantly  cast  herself  at  his 
feet,  for  the  purpose  of  embracing  them  ;  but  the  sojourn  which  he 
was  to  make  on  earth  would  give  her  time  and  opportunity  enough 
for  this,  and  he  had  other  matters  to  think  of  at  that  moment.  For 
this  reason  “  Jesus  saith  to  her  :  Do  not  touch  me,  for  I  have  not 
yet  ascended  to  my  Father  (5),  but  go  to  my  brethren  (6),  and  say 
to  them  :  I  ascend  to  my  Father  and  to  your  Father,  to  my  God 
and  your  God  (7).” 


(4)  Perhaps  because  she  had  not  looked  at  his  countenance,  prepossessed  as  she  was 
with  the  idea  that  he  could  only  be  the  gardener.  It  might  be — and  this  is  the  common 
opinion — that  she  saw  a  face  different  from  that  of  the  Saviour,  not  from  any  real  change 
which  had  occurred  in  the  features  of  his  countenance,  but  because  the  image  which 
was  before  Magdalen’s  eyes  did  not  represent  him  such  as  he  was. 

(5)  This  passage  has  always  been  regarded  as  extremely  difficult.  The  explanation 
thereof  which  is  inserted  in  the  text  appeared  the  most  natural  and  satisfactory. 

(6)  He  calls  them  his  brethren,  in  order  to  dissipate  any  apprehension  they  might 
have  that  their  flight,  at  the  time  of  his  passion,  had  diminished  his  affection  for  them. 
St.  Paul  insinuates  another  reason,  viz.  :  it  was  to  the  end  that  they  might  know  that, 
far  from  disowning  them  when  he  had  attained  the  glorified  state  which  followed  his 
resurrection,  they  were  only  the  dearer  and  more  closely  united  to  him  on  that  account. 

(7)  He  commissions  her  to  announce  not  only  his  resurrection  to  his  disciples,  but  he 
wishes  her  to  inform  them  further,  that  he  has  arisen  to  die  no  more  ;  that  he  has  only 
a  very  short  time  to  remain  on  earth  ;  that,  if  he  quits  them  in  order  to  return  to  G  od, 
he  does  not  leave  them  forever,  since  by  styling  them  his  brethren,  and  designating  as 
their  God  and  their  Father  him  whom  he  calls  his  Father  and  his  God,  he  gives  them 
to  understand  that  he  merely  goes  before  them  into  the  paternal  mansion  where  they 
shall  one  day  find  themselves  reunited  to  him. 


3 


1 

IK  1 

1% if 

a  a  a  a  o  a 

rm r — j  *  wi]  — 1 — 


<b1 


l/r 


2 


(a)  “  [Thus]  Jesus  rising  early  the  first  day  of  the  week,  appeared 
first  to  Mary  Magdalen,  out  of  whom  he  had  cast  seven  devils.”  He 
wished,  by  this  distinction,  to  recompense  the  fervor  and  the  con¬ 
stancy  of  her  love.  The  zeal  of  the  other  women  had  also  its 
reward,  Having  returned  to  the  sepulchre  (for  we  are  to  suppose 
that  they  went  there  twice),  and  not  finding  him  whom  they  so 
eagerly  sought,  (ô)  “  as  they  were  astonished  in  their  minds  at  this, 
behold  two  men  stood  by  them  in  shining  apparel.  And  as  they 
were  afraid,  and  bowed  down  their  countenance  towards  the  ground, 
the  angel,  answering,  said  to  the  women  :  Fear  not  you  (8)  ;  for  I 
know  that  you  seek  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  who  was  crucified.  Why 
seek  you  the  living  with  the  dead  ?  He  is  not  here,  for  he  is  risen, 
as  is  said.  Remember  how  he  spoke  unto  you  when  he  was  yet  in 
Galilee,  saying  :  The  Son  of  man  must  be  delivered  into  the  hands 
of  sinful  men,  and  be  crucified,  and  the  third  day  rise  again.  Come 
and  see  the  place  where  the  Lord  was  laid.  Go  quickly,  tell  ye  his 
disciples  and' Peter  that  he  is  risen  (9).  Behold,  he  will  go  before 
you  into  Galilee.  There  you  shall  see  him  (10),  as  he  told  you. 
Lo,  I  have  foretold  it  to  you.  They  [then]  remembered  his  [Jesus'] 
words.” 

(c)  “  They  went  out  quickly  from  the  sepulchre  with  fear  and 
great  joy,  running  to  tell  his  disciples.  They  said  nothing,”  on  the 
way,  “  to  any  man  ;  for  they  were  afraid.”  But  their  fear  was 
quickly  dispelled,  and  their  joy  raised  to  its  highest  pitch.  Whilst 

(a)  St.  Mark,  xvi.  9. 

( b )  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  4-8  ;  St.  Matthew,  xxviii.  5-7  ;  St.  Mark,  xvi.  7. 

(c)  St.  Matthew,  xxviii.  8  ;  St.  Mark,  xvi.  8. 


(8)  Fear  not  you  is  said  to  them  in  opposition  to  the  soldiers.  Very  far  from  en¬ 
couraging  the  latter,  the  angel  wished  to  terrify  them  ;  very  far  from  wishing  to  alarm 
the  holy  women,  he  restores  their  confidence. 

In  visions  which  come  from  God,  a  person  is  at  first  surprised  and  frightened  ;  hut 
confidence  is  very  soon  restored. 

Those  visions  which  commence  by  confidence  and  end  in  trouble,  are  justly  suspected 
to  come  from  the  Evil  Spirit. 

(9)  Peter  alone  is  distinguished  from  the  others. 

(10)  In  Galilee,  although  they  should  see  him  previously  at  Jerusalem.  But  Galilee 
was  the  place  where  he  should  appear  oftenest  to  them,  remain  the  longest  time  with 
them,  and  exhibit  himself  to  a  greater  number. 


V  CSr-'Si. 


(11)  Why  did  they  not  bring  them  up  for  punishment  as  accomplices  of  the  abduc¬ 
tion  ?  This  is  the  way  in  which  Herod  treated  St.  Peter’s  guards  ;  and  this  step,  which 


CHAP.  LXIX.J 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


549 


they  were  hurrying  on  as  we  have  just  stated,  (a)  “behold  Jesus 
met  them,  saying  :  All  hail.  They  came  up,  and  took  hold  of  his 
feet,  and  adored  him.  Then  Jesus  said  to  them  :  Fear  not.  Go, 
tell  my  brethren  that  they  go  into  Galilee  ;  there  they  shall  see  me. 
Going  back  from  the  sepulchre,  they  told  all  these  things  to  the 
eleven  and  to  the  rest.  It  was  Joanna,  and  Mary  of  James,  and  the 
other  women  that  were  with  them,  who  told  these  things  to  the 
apostles  ;  [but]  these  words  seemed  to  them  as  idle  tales,  and  they 
did  not  believe  them.  Mary  Magdalen”  had  no  greater  success, 
when  she  “  cometh  and  telleth  the  disciples  :  I  have  seen  the  Lord, 
and  these  things  he  said  to  me.  They  hearing  that  he  was  alive  and 
had  been  seen  by  her,  did  not  believe.” 

Not  so  with#  the  principal  authors  of  his  death.  They  believed 
his  resurrection  ;  but  these  hardened  men  only  sought  to  conceal 
the  proof  thereof,  and  to  prevent  others,  as  far  as  they  possibly 
could,  from  believing,  as  they  were  themselves  forced  to  do.  God, 
who  wished  to  convince  them,  because  he  wished  to  save  them,  sent 
them  witnesses  who  could  not  be  suspected  by  them.  ( b )  “  When 
the  women  were  departed,  behold  some  of  the  guards  came  into  the 
city,  and  told  the  chief  priests  all  things  that  had  been  done.” 

It  seems,  from  what  has  been  hitherto  said,  that  they  could  only 
have  remarked  the  earthquake,  the  removal  of  the  stone,  and  the 
apparition  of  the  angel.  Whether  they  had  concluded  that  Jesus 
Christ  had  indeed  risen,  as  it  is  natural  that  they  should  believe,  or 
whether  they  had  otherwise  had  direct  and  positive  proof  of  the 
fact,  which  may  indeed  have  been  the  case,  although  the  fact  be  not 
written,  it  is  certain  that  they  were  persuaded  of  it,  and  that  they 
also  succeeded  in  convincing  those  very  men  whose  interest  it  was 
not  to  believe  it.  For,  after  they  had  made  their  report,  the  chief 
priests,  “  being  assembled  together  with  the  ancients,  taking  counsel” 
upon  the  course  that  should  be  adopted,  “gave  a  great  sum  of 
money  to  the  soldiers  (11),  saying  :  Say  you,  His  disciples  came  by 

(а)  St.  Matt.,  xxviii.  9  ;  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  9-11  ;  St.  John,  xx.  18;  St.  Mark,  xvi.  11. 

(б)  St.  Matthew,  xxviii.  11-15. 


556 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


.  [part  H. 

night,  and  stole  him  away  when  we  were  asleep.  And  if  the  gov¬ 
ernor  shall  hear  this,  we  will  persuade  him,  and  secure  you.  So 
they,  taking  the  money,  did  as  they  were  taught  ;  and  this  word 
was  spread  abroad  among  the  Jews  even  unto  this  day.” 

The  imposition  was  so  visible,  that  at  first  sight  we  would  sup¬ 
pose  no  one  could  be  deceived  by  it.  For  it  is  exceedingly  improba¬ 
ble  that  several  sentinels  on  guard  should  all  fall  asleep  at  the  same 
time  ;  but  it  is  utterly  impossible  that  such  a  theft  as  this  could  be 
carried  into  execution  without  disturbing  them.  It  was  necessary 
to  displace  and  roll  away  a  stone  of  enormous  size,  to  penetrate  into 
the  sepulchre,  and  take  the  body  thence  ; — it  was  necessary,  I  say, 
that  all  this  should  be  done  groping  in  the  dark,  since  it  must  have 
occurred,  if  at  all,  during  the  night  ;  and  also  tha^  several  men 
should  have  a  hand  in  the  transaction,  for  it  is  evident  that  a  single 
man  could  not  suffice.  If  it  be  insisted  that  such  an  enterprise,  so 
subject  to  mistakes  and  accidents,  might  have  succeeded  in  the 
midst  of  guards,  without  a  single  one  of  them  being  awakened,  we 
must  then  say  that  these  guards  were  not  asleep,  but  enchanted. 
This  reasoning  is  so  simple,  that  there  can  be  no  doubt  but  it 
occurred  to  many  of  the  Jews,  and  that,  notwithstanding  the 
authority  of  their  chief  men,  they  knew  well  what  to  believe. 
However,  these  leaders  were  not  unskilful  in  disseminating  through 
the  public  a  report  devoid  of  all  probability.  In  order  to  discover 
its  absurdity  it  was  necessary  to  reflect  a  little,  and  they  knew  that 
the  multitude  never  reflect. 


would  have  cost  nothing,  was  the  best  adapted  to  have  an  imposing  effect  on  the  public. 
They  would  have  undoubtedly  done  so  if  they  had  had  the  absolute  power  which  Herod 
had  over  his  subjects  and  his  soldiers.  But,  not  having  this  right,  they  were  constrained  to 
denounce  them  to  Pilate,  who  would  probably  not  have  condemned  them  without  giving 
them  a  hearing  ;  and  in  that  case  the  truth  must  have  come  to  light.  The  plan  which 
they  adopted  was  unavailing,  but  it  was  the  only  one  they  could  safely  take. 


DIVERS  APPARITIONS  TO  PETER,  TO  JAMES,  TO  THE  TWO  DISCIPLES  AT  EMMAUS,  AND 

TO  THE  ELEVEN  (FIRST  AND  SECOND.) 

It  was  by  withdrawing  his  body  from  the  hands  of  the  Jews  that 
Jesus  Christ  proved  to  them  his  resurrection,  and  this  proof  was  to 
them  unanswerable.  For,  since  they  had  remained  masters  of  it,  it 
became  necessary,  either  that  they  should  have  it  to  show  after 
the  third  day,  or  otherwise  to  confess  that  he  was  resuscitated  ;  nor 
did  they  escape  from  this  dilemma  by  bringing  forward  witnesses 
who  said  they  had  been  asleep  while  he  was  carried  off.  It  would 
have  been  necessary  to  attest  this  abduction  by  a  judicial  investiga¬ 
tion,  and  to  punish  the  perpetrators  and  accomplices  thereof.  But 
they  could  not  even  attempt  this,  because  such  a  proceeding  could 
only  result  in  the  disgrace  of  those  who  might  undertake  it.  The 
Saviour  acted  differently  with  regard  to  his  disciples.  He  fully  con¬ 
vinced  them  of  his  resurrection  by  showing  himself  to  them,  and  by 
delivering  himself,  as  it  were,  into  their  hands,  since  he  permitted 
them  to  touch  his  sacred  members.  The  infidelity  of  the  first  was 
inexcusable,  and  the  second  were  forced  to  be  faithful.  It  is  not  for 
us  to  inquire  the  reason  of  these  different  modes  of  treatment.  To 
return  to  the  disciples,  he  only  led  them  back  gradually  from  their 
original  state  of  incredulity,  to  that  immovable  faith  which  they 
subsequently  communicated  to  the  entire  world,  and  which  they 
finally  sealed  with  their  blood.  The  first  proof  which  he  gave  to 
them  was  the  report  of  the  holy  women,  and  the  sight  of  the  open 
tomb,  with  the  circumstance  of  the  linen  left  there,  and  the  folded 
shroud  ;  which  destroyed  all  notion  of  a  furtive  carrying  off.  Then 
he  appeared  to  some  individuals  in  particular — afterwards  to  the 
entire  eleven  :  and  it  was  then  that  he  permitted  them  to  touch  him, 
and  that  he  ate  with  them  ;  lastly  (a)  “  was  he  seen  by  more  than 
five  hundred  brethren  at  once.”  Of  these  several  apparitions,  some 
are  merely  glanced  at  by  the  sacred  writers,  others  are  given  in 

(a)  1  Corinthians,  xv.  6. 


/r 


Và 


L'fÀ 


m. 


X 


iV 


Û 


detail.  We  proceed  to  relate  tliem  as  they  do,  commencing  with 
the  private  apparitions. 

The  first  was  to  Simon  Peter.*  We  know  that  this  occurred  on 
the  very  Sunday  of  the  resurrection  ;  but  we  are  ignorant  of  the 
moment,  the  place,  and  the  circumstances.  His  penance  had  effaced 
his  crime  ;  and  very  far  from  being  rejected,  he  was  none  the  less 
favored,  since  he  was  the  first  of  the  apostles  to  whom  the  Lord 
appeared.  God  forgives  as  God — that  is  to  say,  he  pardons  per¬ 
fectly.  He  loves,  and  he  caresses  the  penitent  sinner,  as  if  he  had 
received  no  offence  from  him.  We  do  not  lose  the  whole  fruit  of 
this  apparition,  the  details  of  which  are  unknown  to  us,  whilst  we 
gather  from  it  so  consoling  a  truth. 

There  was  also  a  private  apparition  to  Jamesf  the  Less,  he  who 
is  called  the  brother  of  the  Lord,  of  whom  he  was  a  near  relative 
according  to  the  flesh.  There  is  reason  to  believe  that  this  did  not 
take  place  until  several  days  after  the  resurrection,  and  that  when 
the  Lord  conferred  this  favor  upon  James,  the  latter  no  longer 
doubted  that  he  had  risen  from  the  dead,  since  he  must  have  seen 
him  more  than  once  in  company  with  the  other  apostles. 

That  which  follows  was  accompanied  by  very  remarkable  circum¬ 
stances.  (a)  “  That  same  clay”  of  the  resurrection,  towards  evening, 
“two  disciples  went  to  a  town  which  was  sixty  furlongs  (1)  from 
Jerusalem,  named  Emmaus,  and  they  talked  together  of  all  these 
things  which  had  happened.  While  they  talked  and  reasoned 
with  one  another,  Jesus  himself  also  drew  near  and  went  with  them. 
But  their  eyes  were  held  (2),  that  they  should  not  know  him.  He 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  13-32. 

*  The  Lord  is  risen  indeed,  and  hath  appeared  to  Simon. — Luke,  xxiv.  34. 
f  After  that,  he  was  seen  by  James. — 1  Cor.  xv.  7. 

(1)  About  two  leagues. 

(2)  St.  Mark  says  :  He  appeared  in  another  shape  to  two  of  them  walking,  as  they  were 
going  into  the  country.  This  may  have  occurred  in  two  different  ways — either  by  the 
actual  changing  of  the  features  of  his  countenance,  or  because  an  image  different  from 
his  was  represented  to  the  eyes  of  the  two  disciples.  The  second  is  in  itself  the  most 
probable,  as  we  have  already  said,  when  speaking  of  the  apparition  seen  by  Magdalen, 
and  although  the  text  of  St.  Mark  may  appear  to  insinuate  the  first,  we  should  explain 
it  by  St.  Luke,  who,  after  having  at  first  said,  their  eyes  were  held  that  they  should  not 


iJf1 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


said  to  them  :  What  are  these  discourses  that  you  hold  one  with 
another  as  you  walk,  and  are  sad  ?  The  one  of  them,  whose  name 
was  Cleophas  (3),  answering,  said  to  him  :  Art  thou  only  a  stranger 


know  him,  concludes  by  further  stating  :  their  eyes  were  opened,  and  they  knew  him. 
Whence  we  see  that  he  places  in  their  eyes  the  whole  cause  of  the  mistake. 

St.  Thomas  places  it  in  the  powers  of  the  soul.  In  order  to  recognize  a  person,  it  is 
not  enough  to  see  his  countenance,  we  must  recollect  that  we  have  previously  seen  him. 
Recollection  is  an  operation  of  the  soul,  which  Jesus  Christ  may  have  suspended  in  the 
two  disciples.  Thus,  although  they  saw  him  as  he  actually  was,  still  they  could  not 
recognize  him,  because  the  divine  power  hindered  them  from  remembering  that  it  was 
he.  It  is  very  likely  that  this  was  the  real  state  of  the  case  ;  but  it  strikes  us  that  then 
St.  Luke  would  have  said  that  their  minds  were  held,  and  not  that  their  eyes  were  held 
that  they  should  not  know  him. 

The  question  is  still  to  be  viewed  in  another  and  more  delicate  sense,  viz.  :  whether 
Jesus,  in  appearing  to  his  disciples  under  another  form  than  his  own,  did  not  practice 
deceit — for  there  is  deceit  in  actions  as  well  as  in  words.  This  was  the  idea  of  the  Pris- 
cillianists,  and  their  error  was  noted  and  refuted  by  St.  Augustine.  We  are  bound  to 
believe  that  Jesus  practised  no  deceit  on  this  occasion;  but  it  is  easier  to  assert  this  than 
to  explain  it.  We  shall,  however,  do  our  best  to  make  it  clear.  In  an  action  of  this 
kind,  we  have  to  consider  the  intention  and  the  end  proposed.  Here  we  find  that  '  the 
intention  was  not  to  deceive,  while  the  end  in  view  was  that  of  undeceiving.  If  Jesus 
Christ  had  taken  the  form  of  a  pilgrim  for  the  purpose  of  concealing  his  own  identity, 
then  his  act  would  have  been  one  of  deceit  and  imposture.  But,  so  far  from  that,  we 
know  that  his  design  was  to  convince  them  that  he  had  indeed  arisen,  and  that  it  was  he 
and  no  other  who  then  spoke  to  them,  of  which  they  were  at  length  persuaded.  So  that 
whatever  he  had  previously  said  and  done  tended  solely  to  this  knowledge  and  convic¬ 
tion.  He  did  not,  therefore,  lead  them  into  error  ;  but  he  left  them,  at  first,  in  their 
ignorance,  and  that  only  that  he  might  afterwards  enlighten  them  in  a  way  more  suitable 
to  their  dispositions,  and  more  salutary  for  those  whom  they  were,  in  their  turn,  to 
instruct.  This  whole  affair  has  a  close  resemblance  to  a  parable  or  allegory,  wherein  he 
who  proposes  either,  commences  by  stating  things  which  are  false  in  themselves,  and, 
therefore,  calculated  to  mislead  if  taken  in  their  natural  signification.  But  await  the 
conclusion,  and  you  will  discover  that  you  have  been  taught  a  valuable  truth,  and  that 
that  which  seemed,  at  first,  false  or  merely  fictitious,  was  advanced  solely  for  the  purpose 
of  making  the  truth  more  manifest  and  more  easily  understood. 

(3)  We  are  ignorant  as  to  who  this  other  disciple  was.  We  know  that  he  was  not 
an  apostle,  since  it  is  stated  that  when  these  had  returned  to  Jerusalem,  they  found 
there  the  eleven  apostles  gathered  together,  with  the  exception  of  St.  Thomas.  Many 
think  that  it  was  St.  Luke,  who  suppressed  his  own  name  out  of  humility.  They  are, 
however,  refuted  by  St.  Luke  himself,  who  declares,  at  the  commencement  of  his  Gospel, 
that  he  was  informed  of  the  facts  which  he  is  going  to  narrate  from  those  who  were  eye¬ 
witnesses  thereof.  If  he  had  been  amongst  the  number  of  these  witnesses,  he  would  at 
least  have  said  that  he  was  going  to  relate  what  he  had  partly  seen  himself,  and  partly 
learned  from  those  who  had  seen  them. 


is  - > 


[part  it. 


f/r 


M 


<  I 


in  Jerusalem,  and  hast  not  known  the  things  that  have  been  done 
there  in  these  days  ?  He  said  to  them  :  What  things  ?  And  they 
said  :  Concerning  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  who  was  a  prophet,  mighty  in 
work  and  word,  before  God  and  all  the  people,  and  how  our  chief 
priests  and  princes  delivered  him  to  be  condemned  to  death,  and 
crucified  him.  But  we  hoped  that  it  was  he  who  should  have 
redeemed  Israel  ;  and  now  besides  all  this,  to-day  is  the  third  day 
since  these  things  were  done.  Yea,  and  certain  women  also  of  our 
company,  affrighted  us  ;  who,  before  it  was  light  were  at  the  sepul¬ 
chre,  and  not  finding  his  body,  came,  saying  :  That  they  had  also 
seen  a  vision  of  angels,  who  say  that  he  is  alive.  And  some  of  our 
people  went  to  the  sepulchre,  and  found  it  so  as  the  women  had 
said,  but  him  they  found  not.  Then  Jesus  said  to  them  :  O  foolish 
and  slow  of  heart  to  believe  in  all  things  which  the  prophets  have 
spoken  !  Ought  not  Christ  to  have  suffered  these  things,  and  so  to 
enter  into  his  glory  ?  And  beginning  at  Moses,  and  all  the  pro¬ 
phets,  he  expounded  to  them  in  all  the  Scriptures,  the  things  that 
were  concerning  him. 

“  They  drew  nigh  to  the  town  whither  they  were  going  ;  and  he 
made  as  though  he  would  go  further  (4).  But  they  constrained 
him,  saying  :  Stay  with  us,  because  it  is  towards  evening,  and  the 
day  is  now  far  spent.  He  went  in  with  them  ;  and  whilst  he  was 
at  table  with  them,  he  took  bread,  and  blessed,  and  brake,  and  gave 
to  them  (5).  And  their  eyes  were  opened,  and  they  knew  him  ; 


(4)  He  made  as  though  he  would  go  further.  The  meaning  of  this  is,  that  he  was 
more  willing  to  remain,  provided  they  urged  him  to  do  so,  as  they  did  in  point  of  fact. 
But  he,  in  another  sense,  did  not  merely  make  show  of  an  intention  to  proceed  further  : 
he  had  resolved  to  do  so,  supposing  that  they  did  not  invite  him  to  remain.  He  wished 
that  the  happiness  of  recognizing  him  should  be  the  reward  of  hospitality  exercised 
towards  a  stranger.  This  gives  ground  for  thinking  that  at  least  one  of  the  two  dis¬ 
ciples  was  from  the  village  (bourg)  of  Emmaus,  and  that  he  had  his  house  there.  St. 
Jerome  says  that  this  was  Cleophas,  and  he  adds,  that  by  celebrating  the  Eucharist  in 
his  house,  Jesus  Christ  constituted  it  a  church.  It  is  doubtful  whether  this  Cleophas  is 
he  whose  wife  or  daughter  was  one  of  the  Marys. 

(5)  He  takes  bread,  he  blesses  it,  he  breaks  it,  he  distributes  it  ;  this  was  all  that  he 
did  when,  at  the  Last  Supper,  he  changed  the  bread  into  his  body.  This  assemblage  of 
similar  circumstances  has  caused  the  inference  that  he  also  consecrated  this,  and  made  it 
Eucharistic  bread.  The  miraculous  effect  which  it  produced  upon  the  two  disciples,  goes 
to  strengthen  this  opinion  ;  indeed  it  is  that  of  St.  Jerome,  of  St.  Augustine,  of  Theophy- 


•Ai1'/. 


CHAP.  LXX.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


and  lie  vanished  out  of  their  sight  leaving  on  their  minds  the  full 
and  entire  conviction  that  it  was  he,  and  that  he  was  truly  resusci¬ 
tated.  Whereupon,  “they  said  one  to  another:  Was  not  our  heart 
burning  within  us,  whilst  he  spoke  in  the  way,  and  opened  to  us  the 
Scriptures  ?” 

This  sacred  fire  seeks  only  to  diffuse  itself.  Thus,  (a)  “  they  rose 
up  the  same  hour  and  went  back  to  Jerusalem;  and  they  found  the 
eleven  gathered  together,  and  those  that  were  with  them,  saying  : 
The  Lord  is  risen  indeed,  and  hath  appeared  to  Simon.  And  they 
told  what  things  were  done  in  the  way  ;  and  how  they  knew  him 
in  the  breaking  of  bread  :  neither  did  they  believe  them  which 
must  be  understood  with  reference  to  some  amongst  them,  who  had 
not  even  believed  the  testimony  of  the  chief  of  the  apostles. 

Truth  triumphed,  at  length,  over  incredulity,  and  obstinacy  was 
obliged  to  yield  to  evidence.  ( b )  “  Whilst  they  were  speaking  these 
things,  when  it  was  late  that  same  day,  the  first  of  the  week,  and 
the  doors  were  shut  (6),  where  the  disciples  were  gathered  together, 

(a)  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  33-35  ;  St.  Mark,  xvi.  13. 

(5)  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  36-40;  St.  John,  xx.  19,  20;  St.  Mark,  xvi.  14. 


lactus,  &c.  Protestants  think  the  contrary,  and  they  do  so  consistently  with  their  prin¬ 
ciples  ;  for  it  would  evidently  follow  that  Jesus  Christ  himself  gave  communion  under 
the  one  kind  of  bread  alone.  But  they  must  own,  at  least,  that  St.  Jerome,  St.  Augus¬ 
tine,  and  the  other  ancient  writers,  who  thought  that  the  bread  had  been  consecrated, 
have,  consequently,  thought  that  Jesus  Christ  himself  gave  communion  under  the 
one  kind. 

(6)  Jesus  Christ  entered,  the  doors  being  and  remaining  shut,  even  as  he  had  come  forth 
from  his  mother’s  womb  and  from  the  sepulchre  before  the  stone  was  removed,  without 
hurt  or  fracture.  The  matter  was  so  understood  by  the  entire  world  until  the  time  of 
Calvin,  who  without  any  discussion  as  to  the  manner  in  which  Jesus  Christ  had  entered, 
flatly  pronounced  it  impossible,  and  not  to  be  believed,  that  he  entered  whilst  the  doors 
were  and  remained  shut.  Penetration  of  bodies,  the  possibility  of  which  carries  with  it 
that  of  the  real  presence,  was  a  consequence  flowing  too  manifestly  from  this  fact.  It 
was  therefore  necessary  for  him  to  abandon  the  ancient  explanation,  which  did  not  agree 
with  the  new  error.  However,  an  effort  was  made  to  assign  another  reason  for  it.  Jesus 
Christ,  it  was  said,  proved  much  better  that  he  was  not  a  pure  spirit  by  entering  through 
the  open  door,  than  if  the  door  had  remained  closed,  just  as  if  the  solidity  of  his  body 
was  not  still  better  proved  by  the  touching  of  his  hands,  his  feet,  and  his  side,  which  he 
vouchsafed  to  the  disciples.  But  he  had,  besides,  to  make  them  acquainted  with  the 
prerogatives  of  glorified  bodies,  and  he  did  this  when  he  entered  whilst  the  doors 
remained  shut. 


Jr. 


/r 


'TH 


mm* 


for  fear  of  the  Jews,  Jesus  appeared  to  the  eleven  as  they  were  at 
table,  and  saith  to  them  :  Peace  be  to  you.  It  is  I,  fear  not.  He 
upbraided  them  with  their  incredulity  and  hardness  of  heart,  be¬ 
cause  they  did  not  believe  them  who  had  seen  him,  after  he  was 
risen  again.  But  they  being  troubled  and  frightened,  supposed  that 
they  saw  a  spirit  ;  and  he  saith  to  them  :  Why  are  you  troubled, 
and  why  do  thoughts  arise  in  your  hearts  ?  See  my  hands  and  feet  ; 
it  is  I,  myself.  Handle,  and  see.  For  a  spirit  hath  not  flesh  and 
bones,  as  you  see  me  to  have.  When  he  had  said  this,  he  showed 
them  his  hands  and  feet,  and  his  side  (7).” 

(а)  “  The  disciples,  therefore,  were  glad,  when  they  saw  the  Lord. 
But  while  they  yet  believed  not  (8),  and  wondered  for  joy,  he  said: 
Have  you  here  any  thing  to  eat?  They  offered  him  a  piece  of 
broiled  fish  and  a  honey-comb.  And  when  he  had  eaten  before 
them,  taking  the  remains,  he  gave  to  them.” 

(б)  “  He  said  to  them  again  :  Peace  be  to  you.”  And  as  he  was 
going  to  confer  upon  them  a  great  gift,  and  to  communicate  to  them 
the  most  incommunicable  of  all  the  prerogatives  of  the  divinity,  he 
added  :  “  As  the  Father  hath  sent  me,  I  also  send  you.  When  he 
had  said  this,  he  breathed  on  them  (9),  and  he  said  to  them  :  Re¬ 
ceive  ye  the  Holy  Ghost.  Whose  sins  you  shall  forgive,  they 

(a)  St.  John,  xx.  20;  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  41-43.  (5)  St.  John,  xx.  21-31. 


(7)  It  is  not  stated  whether  or  not  they  really  touched  him.  The  ancients  had  so 
little  doubt  upon  the  subject,  that  they  never  even  mooted  the  question  ;  in  point  of  fact, 
every  thing  tends  to  this  belief.  They  wished  to  assure  themselves  of  the  truth  of  the 
resurrection  :  the  touch  was  the  true  means  of  doing  so,  and  Jesus  Christ  offered  them 
this  means.  When  St.  Thomas  said  to  them  :  Except  I  shall  put  my  finger  in  the  place 
of  the  nails . . . .  /  will  not  believe,  does  he  not  seem  to  have  meant  :  I  shall  believe  it  like 
you  when  I  shall  have  touched  him  like  you  ?  The  following  words  from  the  First 
Epistle  of  St.  John,  are  also  understood  to  refer  to  this  touch  :  That  which  was  from  the 
beginning,  which  we  have  heard,  which  we  have  seen  with  our  eyes,  which  we  have 
looked  upon,  and  our  hands  have  handled,  of  the  Word  of  life. .  . .  We  declare  unto  you. 

(8)  They  must  have  believed  to  a  certain  extent,  since  they  were  filled  with  joy;  but 
this  belief  was  not  exempt  from  doubt.  This  is  the  reason  why  it  is  said  that  they  did 
not  yet  believe,  because  they  had  not  faith,  which  is  incompatible  with  doubt.  They 
were  delighted  at  seeing  him,  but  they  doubted  whether  it  was  not  an  illusion  or  a  dream. 

(9)  This  breath  was  not  the  Holy  Ghost  ;  it  was  but  the  sign  thereof. 

By  this  breath  going  forth  from  his  bosom,  Jesus  Christ  further  signified  that  the 
Holy  Ghost  proceeds  from  him  according  to  his  divinity. 


Gf> 


f 

5 


CHAP.  LXX.] 


OF  OUE  LOED  JESUS  CHEIST. 


are  forgiven  tliem  (10)  ;  and  whose  sins  you  shall  retain,  they  are 
retained  (11).”  This  sacred  breath  was  the  sensible  sign  of  what 
was  wrought  invisibly  in  them,  and  justified  by  anticipation  the 
mysterious  ceremonies  which  his  Church  should  employ  in  the 
administration  of  Sacraments. 

However,  there  remained  one  unbeliever  to  be  convinced  :  “  Thom¬ 
as,  one  of  the  twelve,  who  is  called  Hidymus,  was  not  with  them 
when  Jesus  came.  The  other  disciples,  therefore,  said  to  him:  We 
have  seen  the  Lord.  But  he  said  to  them  :  Except  I  shall  see  in  his 
hands  the  print  of  the  nails,  and  put  my  finger  into  the  place  of  the 
nails,  and  put  my  hand  into  his  side,  I  will  not  believe.” 

This  was  laying  down  the  law,  as  it  were,  for  his  master,  and  no 
one  was  less  worthy  of  such  a  favor  than  he  who  ventured  to  exact 
it.  But  this  amiable  master  would  only  listefti  to  his  own  goodness, 
and  thereby  show  us  the  full  extent  of  his  adorable  condescension. 
“  After  eight  days  again,  his  disciples  were  within,  and  Thomas  with 
them.  Jesus  cometh,  the  doors  being  shut,  and  stood  in  the  midst, 
and  said  :  Peace  be  to  you.  Then  he  saith  to  Thomas  :  Put  in  thy 
finger  hither,  and  see  my  hands  ;  and  bring  hither  thy  hand,  and 
put  it  into  my  side,  and  be  not  faithless,  but  believing.  Thomas 
answered  and  said  to  him:”  Thou  art  “My  Lord  and  my  God  (12). 

(10)  The  remission  of  sins  is  attributed  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  as  welLus  all  the  other 
effects  of  the  divine  goodness,  because  the  Holy  Ghost  is  the  production  of  the  will  of 
the  Father  and  of  the  Son,  and  that  the  object  of  the  will  is  all  good.  The  Holy  Ghost 
is  only  given  to  the  apostles,  here,  with  reference  to  the  remission  of  sins.  Thus  the  gift 
which  is  made  to  them  on  this  day  has  no  interference  with  the  gifts  of  understanding 
and  of  fortitude,  and  all  the  miraculous  gifts  which  are  promised  to  them,  and  which 
they  shall  receive  upon  the  day  of  Pentecost. 

(11)  Since  the  power  of  retaining  sins  is  joined  to  that  of  remitting  them,  those  who 
are  constituted  the  judges  thereof,  discriminate  between  those  sins  which  should  be 
remitted,  and  those  which  should  be  retained.  This  discrimination  cannot  be  made  with¬ 
out  knowledge,  and  knowledge  can  only  be  obtained  by  confession  ;  therefore  confession 
is  not  only  a  matter  of  precept,  but  also  of  divine  institution. 

(12)  These  words,  thou  art ,  are  not  in  the  text.  However,  these  words  of  St.  Thomas 
have  always  been  regarded  as  a  confession  of  faith  in  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  The 
enemies  of  this  fundamental  dogma  have  pretended  that  this  was  only  a  cry  of  surprise 
and  admiration.  This  explanation  has  been  condemned  by  the  second  Council  of  Con¬ 
stantinople.  That  explanation  which  we  follow,  in  accordance  with  all  tradition,  is  con¬ 
veyed  more  impressively  in  the  Greek  and  Latin  languages,  than  in  either  the  French  or 
ours. 


A 


cri 


mi 


(S  * 


'''MVVV 


\! 


1 


Jesus  saith  to  him  :  Because  thou  hast  seen  me,  Thomas,  thou  hast  be¬ 
lieved  ;  blessed  are  they  that  have  not  seen,  and  have  believed  (13).” 

If  after  that  there  still  remained  some  unbelievers  amongst  the 
disciples,  there  were,  at  least,  none  such  amongst  the  apostles.  God 
had  permitted  their  incredulity,  because  it  was  to  be  auxiliary  to 
the  faith  of  all  ages.  We  have  seen  that  they  left  no  difficulty  un¬ 
examined,  nor  proofs  to  be  desired  ;  they  exhausted  them  all,  and 
the  cause  of  incredulity  could  never  have  been  confided  to  less  cred¬ 
ulous  men.  How  then  can  we  still  doubt  the  testimony  which  they 
have  rendered  regarding  the  resurrection  of  Christ,  since  -they 
truly  saw  him  with  their  own  eyes,  and  touched  him  with  their 
own  hands  ? 

“  Many  other  signs  also  did  Jesus  in  the  sight  of  his  disciples, 
which  are  not  written  ih  this  book.  But  these  are  written  that  you 
may  believe  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God  :  and,  that  be¬ 
lieving,  you  may  have  life  in  his  name.” 


CHAPTER  LXXI. 

APPARITION  BY  THE  SEA-SIDE. - MIRACULOUS  FISHING. - PETER  APPOINTED  PASTOR 

OF  THE  WHOLE  FLOCK. - APPARITION  UPON  A  MOUNTAIN  OF  GALILEE. - MISSION 

OF  THE  APOSTLES. - FINAL  APPARITION  AT  JERUSALEM. - PROMISE  OF  THE  HOLY 

GHOST. - ASCENSION. - CONCLUSION. 

What  we  are  going  to  relate  is  not  for  the  purpose  of  adducing 
evidence  with  regard  to  that  which  is  already  sufficiently  proved. 

(13)  Because  it  is  not  necessary  to  have  seen  in  order  to  have  faith,  which  is,  accord¬ 
ing  to  St.  Paul’s  definition,  the  substance  of  things  to  be  hoped  for,  the  evidence  of  things 
that  appear  not. — Heb.  xi.  Thus,  St.  Thomas,  who  saw  and  who  touched  Jesus  Christ, 
when  resuscitated,  had  not,  properly  speaking,  that  faith  in  the  resurrection  which  we 
have  without  having  seen.  Wherefore  it  is  that  Jesus  Christ  declares  us  happier  than 
Thomas,  and  even  than  the  other  apostles,  who  believed  in  the  Saviour’s  resurrection 
solely  on  the  testimony  of  their  eyes  and  their  hands.  Yet  Thomas  made  a  very  com¬ 
mendable  act  of  faith  in  confessing  his  master’s  divinity,  although  he  did  not  see  it,  and 
that  it  was  only  by  the  revelation  of  the  Heavenly  Father  that  he  could,  like  St.  Peter, 
know  and  believe  it. 


LU 


â\. 


Its  only  object  is  to  furnish  those  particular  instructions  which  a 
pious  and  attentive  reader  may  easily  gather.  ( a )  “  After  this,  Jesus 
showed  himself  again  to  the  disciples  at  the  sea  of  Tiberias.  And 
he  showed  himself  after  this  manner.  There  were  together  Simon 
Peter,  and  Thomas  who  is  called  Didymus,  and  Nathanael  who  was 
of  Cana  of  Galilee,  and  the  sons  of  Zebedee,  ahd  two  others  of  his 
disciples.  Simon  Peter  saith  to  them  :  I  go  a  fishing.  They  say  to 
him  :  We  also  come  with  thee.  And  they  went  forth,  and  entered 
into  the  ship  ;  and  that  night  they  caught  nothing  (1).  But  when 
the  morning  was  come,  Jesus  stood  on  the  shore  ;  yet  the  disciples 
knew  not  that  it  was  Jesus.  Jesus  therefore  said  to  them  :  Children, 
have  you  any  meat?  They  answered  him  :  No.  He  saith  to  them: 
Cast  the  net  on  the  right  side  of  the  ship,  and  you  shall  find.  They 
cast,  therefore  ;  and  now  they  were  not  able  to  draw  it,  for  the  mul¬ 
titude  of  fishes.  That  disciple,  therefore,  whom  Jesus  loved,  said  to 
Peter  :  It  is  the  Lord.  Simon  Peter,  when  he  heard  that  it  was  the 
Lord,  girt  his  coat  about  him  (for  he  was  naked),  and  cast  himself 
into  the  sea.  But  the  other  disciples  came  in  the  ship  (for  they  were 
not  far  from  the  land,  but  as  it  were  two  hundred  cubits),  dragging 
the  net  with  fishes. 

“  As  soon  then  as  they  came  to  land,  they  saw  hot  coals  lying, 
and  a  fish  laid  thereon,  and  bread  (2).  Jesus  saith  to  them  :  Bring 
hither  of  the  fishes  which  you  have  now  caught.  Simon  Peter  went 
up,  and  drew  the  net  to  land,  full  of  great  fishes,  one  hundred  and 
fifty-three.  And  although  there  were  so  many,  the  net  was  not 

(a)  St.  John,  xxi.  1—24. 


(1)  The  labor  of  a  whole  night  had  produced  nothing  for  the  disciples  ;  one  word 
from  the  Saviour  filled  their  nets  in  a  moment.  But  the  Saviour  does  not  say  this  word 
until  they  had  toiled  all  the  night  long.  In  vain  does  man  make  efforts — success  can 
come  from  God  alone  ;  but  God  grants  success  to  those  only  who  do  their  best.  To  toil, 
as  if  success  depended  upon  our  efforts  alone,  and  still  to  expect  success  but  from  God 
alone,  is  the  course  which  both  reason  and  religion  prescribe,  and  it  equally  avoids  the 
two  baneful  extremes  of  presumption  and  indolence. 

(2)  They  had  toiled  all  the  night  ;  they  were  hungry — they  had  no  fire,  and  appa¬ 
rently  they  were  in  want  of  bread.  Much  time  would  be  requisite  in  order  to  procure  it. 
Jesus  Christ  works  a  new  miracle,  in  order  that  they  may  instantly  find  every  thing  that 
was  necessary  for  them.  God  thinks  of  all  ;  he  can  do  all,  and  he  will  for  those  who 
place  their  confidence  in  him. 


560 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  IL 


broken.  Jesus  saitb  to  them  :  Come,  and  dine.  And  none  of  them 
who  were  at  meat  durst  ask  him  :  Who  art  thou  ?  knowing  that  it 
was  the  Lord  (3).  And  Jesus  cometh  and*  taketh  bread,  and  givetli 
them,  and  fish  in  like  manner.  This  is  now  the  third  time  that  Jesus 
was  manifested  to  his  disciples,  after  he  was  risen  from  the  dead  (4).” 

Simon  Peter  had 'taken  a  greater  part  than  the  others  in  this 
miraculous  fishing,  of  which  he  was,  as  it  were,  the  leader  ;  but  he 
knew  not  yet  all  the  share  -which  he  was  to  have  in  carrying  out  his 
master’s  designs  :  in  this  he  was  to  be  the  principal  actor.  His  three 
denials  were  then  to  be  atoned  for  by  three  protestations  of  love  ; 
in  consequence  of  which  he  was  to  be  confirmed  in  his  office  of  shep¬ 
herd  of  Christ’s  flock.  To  complete  the  favor,  he  was  to  receive  an 
assurance  that  he  should  one  day  die  for  him  whom  he  had  denied, 
and  efface  the  shame  of  his  weakness  by  the  glory  of  a  generous 
martyrdom.  “When  therefore  they  had  dined,  Jesus  saith  to  Simon 
Peter  :  Simon,  son  of  John,  lovest  thou  me  more  than  these  ?  He 
saith  to  him  :  Yea,  Lord,  thou  knowest  that  I  love  thee.  He  saith 
to  him  :  Feed  my  lambs.  He  saith  to  him  again  :  Simon,  son  of 
John,  lovest  thou  me  ?  He  saith  to  him  :  Yea,  Lord,  thou  knowest 
that  I  love  thee.  He  saith  to  him  :  Feed  my  lambs.  Fie  saith  to 
him  the  third  time  :  Simon,  son  of  John,  lovest  thou  me  ?  Peter 
was  grieved,  because  Jesus  had  said  to  him  the  third  time  :  Lovest 
thou  me  ?  And  he  said  to  him  :  Lord,  thou  knowest  all  things  ; 
thou  knowest  that  I  love  thee.  Jesus  said  to  him  :  Feed  my 
sheep  (5).” 


(3)  If  lie  was  to  be  recognized  at  sight,  it  seems  that  the  expression  should  have 
been  :  Seeing  that  it  was  the  Lord.  He,  therefore,  appeared  to  them  under  another 
figure,  in  the  way  that  has  been  already  explained,  and  they  did  not  see  that  it  was  he, 
but  they  knew  it,  because  his  miracles  revealed  him,  and  he  himself  had  impressed  their 
minds  with  the  certainty  that  it  was  he. 

(4)  The  Evangelist  does  not  allude  to  the  private  apparitions,  but  only  to  those  wherein 
Jesus  showed  himself,  at  one  and  the  same  time,  to  a  considerable  number  of  disciples. 
This  was  the  third  apparition  of  this  sort. 

(.">)  We  have  the  explanation  of  this  expression  in  these  words  of  St.  Bernard  to  Pope 
Eugenius  (Book  III.  Of  the  Consideration,  chap,  viii.)  :  “  Who  art  thou  ?  said  the  holy 
Doctor  to  him.  Thou  art  the  High  Priest,  the  Sovereign  Pontiff.  Thou  art  he  to  whom 
the  keys  have  been  given — to  whom  the  sheep  have  been  confided.  I  agree  that  there 
are  other  porters  of  heaven,  and  other  pastors  of  the  flock  ;  but,  in  you,  these  two 


(S  t >, 


VÀV> 


OH  AP.  LXXI.]  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST.  561 

That  which  grieved  him  most  was  the  apprehension  lest  his  mas¬ 
ter  should  mistrust,  not  the  sincerity,  but  the  constancy,  of  his  love, 
supposing  that  he  were  put  to  some  proof  similar  to  that  in  which 
he  had  so  signally  failed.  Jesus  reassures  him,  by  promising  him, 
with  an  oath,*  that  he  shall  thenceforward  be  generous  and  faithful. 

He  added,  therefore  :  “  Amen,  amen,  I  say  to  thee,  when  thou  wast 
younger,  thou  didst  gird  thyself,  and  didst  walk  where  thou  wouldst. 

But  when  thou  shalt  be  old,  thou  shalt  stretch  forth  thy  hands,  and 
another  shall  gird  thee,  and  lead  thee  whither  thou  wouldst  not. 

And  this  he  said,  signifying  by  what  death  he  should  glorify  God. 

And  when  he  had  said  this,  he  saith  to  him  :  Follow  me.” 

This  figurative  language  was  understood  by  him  to  whom  it  was 
addressed,  and  it  excited  in  him  a  curiosity  which  the  Lord  did  not 
then  think  proper  to  satisfy.  “  Peter  turning  about,  saw  that  dis¬ 
ciple  whom  Jesus  loved  following,  who  also  leaned  on  his  breast  at 
supper,  and  said  :  Lord,  who  is  he  that  shall  betray  thee  ?  Llim  \ 
therefore  when  Peter  had  seen,  he  saith  to  Jesus  :  Lord,  and  what 
shall  this  man  do  ?  Jesus  saith  to  him  :  So  I  will  have  him  to 
remain  till  I  come,  what  is  it  to  thee  ?  Follow  thou  me.  This  say¬ 
ing  therefore  went  abroad  among  the  brethren,  that  that  disciple 
should  not  die.  And  Jesus  did  not  say  to  him  :  He  should  not  die  ; 
but,  So  I  will  have  him  to  remain  till  I  come,  what  is  it  to  thee  (6)  ? 


*  “  Avec  serment 

denominations  are  more  glorious,  inasmuch  as  their  signification  is  of  higher  excellence 
when  applied  to  you.  The  other  pastors  have  their  flocks  apart,  and  each  has  his  own. 
All  the  flocks  have  been  confided  to  you.  They  are,  in  reference  to  you,  but  one  flock 
under  one  pastor  ;  you  are  not  only  pastor  of  the  sheep,  you  are  also  the  pastor  of  all 
the  pastors.  You  ask  me,  how  I  ■prove  this?  By  the  Lord’s  own  words.  For  to 
whom,  I  do  not  say  of  the  bishops,  but  even  of  the  apostles,  have  all  the  sheep  been  con¬ 
fided,  in  a  manner  as  absolute  and  as  universal  as  this  :  Peter,  if  thou  lovest  me,  feed  my 
sheep  ?  And  to  what  sheep  does  he  allude  ?  Is  it  of  a  particular  people,  of  a  city,  of 
a  country,  of  a  kingdom  ?  No,  he  simply  says,  my  sheep.  Who  sees  not  that  he  does 
not  merely  designate  some  of  them,  but  all  taken  together  ?” 

Since  Jesus  Christ  has  said  indefinitely  to  Peter:  Feed  my  lambs,  feed  my  sheep,  we 
may  conclude,  that  whoever  does  not  recognize  Peter  for  his  pastor  is  neither  of  the 
lambs  nor  of  the  sheep. 

(6)  When  the  disciples  thus  explained  the  Saviour’s  words,  he  desisted  from  speaking, 
and  we  may  say  that  the  sound  of  his  voice  still  rang  in  then-  ears.  Can  it  be  that  they 
had  so  little  memory,  as  to  imagine  that  he  had  just  said  these  very  words  :  He  dieth 

36 


562 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  LIFE 


[part  JI 

This  is  that  disciple  who  giveth  testimony  of  these  things,  and  hath 
written  these  things  ;  and  we  know  that  his  testimony  is  true.” 

In  the  mean  time,  (a)  “  the  eleven  disciples  went  into  Galilee,  unto 
the  mountain  where  Jesus  had  appointed  them.  And  seeing  him 
they  adored  ;  but  some  doubted,”  which  we  can  scarcely  think  was 
the  case  with  the  apostles.  This  is  the  reason  why  many  have 
thought  that  there  were  a  vast  number  of  disciples  then  with  them, 
and  that  the  apparition,  which  had  been  most  distinctly  announced, 
and  which  was  to  have  been  the  most  solemn,  was  that  where  the 
five  hundred  brethren  whom  St.  Paul  speaks  of  were  all  gathered 
together.  *  “  Jesus  coming,  spoke  to  them,  saying”  these  words,  which 
might  also  be  addressed,  in  proportion,  to  the  second  order  of  disci¬ 
ples  :  “  All  power  is  given  to  me  in  heaven  and  in  earth  (7).‘  Going 

(a)  St.  Matthew,  xxviii.  16-20;  St.  Mark,  xvi.  15-18. 


not?  No;  but  they  alleged  that  what  Jesus  had  said  signified  that  he,  of  whom  he 
spoke,  should  not  die.  Now,  if  this  was,  in  point  of  fact,  the  meaning  of  his  discourse, 
they  had,  therefore,  understood  him  correctly.  Therefore,  what  is  the  cause  of  this 
resumption  of  St.  John  :  And  Jesus  did  not  say  to  him,  He  dieth  not  ?  Were  not  the 
disciples  entitled  to  reply  to  him  :  We  know  well  that  he  did  not  say  expressly  so — we 
only  think  that  what  he  did  say  signifies  as  much.  What  can  you  find  wrong  in  this  ? 

If  the  Saviour’s  words  did  signify,  He  shall  not  die,  does  it  not  also  seem  that  St.  John 
sought  to  convey  a  different  impression  to  his  readers,  by  affecting  to  draw  off  their 
minds  from  the  true  sense  of  the  Saviour’s  words  ? 

We  venture  to  conclude,  from  these  reflections,  that,  if  Jesus  did  not  wish  to  say  that 
St.  John  should  not  die,  what  the  Evangelist  here  adds  is  very  rational  ;  but  that  it 
would  be  by  no  means  rational,  if  Jesus  really  meant  that  St.  John  should  not  die. 

And  since  this  is  the  passage  of  his  Gospel  which  has  given  rise  to  the  opinion  that 
he  is  not  dead,  we  may  conclude  that  this  opinion  is  destitute  of  any  foundation. 

The  most  ancient  and  the  best-informed  authors  appear  to  entertain  no  doubt  of  St. 
John’s  death.  They  speak  of  his  tomb  as  being  well  known  over  the  whole  earth.  It  is 
true,  that  there  is  no  information  as  to  what  became  of  his  body,  which  has  made  several 
think  that  Jesus  Christ  had  resuscitated  him,  and  that  he  had  transported  him  to  heaven 
in  body  and  soul  without  awaiting  the  general  resurrection.  He  was  the  well-beloved  dis¬ 
ciple — the  virgin  apostle  ;  he  had  reposed  upon  the  breast  of  the  Lord,  who  also  gave 
him  to  Mary  as  a  son  ;  and  we  may  add  that  St.  John  was,  after  Jesus  Christ,  the  con¬ 
solation  and  delight  of  that  holy  mother.  To  many  it  has  seemed  natural  to  think  that 
he  had  been  associated  in  the  same  privilege.  This  is  only  a  pious  opinion  ;  but,  far 
from  trying  to  combat  it,  we  ought  rather  to  desire  that  it  be  true. 

(7)  Omnipotence  has  been  given  to  Jesus  Christ  in  many  different  ways  : — The  Word 
has  received  it  from  the  Father  with  the  divine  nature,  which  the  Father  communicates 
to  him  whole  and  entire.  The  man  in  Jesus  Christ  possesses  it  by  virtue  of  the  hypo- 


therefore  (8),  teach  ye  all  nations  (9)  ;  baptizing  them  in  the  name 
of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  teaching  them 
to  observe  all  things  whatsoever  I  have  commanded  you  ;  and  be¬ 
hold  I  am  with  you  all  days,  even  to  the  consummation  of  the 
world.  Go  ye  into  the  whole  world,  and  preach  the  gospel  to  every 
creature  (10).  He  that  believeth,  and  is  baptized,  shall  be  saved  (1 1)  ; 
but  he  that  believeth  not,  shall  be  condemned.  These  signs  shall 
follow  them  that  believe  :  In  my  name  they  shall  cast  out  devils  ; 
they  shall  speak  with  new  tongues  ;  they  shall  take  up  serpents  ; 
and  if  they  shall  drink  any  deadly  thing,  it  shall  not  hurt  them  ; 
they  shall  lay  their  hands  upon  the  sick,  and  they  shall  recover.” 

It  would  be  extremely  difficult  to  point  out  precisely  on  which  of 
these  occasions  Jesus  said  to  his  disciples  the  following  words.  We 
only  know  that  it  was  at  Jerusalem,  after  they  had  returned  from 


static  union.  Jesus  Christ  has  acquired  it  by  his  sufferings  and  by  his  death.  So  that 
the  sovereignty  of  the  universe,  which  belongs  to  the  Son  of  God,  by  the  eternal  gene¬ 
ration — to  the  Son  of  man,  by  the  incarnation — belongs,  also,  to  the  Man- God,  by  right 
of  conquest.  It  is  thought  that  he  here  speaks  of  it  in  this  latter  sense,  because  he 
appears  to  speak  of  it  as  of  a  new  thing. 

(8)  All  -power  is  given  to  me. . . .  Going,  therefore.  It  is  as  if  he  said  :  The  enterprise 
which  I  confide  to  you  is  far  beyond  your  strength  ;  but  go  fearlessly,  it  is  the  Almighty 
who  sends  you. 

(9)  Teach  the  mysteries  of  faith — administer  the  sacraments — explain  the  precepts  of 
evangelical  morality,  is,  in  three  words,  what  Jesus  Christ  deputes  those  to  perform 
whom  he  establishes  the  pastors  of  his  church,  a  commission  which  they  hold  from  no 
other  power,  and  which  no  other  power  has  a  right  to  take  from  them. 

This  power  comes  to  them  from  heaven.  Hell  cannot  divest  them  of  it,  nor  can  earth 
appropriate  it  to  itself. 

The  Chureh  was  not  the  less  in  possession  of  it  under  Dioclesian,  nor  more  under  Con¬ 
stantine  ;  whether  persecuted  or  protected,  it  is  always  the  same. 

(10)  Every  creature  signifies  all  men,  as  the  whole  world  signifies  all  the  earth.  We 
see  how  different  is  this  mission  from  that  which  Jesus  Christ  gave  to  the  apostles  before 
his  Passion.  In  the  first,  he  had  prohibited  them  from  preaching  to  the  Samaritans  and 
the  Gentiles  ;  in  the  latter  he  sends  them  to  preach  to  every  creature.  The  wall  of 
separation  is  destroyed,  and  all  nations  are  henceforward  to  constitute  but  one  people. 

(11)  He  shall  be  saved,  provided  that  he  does  not  contradict  his  faith  by  his  works, 
and  that  he  does  not  belie  the  promises  of  his  baptism.  We  find  in  Scripture  many 
general  propositions  similar  to  this,  which  have  annexed  to  them  an  implied  condition  : 
Every  one  that  shall  call  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord  shall  be  saved  (Joel,  ii.)  ;  Every  one 
that  asketh  receiveth  (Matthew,  vii.).  As  to  what  regards,  in  particular,- those  proposi¬ 
tions,  wherein  salvation  is  attributed  to  faith  without  any  allusion  being  made  to  works, 
or  to  works  without  any  mention  of  faith,  see  note  4,  page  56,  Part  I. 


y  V  “ 


I  m 

V# 
» 


564 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE 


[part  H. 


Galilee,  in  pursuance  of  the  order  which  he  had  given  them.  He 
then  said  to  them  :  (a)  “  These  are  the  words  which  I  spoke  to  you 
while  I  was  yet  with  you,  that  all  things  must  needs  be  fulfilled 
which  are  written  in  the  law  of  Moses,  and  in  the  Prophets,  and  in 
the  Psalms,  concerning  me.  Then  he  opened  their  understanding 
that  they  might  understand  the  Scriptures,  and  he  said  to  them  : 
Thus  it  is  written,  and  thus  it  behooved  Christ  to  suffer,  and  to  rise 
again  from  the  dead  the  third  day  ;  and  that  penance  and  remission 
of  sins  should  be  preached  in  his  name  unto  all  nations  (12),  begin¬ 
ning  at  Jerusalem.  And  you  are  witnesses  of  these  things,  and,”  in 
order  that  you  may  be  capable  of  giving  and  maintaining  such  great 
testimony,  “  I  send  the  promise  of  my  Father  upon  you  ;  but  stay 
you  in  the  city,  till  you  be  endued  with  power  from  on  high.” 

Thus  it  was  that  (i)  “Jesus  showed  himself  alive  after  his  passion 
by  many  proofs,  for  forty  days  appearing  to  them,  and  speaking  of 
the  kingdom  of  God.  And  eating  with  them,  he  commanded  them, 
that  they  should  not  depart  from  Jerusalem,  but  should  wait  for  the 
promise  of  the  Father,  which  you  have  heard  (saith  he)  by  my 
mouth.  For  John  indeed  baptized  with  water,  but  you  shall  be 
baptized  with  the  Holy  Ghost  not  many  days  hence.” 

(c)  “  They,  therefore,  who  were  come  together,”  still  taken  up  with 
the  idea  of  the  Messiah’s  temporal  reign,  “  asked  him,  saying  :  Lord, 
wilt  thou  at  this  time  restore  again  the  kingdom  to  Israel  ?”  The  Holy 
Ghost  was  soon  to  free  them  entirely  from  this  notion  ;  wherefore, 
without  pausing  to  contradict  it,  the  Lord  merely  answered  :  “  It  is  not 
for  you  to  know  the  times  or  moments,  which  the  Father  hath  put  in 


(а)  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  44-49. 

(б)  Acts,  i.  3-5. 


(c)  Acts,  i.  6-1 1  ;  St.  Luke,  xxiv. 
50,  51  ;  St.  Mark,  xvi.  19. 


(12)  This  was  the  most  interesting  news  which  could  be  brought  to  mankind.  Re¬ 
sponsible  to  God’s  justice  for  an  infinite  debt,  men  were  incapable  of  discharging  it,  and 
their  reprobation  was  inevitable.  It  is  announced  to  them  that  a  Saviour  has  appeared, 
who  has  paid  the  debt  for  them,  and  that,  by  penance,  each  of  them  can  avail  himself  of 
so  great  a  privilege.  The  penance  which  is  here  spoken  of  is  properly  that  which  dis¬ 
poses  for  baptism,  which  penance  consists  in  the  detestation  of  the  sins  committed,  joined 
to  a  sincere  desire  never  to  commit  them  again.  There  is  no  further  reference  to  works 
in  satisfaction  for  sin,  because  these  works  are  only  necessary  for  the  expiation  of  sins 
committed  after  baptism. 


CHAP.  LXXI.] 


OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


his  own  power  ;  but  you  shall  receive  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
coming  upon  you,  and  you  shall  be  witnesses  unto  me  in  Jerusalem, 
and  in  all  Judea,  and  Samaria,  and  even  to  the  uttermost  part  of  the 
earth.”  When  the  Lord  Jesus  had  said  these  things,  “  he  led  them 
out  as  far  as  Bethania,  and  lifting  up  his  hands  he  blessed  them  ;  and 
it  came  to  pass,  whilst  he  blessed  them,  he  departed  from  them. 
While  they  looked  on  he  was  raised  up  ;  a  cloud  received  him  out 
of  their  sight,  [ and  he]  was  taken  up  into  heaven,  and  sitteth  on  the 
right  hand  of  God.  While  they  were  beholding  him  going  up  to 
heaven,  behold  two  men  stood  by  them  in  white  garments,  who 
said  :  Ye  men  of  Galilee,  why  stand  you  looking  up  to  heaven  ? 
This  Jesus,  who  is  taken  up  from  you  into  heaven,  shall  so  come  as 
you  have  seen  him  going  into  heaven.” 

Thus  the  expectation  of  Jesus  Christ  has  been  the  occupation  and, 
if  we  may  venture  to  say  so,  the  religion  of  all  ages.  Promised  im¬ 
mediately  after  the  sin  of  the  first  man,  he  fixed  the  attention  of  all 
the  just  from  the  birth  of  time  until  that  of  his  coming.  Scarcely 
had  he  quitted  the  earth  when  two  angels  declared  to  his  disciples 
that  he  should  one  day  re-appear  there.  They  then  immediately 
dispersed  themselves  throughout  all  nations,  to  whom  they  announced 
not  only  that  he  had  come,  but  also  that  he  should  come  again.  He 
shall  come,  said  the  prophets  commissioned  to  foretell  his  first  ap¬ 
pearance.  He  is  come,  and  he  shall  come,  have  the  apostles  said, 
they  being,  in  their  turn,  prophets  of  his  second  coming.  The  period 
for  the  first  was  indicated,  because  it  was  not  to  have  sufficient  lustre 
to  strike  all  eyes  at  once,  and  because,  in  order  to  be  recognized,  it 
was  necessary  that  it  should  be  looked  for.  The  time  of  the  second 
coming  is  not  foretold,  nor  is  it  necessary  that  it  should  be,  because 
Jesus  Christ  shall  then  exhibit  himself  in  all  the  splendor  of  the 
divinity — as  the  sun,  manifesting  itself  by  its  own  light,  does  not 
require,  in  order  to  be  perceived,  that  the  observer  should  have 
notice  of  the  moment  when  it  is  to  appear  on  the  horizon.  Then 
shall  be  seen  the  accomplishment  of  those  magnificent  prophecies, 
which  represent  him  so  majestic  and  so  terrible  to  behold  ;  and  all 
the  oracles  regarding  the  Messiah  shall  be  found  verified  to  the 
letter,  (a)  “  what  or  in  what  manner  of  time  the  spirit  of  Christ  in 

(a)  1  Peter,  i.  11. 


oaoaaoaao* 


V«j  f. 


them  did  signify,  when  it  foretold  those  sufferings  that  are  in  Christ, 
and  the  glories  that  should  follow.”  The  first  class  of  prophecies 
described  a  Saviour  who  only  could  become  such  by  humiliation 
and  by  sorrow  ;  the  second  class  of  prophecies  announce  a  judge 
who  shall  show  himself  in  all  the  lustre  of  divine  power  and  majesty. 
Unhappy  those  who  shall  have  disowned  him  in  his  humiliations  ! 
He  who  came  in  order  to  be  their  Saviour,  shall  appear  to  them  no 
longer  in  any  other  quality  than  that  of  judge  and  avenger  of  their 
crimes.  Happy  those  who  shall  have  recognized,  revered,  imitated 
him  in  the  humble  and  suffering  state  to  which  his  love  for  men  hath 
reduced  him  !  In  their  judge  they  shall  behold — a  Saviour — who 
has  promised  to  share  his  throne  and  his  eternal  bliss  with  those 
who  shall  have  taken  part  in  his  humiliation  and  his  sufferings. 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  LIFE,  ETC, 


[PART  It. 


BHD  OF  THE  LIFE  OF  CHRIST. 


S>1  uc  * 
nil? 


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L. 


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. 

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;  if 


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if,  j  ... 


f 


THE 


IN  WHICH  ARE  RETAINED  AND  DISTINGUISHED 


WITH  CONNECTIONS,  EXPLANATIONS,  AND  REFLECTIONS 


A  POSTHUMOUS  WORK  OP 


FATHER  FRANCIS  DE  LIGNY, 


OF  THE  SOCIETY  OF  JESUS. 


BEING  INTENDED  AS  A  SEQUEL  TO  THE 


BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 


TRANSLATED  FROM  THE  FRENCH  BY 


WITH  THE  APPROBATION  OF  THE  MOST  REV.  JOHN  HUGHES,  D.D. 
ARCHBISHOP  OF  NEW  YORK. 


NEW  YORK: 

D.  &  J.  SADLIER  &  CO.,  164  WILLIAM  STREET. 

BOSTON  128  FEDERAL  STREET. 

AND  179  NOTRE-DAME  STREET,  MONTREAL,  C.  E. 


in!': 

i^vAj 


The  life  of  Our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  on  earth  appeared  so  naturally 
to  end  with  his  ascension,  that  I  had  at  first  no  intention  of  follow¬ 
ing  it  up  by  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  Certain  reflections  which  I 
have  since  made  have,  however,  induced  me  to  do  so.  The  first  and 
most  conclusive  is,  that  the  Holy  Ghost  himself  has  appointed  it  so 
that  this  second  historical  portion  of  the  New  Testament  comes 
immediately  after  the  first,  of  which  it  is,  indeed,  the  corroboration, 
nay,  even  the  completion.  Jesus  Christ  had  made  magnificent 
promises  ;  he  had  announced  sublime  truths  ;  and  he  had  inculcated 
the  most  perfect  system  of  morality.  None  of  his  words  were  to 
fall  to  the  ground,  but  each  and  every  one  was  to  be  literally  ful¬ 
filled.  It  was,  therefore,  necessary  that  the  event  should  justify  the 
promise  ;  that  the  mysteries  of  religion  should  be  received  by  the 
Gentile  nations  ;  and  that  the  laws  of  the  Gospel,  so  far  beyond  the 
mere  strength  of  man'  should  nevertheless  find  numerous  and  faith¬ 
ful  observers.  Then  Jesus  Christ  spoke  not  in  vain,  and  the  divinity 
of  his  mission  was  demonstrated  by  its  success.  From  the  Book  of 
the  Acts  we  learn  that  Jesus  Christ  had  no  sooner  quitted  the  earth 
than  the  Holy  Ghost,  so  frequently  and  so  solemnly  promised,  came 
down  upon  the  disciples.  Being  instantly  endowed  with  strength 
and  courage  from  on  high,  these  men,  hitherto  so  timorous  and  fear 
ful,  stood  forth  at  once  and  presented  to  the  Jews,  as  their  God, 
their  Messiah,  and  their  only  hope  for  salvation,  that  Jesus  who  had 
been  the  object  of  their  hatred,  and  the  victim  of  their  malice.  The 
people  were  converted  by  thousands,  and  from  their  union  with  their 
chiefs  springs  the  Christian  Church,  composed  of  pastors  and  hear¬ 
ers.  The  nations  of  the  earth,  being  called  to  enter  that  fold,  hast¬ 
ened  to  obey  the  summons  ;  Peter  receives  the  first-fruits,  and  Paul 


-T1.'1  T 


% 


4F I 
il  F 

^  Æi 


\\/r 


is 


'M‘ 


gathers  in  the  harvest  ;  the  wild  olive  is  grafted  on  the  true  vine, 
Israel  the  common  stem,  and  of  both  is  formed  that  chosen  people, 
the  real  Israel,  or  as  it  is  called  by  the  apostle,  the  Israel  of  God 
(Gal.  vi.  16),  the  fulfilment  of  his  promises,  and  the  object  of  his 
tenderest  affection. 

Thus,  notwithstanding  the  repugnance  of  nature  and  the  preju¬ 
dices  of  reason,  the  crucified  Saviour  is  adored,  and  what  is  still 
more  surprising,  he  is  imitated.  His  morality,  purer  and  more 
sublime  than  aught  that  human  wisdom  had  ever  imagined,  and  so 
fully  exemplified  -by  his  own  life,  is  announced,  received,  and  prac¬ 
tised.  It  is  understood  by  every  mind,  and  the  passions  are  all  obe¬ 
dient  to  its  sway,  so  that  a  band  of  ordinary  men,  brought  together 
as  it  were  by  chance,  is  suddenly  transformed  into  a  company  of 
saints.  The  most  distinguished  philosophers  had  failed  to  reform 
even  a  single  town,  while  this  prodigious  reformation,  effected 
through  the  agency  of  a  few  poor  fishermen,  spreads  abroad  from 
its  cradle  in  Jerusalem  even  to  the  uttermost  ends  of  the  earth,  as 
though  it  were  one  vast  arena.  Nay,  so  rapid  is  its  progress,  that 
many  of  those  who  knew  Jesus  Christ  in  person,  his  contempo¬ 
raries  and  his  disciples,  lived  to  see  with  their  own  eyes  the  fulfil¬ 
ment  of  that  prophecy  which  they  had  heard  from  his  own  divine 
lips  !  If  I  be  lifted  wp  from  the  earth,  I  will  draw  all  things  to 
myself  (St.  John,  xii.  32).  He  who  sees  not  here  the  imprint  of 
the  finger  of  God  is  either  mentally  blind  or  wilfully  incredulous. 
If  there  be  any  prodigy  greater  than  that  of  the  establishment  of 
Christianity,  it  is  assuredly  the  unbelief  of  those  who  hold  out 
agaiust  the  evidence  of  its  proofs. 


sf  i 

7> 


ftsm — '"Fpirii| 


THE  HISTORY 


OF  THE 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


CHAPTER  I. 

RETURN  OF  THE  DISCIPLES  FROM  MOUNT  OLIVET  TO  JERUSALEM. - THEY  RETIRE  TO 

AN  UPPER  ROOM.— SAINT  PETEr’s  DISCOURSE  FOLLOWED  BY  THE  ELECTION  OF 
SAINT  MATTHIAS  IN  THE  PLACE  OF  JUDAS. 

Jesus  had  at  length  vanished  from  the  eyes  of  his  disciples,  who, 
nevertheless,  being  confirmed  in  their  faith  by  this  new  prodigy  of 
the  ascension,  adored  him  (a)  whom  they  no  longer  beheld.  Their 
charity,  more  enlightened  than  of  old  it  had  been,  forbade  them  to 
deplore  a  separation  which  must  naturally  have  been  so  painful. 
They  had  at  last  fathomed  the  meaning  of  the  words  :  “  If  ye  loved 
me,  ye  would  indeed  be  glad  because  I  go  to  my  Father”  ( b ).  When 
they  could  no  longer  see  him  with  the  eyes  of  the  body,  they  began 
to  consider  him  with  those  of  the  mind,  seated  on  the  throne  of  his 
divinity,  established  sole  monarch  of  the  universe  (c),  and  preparing 
for  them  seats  of  glory  by  his  side.  “  They  went  back,”  therefore, 
“with  great  joy  to  Jerusalem”  (c?)  ;  going  forth  “from  the  moun¬ 
tain  named  Olivet,  which  is  no  more  than  a  Sabbath-day’s  journey” 
from  the  capital. 

“And  when  they  had  entered  in,  they  went  up  into  an  upper 
room,  where  there  remained  Peter  and  John,  James  and  Andrew, 
Philip  and  Thomas,  Bartholomew  and  Matthew,  James  the  son  of 
Alpheus,  Simon  Zelotes,  and  Jude  the  brother  of  James.  All  these 


(а)  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  52. 

(б)  St.  John,  xiv.  28. 


(c)  St.  Jude,  5. 

( d )  St.  Luke,  xxiv.  52» 


fflTTT" 


3 


! .  '-'S/SrSaEif' 

— ! 

1 

Uln. 

Bill: 

ill 

i 

IS 

574 


THE  HISTOKY  OE  THE 


[CHAT.  I. 


were  persevering  with  one  mind  (1)  in  prayer  with  the  women  (2), 
and  Mary  the  mother  of  Jesus,  and  his ‘brethren”  (3). 

Meanwhile  there  was  still  a  vacant  place  in  the  college  of  the 
apostles.  The  newly-chosen  people  was  to  have  twelve  patriarchs, 


like  that  of  old.  Peter,  being  the  visible  head  of  the  church  since 
the  departure  of  Him  who  is  her  eternal  and  invisible  chief,  was 
charged  with  the  care  of  filling  up  the  vacancy.  Whether  his  master 


had  given  him  a  special  order  so  to  do,  or  that  he  was  admonished 


by  inspiration,  he  lost  no  time  in  doing  his  duty.  “  In  those  days” 
(«),  that  is  to  say,  from  Ascension-day  till  the-  day  of  Pentecost, 
“  Peter  rising  up  in  the  midst  of  the  brethren,  said  


ber  of  persons  together  was  about  a  hundred  and  twenty)  :  Men, 
brethren,  the  Scripture  must  be  fulfilled  which  the  Holy  Ghost  fore¬ 
told,  by  the  mouth  of  David,  concerning  Judas,  who  was  the  leader 
of  them  that  apprehended  Jesus.  Who  was  numbered  with  us,  and 


had  obtained  part  of  this  ministry.  And  he  indeed  hath  pos¬ 


sessed  (4)  a  field  of  the  reward  of  iniquity  ;  and,  being  hanged, 


burst  asunder  in  the  midst,  and  all  his  bowels  gushed  out.  And  it 

(a)  Acts,  i.  15. 


(1)  They  prayed  unanimously  and  perseveringly.  Prayer,  unanimity  in  prayer,  and 
perseverance  in  prayer,  three  things  which,  united  together,  do  violence  to  heaven.  These 


would,  of  themselves,  have  sufficed  to  draw  down  the  Holy  Ghost,  even  had  he  not  been 
promised.  See  chap.  iv.  31. 


(2)  The  holy  women,  who  followed  Jesus  in  his  wanderings,  who  never  forsook  him 
during  the  time  of  his  passion,  whom  he  had  made  the  witnesses  of  his  resurrection,  and 
probably  of  his  ascension.  Having  him  no  longer,  they  still  clung  to  those  who  were 
the  most  closely  connected  with  him,  viz.,  his  mother,  his  brethren,  and  his  disciples. 


(3)  Who,  at  length,  believed  in  him,  convinced  at  last  by  the  miracle  of  his  resurrec¬ 


tion.  These,  however,  must  not  be  confounded  with  those  already  named,  James,  son 
of  Alpheus,  Simon  and  Jude,  brothers  of  James,  who  are  called  in  the  Gospel  the  breth¬ 
ren  of  the  Lord.  These  last  had  believed  even  previous  to  their  being  called,  for  it  is 


written  that  Jesus  selected  his  apostles  from  amongst  his  disciples.  Luke,  vi.  13. 


(4)  He  hath  possessed,  say  the  greater  number  of  translators,  by  which  they  under¬ 
stand  that  this  field  was  bought  with  the  traitor’s  own  money.  The  Latin  word  properly 
signifies  possess.  The  Greek  word,  which  signifies  both  possess  and  acquire,  is  more 
generally  taken  in  the  former  sense.  It  is,  therefore,  used  in  preference  to  the  other, 
the  rather  as  some  commentators  have  perceived  in  it  a  sort  of  literal  meaning.  It  is 
that  Judas  did  indeed  possess  the  field  in  the  only  way  in  which  he  could  possess  it,  for 
they  think  that  he  was  the  first  who  was  buried  in  it,  as  being  one  of  those  strangers  for 
whose  sepulture  it  was  intended. 


$  , 


/\ 


i 


CHAP.  I.] 

became  known  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  ;  so  that  the  same 
field  is  called  in  their  tongue,  Haceldama  ;  that  is,  the  field  of  blood. 
For  it  is  written  in  the  book  of  Psalms  :  Let  their  habitation  become 
desolate,  and  let  there  be  none  to  dwell  therein  (1)  ;  and  let  another 
take  his  bishoprick  (2).  Wherefore,  of  these  men  who  have  been 
with  us  all  the  time  that  the  Lord  Jesus  came  in  and  went  out 
among  us — beginning  from  the  baptism  of  John,  until  the  day 
wherein  he  was  taken  up  from  us — one  of  these  must  be  made  a 
witness  with  us  of  his  resurrection  (3).” 

“  And  they  appointed  two  (a)  ;  Joseph,  called  Barsabas,  who  was 
surnamed  J ustus,  and  Matthias.  And  praying,  they  said  :  Thou, 
O  Lord,  who  knowest  the  hearts  of  all  men,  show  which  of  these 
two  thou  hast  chosen  to  take  the  place  of  this  ministry  and  apostle- 
ship,  from  which  Judas  hath,  by  transgression,  fallen,  that  he  might 
go  to  his  own  place.”  Which  is  to  say,  ( b )  “  they  gave  them 
lots  (4).” 

Two  had  been  chosen  by  the  judgment  of  men,  but  one  of 


(a)  Acts,  i.  23. 


(b)  Ibid.,  i.  26. 


(1)  Such  was  the  prediction,  and  it  was  literally  fulfilled,  but  it  assumes  the  character 
of  a  malediction.  We  find,  in  the  Psalms,  many  examples  of  a  like  nature.  Charitable 
persons  are  sometimes  scandalized  to  see  the  Prophet-king  invoke  so  much  vengeance  on 
the  heads  of  his  enemies  and  persecutors  ;  they  see  not  that  the  evil  is  not  desired  but 
only  predicted,  and  that  the  prediction  is  merely  put  in  that  form  to  give  it  a  poetical 
turn,  as  befits  the  Psalms — the  most  sublime  of  all  poetical  compositions.  Instances  of 
this  kind  are  also  frequent  in  the  profane  poets,  when  they  announce  misfortunes  which 
are  already  past  ;  which,  however,  were  still  to  come  at  the  time  given  in  the  poem. 
(See  Virgil’s  Æneid,  liv.  iv.  ver.  625.) 

(2)  This  prophecy  applies  only  to  Judas  ;  that  which  precedes  it,  wherein  it  is  said  : 
“Let  their  habitation  become  desolate,”  refers  to  the  Jewish  nation,  to  whom  Jesus  had 
already  said  :  “Behold,  your  house  shall  he  left  to  you  desolate ”  (Matt,  xxiii.  38),  but  it 
has  also  a  personal  application  to  Judas,  whose  field  was  converted  into  a  cemetery  ;  a 
striking  figure,  this,  of  what  befel  Jerusalem,  which  became  the  tomb  of  its  inhabitants. 

(3)  The  miracle  of  the  resurrection  does  not  comprise  all  religion  ;  nevertheless  it  is 
the  basis  on  which  all  religion  rests. 

(4)  We  learn  from  Scripture  that  casting  lots  may  be  lawful  under  certain  circum¬ 
stances.  But  the  fact  is,  that  as  the  apostles  acted  in  this  matter  on  divine  inspiration, 
they  have  no  need  of  our  apologies.  In  after  days  it  was  forbidden  by  the  canon  law  to 
cast  lots  in  choosing  the  ministers  or  pastors  of  the  church.  What  is  good  at  one  time 
may  be  evil  at  another  ;  nay,  it  may  even  become  so  hurtful,  by  reason  of  the  abuses  to 
which  it  gives  rise,  that  it  is  better  never  to  use  it. 


1  1 

uni .  •  ’ .  ;  ill 

ii!!r 

Ijjlj 

té 


K 


[chap  I. 

them  was  preferred  by  the  judgment  of  God.  “The  lot  fell  on 
Matthias  (a),  and  he  was  numbered  with  the  eleven  apostles.”  By 
this  election  he  was  placed  in  a  position  to  receive  the  Holy  Ghost 
in  a  degree  proportionate  to  so  high  a  vocation.  It  was  apparently 
for  this  reason  that  his  election  took  place  at  that  particular  time. 


CHAPTER  n. 

DESCENT  OF  THE  HOLT  GHOST. - THE  GIFT  OF  TONGUES. - THE  PREACHING  OF  SAINT 

PETER. - CONVERSION  OF  THREE  THOUSAND  PERSONS. 

“  The  vessel  of  the  Church,”  to  avail  myself  of  the  elegant  com¬ 
parison  of  a  holy  doctor  (1),  “was  built  and  fitted  up  ;  she  had  her 
pilot,  her  helm,  and  her  sails,  together  with  all  the  other  things 
necessary  for  securing  a  prosperous  voyage.  Still  there  was  one 
thing  wanting,  without  which  she  might  remain  immovable  for  all 
eternity  :  this  was  the  inspiring  breeze,  which  was  to  be  as  her  soul, 
and  to  set  all  her  parts  in  motion.  The  moment  was  at  length 
come.  ‘  The  days  of  the  Pentecost  (2)  were  accomplished,  and  they 

(a)  Acts,  i.  26. 


(1)  Chrysost.,  Homily  on  the  Holy  Ghost. 

(2)  A  Greek  word  which  signifies  the  fifty  days,  or  the  fiftieth  day  ;  these  two  mean¬ 
ings  amounting  to  one  and  the  same  thing.  It  had  been  a  Jewish  festival  long  before 
the  occurrence  of  this  great  event  made  it  one  of  the  festivals  of  the  Christian  Church. 
For  the  Jews,  it  was  the  anniversary  of  that  day  on  which  God  gave  the  law  to  their 
Fathers  on  Mount  Sinai.  God  subsequently  ordained  that  on  that  day  they  should  offer 
to  him  the  first-fruits  of  their  wheat  crop,  according  to  the  rite  prescribed  in  the  twenty- 
third  chapter  of  Leviticus.  It  was  only  after  this  offering  had  been  made  that  the  people 
were  permitted  to  lay  a  sickle  to  the  harvest.  This  was  a  figure  of  that  abundant  har¬ 
vest  which  was  to  be  reaped  by  the  apostles,  the  first-fruits  of  which  were  gathered  in 
and  offered  up  on  that  day  by  the  chief  of  the  apostles.  With  us  Christians,  one  sole 
oblation  has  replaced  all  other  offerings  and  sacrifices  ;  and  for  us,  Pentecost  is  the  anni¬ 
versary  of  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  of  the  promulgation  of  the  evangelical  law, 
and  the  foundation  of  the  Christian  Church.  All  that  was  accomplished  in  one  day,  nay, 
within  one  hour  ;  for,  according  to  St.  Luke,  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  assem¬ 
blage  of  the  multitude,  the  discourse  of  St.  Peter,  and  the  conversion  of  three  thousand 


CHAP.  IL J  ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES.  577 

were  altogether  (1)  in  one  place.  And  suddenly  there  came  a  sound 
from  heaven,  as  of  a  mighty  wind  coming,  and  it  filled  the  whole 
house  where  they  were  sitting.  And  there  appeared  to  them  parted 
tongues  as  it  were  of  fire  (2),  and  it  sat  upon  every  one  of  them. 
And  they  were  all  filled  (3)  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  they  began 
to  speak  with  divers  tongues  according  as  the  Holy  Ghost  gave  them 
to  speak.” 

“Now  there  were  dwelling  at  Jerusalem  Jews,  devout  men  (4), 
out  of  every  nation  under  heaven.  And  when  this  was  noised 
abroad  the  multitude  came  together,  and  were  confounded  in  mind, 
because  that  every  man  heard  them  speak  in  his  own  tongue.  And 
they  were  all  amazed  and  wondered,  saying:  Behold,  are  not  all 
these,  that  speak,  Galileans  ?  And  how  have  we  heard  every  man 
our  own  tongue  wherein  we  were  born  ?  Parthians,  and  Medes,  and 
Elamites,  and  inhabitants  of  Mesopotamia,  Judea  (5),  Cappadocia, 


of  his  hearers  scarcely  occupied  one  hour.  “  The  grace  of  God  knows  no  delay'' — St. 
Ambrose,  Book  II. 

(1)  Altogether,  that  is  to  say,  at  least  the  twenty-six  persons  who  were  present  at  the 
election  of  St.  Matthias  ;  the  literal  meaning  seems  to  include  them  all,  and  the  common 
belief  is  to  that  elfect.  Hence  it  neither  excludes  Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesus  (as  a  cer¬ 
tain  heretical  commentator  would  make  it  appear),  nor  yet  the  holy  women  who,  with 
her,  persisted  in  prayer.  For  them  it  was  as  the  sacrament  of  confirmation.  The  Holy 
Ghost,  who  breathes  wheresoever  he  will,  communicated  himself  to  all  in  such  measure 
as  he  saw  fit,  and  diversified  his  gifts  according  to  the  various  uses  for  which  he  destined 
the  members  of  that  sacred  assembly. 

(2)  We  are  not  to  suppose  that  this  was  real  fire.  Nothing  is  ever  likened  to  itself  : 
hence,  no  one  thinks  of  saying  :  “  Water  is  like  water.”  So  it  is  with  the  wind,  of  which 
it  is  written  that  the  noise  it  made  was  like  that  of  a  mighty  wind  ;  therefore  it  was  not 
really  wind,  but  only  a  sound  like  unto  it.  So,  too,  the  tongues  had  but  the  brightness 
and  agility  of  flame.  They  were  so  many  symbols  whereby  the  Holy  Ghost  made  known 
his  nature,  his  properties,  and  his  effects.  The  same  may  be  said  of  the  dove,  under  the 
figure  of  which  he  visibly  descended  on  Jesus  Christ  after  he  had  been  baptized  in  the 
Jordan. 

(3)  Nevertheless  the  measure  was  not  the  same  for  all,  because  their  capacities  were 
very  unequal.  J ust  like  so  many  vases  of  unequal  size  to  be  filled  with  some  precious 
liquor,  all  of  which  would  be  equally  filled,  although  the  division  of  the  liquor  would  be 
unequal.  Expand  our  hearts,  0  Almighty  Spirit  !  since  to  thee  it  belongs  to  enlarge  the 
vases  as  well  as  to  fill  them. 

(4)  So  called  in  this  place,  because  it  was  in  fulfilment  of  a  religious  duty  that  they 
had  assembled  in  J erusalem. 

(a)  It  seems  that  the  Jews,  or  inhabitants  of  Judea,  ought  not  to  have  been  surprised 

37 


À.N  | 

m  ml 


U 


s* 


iry. 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE 


[chap.  n. 


Pontus,  and  Asia,  Phrygia  and  Pampliylia,  Egypt,  and  the  parts  of 
Lybia  about  Çyrene,  and  strangers  of  Rome.  Jews  also,  and  prose¬ 
lytes  (1),  Cretes  and  Arabians  :  we  have  heard  them  speak  in  our 
own  tongues  the  wonderful  works  of  God  (2).  And  they  were  all 
astonished,  and  wondered,  saying  one  to  another:  What  meaneth 
this  ?  But  others  mocking,  said  :  These  men  are  full  of  new 
wine  (3).” 

They  blasphemed  that  of  which  they  knew  nothing,  which  is 
generally  the  case  with  blasphemers  ;  but  on  this  occasion  they  were 
quickly  confounded  ;  for  “  Peter,  standing  up  with  the  eleven  («),” 

(a)  Acts,  ii.  14. 

on  hearing  the  Apostles  speak  in  their  own  tongue.  It  has  been  inferred  from  this  pas¬ 
sage  that  the  language  of  the  Galileans  was  different  from  that  which  was  spoken  in 
Judea  ;  this  inference  is  not  correct.  ’  It  is  evident,  from  many  texts  of  Scripture,  that 
the  Jews  and  the  Galileans  understood  each  other’s  language.  When  the  servants  of  the 
high-priest  said  to  St.  Peter  :  Thou  too  art  a  Galilean,  those  words  rather  support  our 
opinion  than  contradict  it.  Both  parties  spoke,  and  understood  each  other,  and  that 
which  betrayed  St.  Peter  was,  not  that  he  spoke  a  foreign  tongue,  hut  that  he  spoke  in 
the  accent  of  his  country,  just  as  Frenchmen  quickly  recognize  a  Gascon  by  his  accent. 
What  was  it  then  that  excited  the  surprise  of  the  Jews  of  Judea?  It  was  this  :  one  of 
these  Jews  who  understood  what  the  apostle  said,  happened  to  stand  beside  a  Greek  or 
a  Roman  who  understood  him  just  as  well,  and  lienee  the  astonishment  of  the  Jews. 
“For,”  said  they,  “if  he  spoke  Greek  or  Latin  how  could  I  understand  him,  since  I 
know  notmng  of  those  languages  ?  so,  when  he  speaks  in  my  tongue,  how  is  it  that  these 
strangers  understand  him  ?” 

Through  the  gift  of  tongues  which  the  apostles  had  received,  1st,  They  spoke  the 
respective  languages  of  all  those  whom  they  had  to  address  ;  2d.  They  understood  each 
of  those  tongues  when  spoken  to  themselves  ;  3d.  When  they  spoke  at  the  same  time  to 
men  of  divers  countries  and  of  various  tongues,  they  were  understood  by  all  the  men  at 
once,  as  proved  by  this  discourse  of  St.  Peter’s.  But  how  could  that  be  so  ?  God  who 
operated  the  miracle  alone  knows.  We  can,  nevertheless,  comprehend  this  much — that 
every  word  spoken  by  the  apostles  on  that  occasion  in  any  language  whatsoever,  was, 
by  the  power  of  God,  so  modulated  on  the  air  that  it  struck  Grecian  ears  as  the  Greek 
■word  with  the  same  meaning,  while  to  the  Roman  ear  it  sounded  as  a  Latin  word,  and 
so  on  with  all  the  others. 

(1)  A  Greek  word,  properly  signifying  a  stranger,  or  one  gathered  in,  or  to  speak  still 
more  accurately,  a  foreigner  sojourning  amongst  a  certain  people.  The  term  was  applied 
by  the  Jews  to  those  of  the  Gentiles  who  renounced  paganism  to  embrace  Judaism. 

(2)  When  once  the  mind  is  full  of  the  spirit  of  God,  the  tongue  can  speak  of  nothing 
but  God.  The  carnal  Jews  regarded  all  this  as  the  effects  of  drunkenness,  and  nowa¬ 
days  lukewarm  Christians  esteem  it  as  pure  fanaticism. 

(3)  In  this  text,  they  are  full  of  new  wine,  there  is  found  the  Greek  word  for  sweet 
wine,  which  has  here  precisely  the  same  signification.  This  phrase  has  excited  some 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


and  being  the  mouth-piece  of  them  all,  according  to  the  Golden 
Mouth  when  commenting  on  this  passage,  “  lifted  up  his  voice  and 
spoke  to  them  :  Ye  men  of  Judea,  and  all  you  that  dwell  in  Jerusa¬ 
lem,  be  this  known  to  you,”  who  are  so  amazed,  “  and  with  your  ears 
receive  my  words.  For  these  are  not  drunk,  as  you  suppose,  seeing 
it  is  but  the  third  hour  of  the  day  (1).  But  this  is  that  which  was 
spoken  of  by  the  prophet  Joel  :  And  it  shall  come  to  pass  in  the 
last  days  (2)  (saith  the  Lord),  I  will  pour  out  of  my  Spirit  (3)  upon 
all  flesh  (4)  :  and  your  sons  and  your  daughters  shall  prophesy,  and 
your  young  men  shall  see  visions,  and  your  old  men  shall  dream 
dreams.  And  upon  my  servants,  indeed,  and  upon  my  handmaids 
will  I  pour  out  in  those  days  of  my  Spirit,  and  they  shall  pro¬ 
phesy  (5).  And  I  will  show  wonders  in  the  heaven  above,  and 


surprise,  seeing  that  it  was  not  then  the  season  for  new  wine  :  consequently  the  word 
has  been  omitted  in  the  greater  number  of  translations.  It  should,  however,  be  retained, 
because  it  is  in  the  sacred  text,  and  there  is  no  need  to  suppress  it.  As  new  wine  is 
always  more  effervescent,  and  affects  the  head  more  quickly,  it  has  at  all  times  been  cus¬ 
tomary,  when  speaking  of  a  man  being  intoxicated,  to  say  :  “He  is  drunk  with  new  wine.” 

(1)  Nine  o’clock  in  the  morning.  We  learn  from  the  historian  Josephus,  that  on  fes¬ 
tival  days  the  Jews  were  in  the  habit  of  fasting  till  noon.  It  is  not  known  that  there 
was  any  law  to  that  effect,  the  practice  being  simply  one  of  devotion.  Still  the  custom 
was  so  general,  that  to  say  it  was  but  nine  o’clock  was  at  least  a  reasonable  proof  that 
they  had  not  yet  broken  their  fast. 

(2)  And  those  last  days  were  then  come,  being  the  termination  of  the  Hebrew  dispen¬ 
sation,  both  civil  and  religious.  From  that  day  forward,  the  ancient  law  was  no  longer 
binding,  and  was  barely  tolerated  till  the  fall  of  Jerusalem,  when  it  was  formally  con¬ 
demned,  and  ever  after  its  observance  became  a  crime. 

(3)  In  Joel  we  read  :  “I  will  pour  out  my  Spirit St.  Peter  said  :  “  I  will  pour  out 
of  my  Spirit,”  which  would  appear  to  signify  less;  yet  these  two  expressions  perfectly 
agree.  The  Spirit  is  entirely  poured  out,  but  it  cannot  be  contained  entire  in  vases  so 
narrow  as  are  the  hearts  of  men  ;  it  fills  them,  and  they  infinitely  overflow.  Joel  speaks 
of  the  quantity  poured  out,  and  St.  Peter  of  what  was  received. 

(4)  This  word  chiefly  signifies  that  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  was  thenceforward  poured 
out  on  all  nations,  without  distinction  of  Jew  or  Gentile.  It  signifies  also  a  more  abun¬ 
dant  effusion,  as  well  in  the  measure  of  grace,  as  in  the  number  of  persons  of  every  age, 
sex,  and  condition,  to  whom  it  shall  communicate  itself.  Nothing  was  more  common 
than  this  in  the  first  age  of  the  Church  ;  and  even  now,  though  the  prodigy  be  more 
rare  and  less  perceptible,  still  we  do  occasionally  find  simple  and  illiterate  persons  speak¬ 
ing  of  heavenly  things  with  the  tongues  of  angels,  whilst  of  other  matters  they  know 
little  or  nothing. 

(5)  Without  excluding  prophecy,  properly  so  called,  which  means  the  foretelling  of 


U 


w{.". 


ill"' 


(fs 


signs  on  the  earth,  beneath  ;  blood  and  fire,  and  vapor  of  smoke. 
The  sun  shall  be  turned  into  darkness,  and  the  moon  into  blood, 
before  the  great  and  manifest  day  (1)  of  the  Lord  come.  And  it 
shall  come  to  pass,  that  whosoever  shall  call  upon  the  name  of  the 
Lord  shall  be  saved.” 

On  the  foundation  of  this  prophecy  the  apostle  proceeds  to  estab¬ 
lish  the  Gospel,  and  to  point  out  to  the  people  the  Lord  whom  they 
must  henceforward  invoke,  in  order  to  obtain  salvation:  even  Him 
whom  they  had  crucified.  By  a  prodigy  of  strength,  far  above  his 
own  natural  weakness,  he  openly  declares  it  to  them  ;  but,  in  order 
to  secure  to  himself  increased  attention,  he  told  them  again,  for  the 
second  time:  “Ye  men  of  Israel  (a),  hear  these  words:  Jesus  of 
Nazareth,  a  man  approved  of  God  among  you  by  miracles,  and  won¬ 
ders,  and  signs,  which  God  did  by  him  in  the  midst  of  you,  as  you 
also  know.  This  same  being  delivered  up,  by  the  determinate  coun¬ 
sel  and  foreknowledge  of  God  (2),  you,  by  the  hands  of  wicked  men, 

(a)  Acts,  ii.  22. 


future  events,  they  shall  ■prophesy  here  signifies,  in  a  general  way,  that  they  shall  utter 
words  which  shall  be  suggested  and  dictated  by  the  spirit  of  the  Lord. 

(1)  In  Latin,  manifestus.  The  prophet  Joel  had  said  horrihilis.  It  appears  that  the 
prophet  and  the  apostle  both  referred  to  the  last  judgment,  according  to  the  common 
interpretation.  St.  Chrysostom  understands  it  of  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem,  to  which  he 
applies  the  above-mentioned  prodigies,  as  metaphorical  descriptions  of  that  terrific 
destruction.  We  may  unite  these  two  interpretations,  and  from  their  union  deduce  the 
time  reason  why  these  fearful  predictions  came  immediately  after  the  descent  of  the  Holy 
Ghost.  The  day  on  which  that  event  took  place  may  be  considered  as  the  last  of  the 
old  law  and  the  first  of  the  new.  But  the  abolition  of  the  ancient  law  was  to  be  speedily 
followed  by  the  total  ruin  of  the  Jewish  people  ;  and  the  new  dispensation  shall  only  ter¬ 
minate  with  the  world,  whose  end  is  to  be  characterized  by  fearful  signs  which  are  to 
precede  and  announce  its  coming.  Hence  the  term  of  the  duration  of  the  two  laws  is 
here  predicted,  as  also  that  the  second  shall  be  followed  by  no  other. 

(2)  It  was  the  will  of  God  that  Jesus  Christ  should  suffer  as  he  did.  By  his  pre¬ 
science  he  foresaw  exactly  what  sufferings  the  Jews  were  to  inflict  upon  him.  He  left 
them  to  do  as  their  malice  dictated,  and  hence  the  saying  that  he  delivered  Him  to  them. 
The  will  of  God,  which  had  put  forth  the  decree,  was  just  and  holy  ;  whereas  the  act  of 
the  Jews,  who  put  it  in  execution,  was  unjust  and  detestable.  God  willed  not  that  mal¬ 
ice  of  theirs,  but  neither  did  he  impede  its  course,  because  it  served  for  the  accomplish¬ 
ment  of  his  designs.  It  follows  that  the  same  action  may  be  justly  decreed,  and  criminal 
in  its  execution:  so  that  God  is  blameless  and  the  Jews  inexcusable.  Those  who  do  not 
acknowledge  the  infallibility  of  the  divine  prescience,  are  driven  to  assert  that  God  urged 


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ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


have  crucified  and  slain.  Whom  God  hath  raised  up,  having  loosed 
the  sorrows  of  hell  (1),  as  it  was  impossible  that  he  should  be  holden 
by  it.  For  David  saith  concerning  him  :  I  foresaw  the  Lord'  before 
my  face,  because  he  is  at  my  right  hand,  that  I  may  not  be  moved. 
For  this  my  heart  hath  been  glad,  and  my  tongue  hath  rejoiced: 
moreover,  my  flesh  also  shall  rest  in  hope,  because  thou  wilt  not 
leave  my  soul  in  hell,  nor  suffer  thy  Holy  One  (2)  to  see  corruption. 


the  Jews  to  act  as  they  did,  in  order  to  secure  the  execution  of  his  decrees,  thereby 
representing  God  as  both  ignorant  and  wicked.  Those  persons  who,  when  evil  befalls 
them,  refer  it  not  to  the  will  of  God,  hut  only  to  the  malice  of  those  who  inflicted  the 
injury,  they  are  indeed  blindly  ignorant,  knowing  not  that  God  has  ordained  that  they 
should  thus  suffer  ;  they  are  wicked/  when,  in  violation  of  the  commandment  of  God, 
they  hate  the  man  who  has  done  them  the  injury. 

The  Lord  hath  given,  and  the  Lord  hath  taken  away,  said  Job,  although  it  was  Satan 
who  had  done  him  all  the  harm. 

(1)  In  the  Greek  text  it  is  :  the  sorrows  of  death.  We  may  observe  that  in  the  lan¬ 
guage  of  Scripture,  infernus  frequently  signifies  the  grave.  Hence,  many  commentators 
have  explained  it  as  death  and  the  grave.  With  regard  to  wrhat  is  said  of  the  sorrows  of 
death,  they  have  understood  it  of  the  sufferings,  both  of  mind  and  body,  which  Jesus 
endured  till  his  very  last  moment,  but  which  were  then  forever  at  an  end,  or  otherwise 
of  the  corruption,  and  other  humiliating  consequences  of  sepulture,  from  all  which  he 
was  exempted.  This  is  all  true,  and  may  be  based  on  certain  expressions  interspersed 
through  this  discourse.  But  there  are  others  which  can  only  be  understood  with  refer¬ 
ence  to  hell,  properly  so  called  ;  not  the  hell  of  the  damned,  but  those  subterraneous 
prisons  wdierein  the  souls  of  the  just  were  retained  until  heaven  was  opened  for  them. 
Such  is  the  expression  of  David,  which  St.  Peter  quotes  in  support  of  what  he  asserts  : 
Thou  wilt  not  leave  my  soul  in  hell.  Hell  cannot  here  signify  the  tomb  ;  for  if  so,  what 
is  called  my  soul  should  there  signify  the  body,  and  even  a  corpse,  or  dead  body,  which 
occurs  nowhere  in  Scripture.  It  follows  that  the  two  meanings  must  be  here  recog¬ 
nized  ;  that  is  to  say,  we  are  to  understand  it  that  the  soul  shall  neither  be  left  in  hell, 
nor  the  body  in  the  tomb.  The  consequence  is  that  there  must  remain  here  a  certain 
ambiguity,  because  that  in  deciding  for  either  of  the  two  meanings,  the  other  must  neces¬ 
sarily  be  excluded,  and  thereby  run  the  risk  of  contravening  the  intention  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  who  might  have  meant  to  express  both  meanings  at  once,  as  he  has  done  in 
several  passages  of  the  sacred  books.  This  ambiguity  belongs,  therefore,  to  the  text, 
and  the  respect  due  to  Scripture  forbids  it  to  be  explained  away. 

(2)  The  Holy  One,  by  excellence,  that  is  to  say,  Jesus  Christ.  Here  we  are  to  under¬ 
stand  the  text  as  having  more  especial  reference  to  the  body  of  the  Saviour,  sanctified 
and  consecrated  by  the  Word,  who,  after  the  separation  of  the  body  and  soul  of  Jesus 
Christ,  remained  as  closely  united  with  them  as  before  they  were  separated  by  death. 
He  had  long  before  said  :  Thou  wilt  not  leave  my  soul  in  hell.  Calvin,  and  his  disciple 
Beza,  translated  this  text  as  follows  :  Thou  wilt  not  leave  my  body  in  the  tomb.  They 
had  a  good  reason  for  so  doing,  since  neither  one  nor  the  other  believed  in  the  descent 


THE  IIISTOBY  OF  THE 


Thou  hast  made  known  to  me  the  ways  of  life  :  thou  shalt  make  me 
full  of  joy(l)  with  thy  countenance.  Ye  men,  brethren,”  adds  the 
apostle,'  “let  me  freely  speak  to  you  of  the  patriarch  David  ;  that  he 
died,  and  was  buried  ;  and  his  sepulchre  is  with  us  unto  this  present 
day.  Whereas,  therefore,  he  was  a  prophet,  and  knew  that  God 
had  sworn  to  him  with  an  oath  that  of  the  fruit  of  his  loins  one 
should  sit  upon  his  throne  ;  foreseeing  this,  he  spoke  of  the  resur¬ 
rection  of  Christ.  For  neither  was  he  left  in  hell,  neither  did  his 
flesh  see  corruption.  This  Jesus  hath  God  raised  again,  whereof  all 
we  are  witnesses.  Being  exalted,  therefore,  by  the  righjb-  hand  of 
God,  and  having  received  of  the  Father  the  promise  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  he  hath  (2)  poured  forth  this  which  you  (3)  see  and  hear. 
For  David  ascended  not  into  heaven  ;  but  he  himself  said  :  The 
Lord  said  to  my  Lord ,  sit  thou  on  my  right  hand  until  L  mahe  thy 
enemies  thy  footstool.  Therefore,  let  all  the  house  of  Israel  know 
most  certainly,  that  God  hath  made  both  Lord  and  Christ  this  same 
Jesus,  whom  you  have  crucified.” 

Whilst  the  chief  of  the  apostles  pronounced  this  admirable  dis¬ 
course,  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  had  suggested  it  to  him,  spoke  also  to 
the  hearts  of  those  who  heard  him.  The  first  emotion  wherewith 
he  inspired  them  was  one  of  profound  sorrow  for  having  been  the 
murderers  of  the  Lord  of  glory  and  the  Saviour  of  Israel,  (a)  “  Now 

(a)  Acts,  ii.  37. 


of  Christ’s  soul  into  hell.  Catholic  interpreters  who  adopt  this  translation  of  the  text, 
do  not  seem  to  consider  that  they  are  thus  following  in  their  footsteps. 

Before  the  ascension  of  Christ  the  souls  of  all  men  descended  into  hell,  or  at  least  into 
Limbo.  Hence  it  was  that  any  one  who  was  then  restored  to  life  was  always  said  to  be 
raised,  his  body  from  the  tomb  and  his  soul  from  hell.  It  is  not  surprising,  therefore, 
that  David  should  have  made  use  of  this  form  of  speech,  which  has,  moreover,  a  literal 
application  with  regard  to  Jesus  Christ. 

(1)  The  countenance  of  God  was  always  present  to  Jesus  Christ.  But  the  sensible 
joy  which  is  the  natural  effect  thereof,  was  suspended  during  the  time  of  his  passion. 
He  resumed  the  possession  of  this  ineffable  joy  immediately  after  he  had  breathed 
his  last. 

(2)  Why  should  not  He  he  God  who  hath  the  giving  of  the  Holy  Ghost  ?  said  St. 
Augustine  to  the  Allans  (lib.  xv.  de  Trinitat.,  cap.  26)  :  and  how  great  is  that  God  who 
giveth  a  God! 

(3)  They  saw  and  heard  him  by  his  effects,  which  sensibly  manifested  his  almighty 
operations. 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


CHAP.  II.] 

when  they  had  heard  these  things  they  had  compunction  in  their 
heart  (1),  and  said  to  Peter  and  to  the  rest  of  the  apostles  :  What 
shall  we  do  (2),  men  and  brethren  ?  Peter  said  to  them  :  Do  pen¬ 
ance,”— it  was  by  this  same  injunction  that  Jesus  Christ  and  his  pre¬ 
cursor  had  also  commenced  their  preaching  :  “  Do  penance  (3),  and 
be  baptized,  every  one  of  you,  in  the  name  (4)  of  Jesus  Christ,  for 
the  remission  of  your  sins  ;  and  you  shall  receive  the  gift  of  the 
Holy  Ghost  (5).  For  the  promise  is  to  you,  and  to  your  children, 
and  to  all  that  are  far  off,  whomsoever  the  Lord  our  God  shall  call.” 

(a)  “  And  with  very  many  other  words  did”  Peter  “  testify,”  and 
in  order  to  impress  their  minds  still  more  deeply,  after  having 
enlightened  them,  he  “  exhorted  them,  saying  :  Save  yourselves  from 
this  perverse  generation.  They  therefore  that  received  his  word 

(a)  Acts,  ii.  40. 


(1)  This  is  the  literal  translation  of  the  Latin  text,  compuncii  sunt  corde.  The  Greek 
has  precisely  the  same  signification. 

(2)  That  person  is  very  near  salvation  whose  heart  says  through  his  mouth  :  What 
shall  I  do  ? 

(3)  He  has  reference  to  that  penance  which  must  precede  baptism.  It  consists  in 
a  thorough  detestation  of  the  past,  together  with  a  firm  purpose  of  amendment,  to  which 
must  be  added,  according  to  the  Council  of  Trent,  a  love  of  God,  at  least  commenced. 
This  is  what  the  theologians  call  penance  vertu.  It  is  entirely  in  the  heart,  and  is  totally 
independent  of  satisfactory  works,  although  these  last  are  the  natural  consequence  of  the 
heart  being  truly  contrite. 

(4)  That  is  to  say,  the  baptism  instituted  by  Jesus  Christ,  which  derives  all  its  virtues 
from  his  merits,  and  in  which  he  is  named  as  second  person  of  the  most  Holy  Trinity. 
Some  ancient  writers  of  respectability  were  of  opinion  that  the  apostles  had  commenced 
baptizing  with  this  formula  :  I  baptize  thee  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ.  This  opinion 
has  since  been  abandoned,  and  not  without  reason.  The  order  which  Jesus  Christ  had 
given  them  to  baptize  all  nations,  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  is  too  precise  and  too  positive  to  be  susceptible  of  change  or  dispensation. 
Hence  there  is  no  satisfactory  proof  that  the  apostles  ever  departed  from  it  in  any  degree 
whatsoever.  It  is,  therefore,  to  distinguish  the  baptism  of  Christ  from  the  other  Hebrew 
baptisms,  and  especially  that  of  John,  which  was,  by  many,  considered  sufficient,  that 
St.  Peter  here  says:  Be  baptized,  every  one  of  you,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ.  The 
conclusion  of  these  jnoofs  shall  be  given  at  the  beginning  of  chap.  xix. 

(5)  Sanctifying  grace,  according  to  these  words  of  St.  Paul  :  The  charity  of  God  is 
poured  forth  in  o'Ur  hearts  by  the  Holy  Ghost  who  is  given  to  us  (Romans  v.  5).  We 
also  understand  by  the  Holy  Ghost  being  given  in  the  sacrament  of  confirmation,  that 
the  apostles  usually  conferred  it  immediately  after  baptism. 


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were  baptized  :  and  there  were  added”  to  the  infant  church  “  in  that 
day,  about  three  thousand  souls  (1).” 

These  were  the  first-fruits  of  the  sanctifying  spirit,  whose  master¬ 
pieces  they  also  were.  These  first  Christians  were,  of  all  others,  the 
most  perfect  ;  and  the  same  grace  which  rendered  them  just,  made 
them  also  saints  of  the  very  highest  order.  “  And  they  were  perse¬ 
vering  in  the  doctrine  of  the  apostles,  and  in  the  communication  of 
the  breaking  of  bread  (2),  and  in  prayers.  And  fear  came  upon 
every  soul  for  “  many  wonders  and  signs  were  done  by  the  apos¬ 
tles  in  Jerusalem,  and  there  was  great  fear  in  all  (3).  And  all  they 
that  believed  were  together,  and  had  all  things  in  common  (4). 


(1)  This  was  the  foundation  of  the  Church.  Jesus  Christ  had  formed  the  pastors, 
the  pastors  formed  the  people,  who,  on  their  very  entrance,  found  the  government 
already  established.  The  people  cannot,  therefore,  assume  the  right  of  choosing  their 
pastors  without  reversing  the  primitive  constitution  of  the  Church.  They  may  have  a 
share  in  the  choice  by  prayer  and  by  testimony  ;  or,  at  most,  by  presentation.  The 
election,  properly  so  called,  the  preservation,  and  the  jurisdiction  must  all  come  from 
above.  Such  was  Christianity  in  its  cradle;  and  such  shall  it  be  till  the  end  of  ages. 

(2)  The  Eucharist,  according  to  the  greater  number  of  interpreters.  Some  understand 
it  of  the  distribution  of  common  bread,  and  it  is  certain  that  the  breaking  of  bread  has 
these  two  different  meanings  in  Scripture.  The  first  is, >  however,  to  be  preferred,  not 
only  because  it  is  the  most  generally  followed  (and  this  alone  is  a  strong  presumption  in 
favor  of  texts  which  are  susceptible  of  different  meanings),  but  also  because  of  the  place 
wherein  this  word  is  here  found.  It  is  natural  to  think  that  the  breaking  of  bread,  which 
is  here  mentioned  between  two  acts  of  religion,  such  as  prayer  and  attention  to  the  word 
of  God,  is  rather  the  communion  of  the  Eucharist  than  the  eating  of  common  bread. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  most  of  those  who  understand  it  of  common  bread,  are  Protest¬ 
ants.  They  will  not  recognize  any  allusion  to  the  Eucharist  where  only  bread  is  men¬ 
tioned,  and  this  because  the  inference  would  be  plain  that  one  kind  is  sufficient  for  com¬ 
munion. 

(3)  Believers  as  well  as  unbelievers.  The  former  experienced  that  religious  fear  with 
which  men  ever  behold  great  prodigies  ;  while  the  unbelievers  were  stricken  with  terror 
on  seeing  the  wonders  wrought  by  the  apostles  ;  very  naturally  fearing  that  these  all- 
powerful  men  might  become  the  avengers  of  the  murdered  Messiah.  A  great  crime  is 
always  followed  by  great  remorse,  and  though  assured  confidence  be  on  the  face,  terror 
and  apprehension  are  in  the  soul. 

(4)  This  is  the  model  of  a  perfect  state  of  society.  Plato  had  conceived  this  idea  ; 
but,  as  usually  happens  with  philosophers,  who  seldom  imagine  any  thing  good  without 
having  therein  a  certain  portion  of  extravagance,  the  divine  Plato  carried  his  notion  so 
far  that  even  women  must  be  common  property.  The  consequence  was  that  his  plan 
was  deemed  impracticable,  and  set  down  as  a  visionary  scheme.  Here  we  see  it  per¬ 
fected  and  carried  out  by  the  fishermen  of  Bethsaida.  We  know  not  what  our  philoso- 


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IS 


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chap,  hi.] 

Their  possessions  and  other  goods  they  sold  (1),  and  divided  them 
to  all,  according  as  every  one  had  need.  And  continuing  daily  with 
one  accord  in  the  temple,”  to  join  in  prayer,  “  and  breaking  bread 
from  house  to  house  (2),  they  took  their  meat  with  gladness  and 
simplicity  of  heart  ;  praising  God,  and  having  favor  with  all  the 
people.  And  the  Lord  increased  daily  together  such  as  should  be 
saved.” 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  LAME  MAH  CUBED  AT  THE  GATE  OF  THE  TEMPLE. - SECOND  PEE  ACHING 

OF  ST.  PETEE. 

The  last  feature  of  perfect  Christianity  was  still  wanting  to 
them— that  is,  persecution.  Hell  and  the  world  were  as  yet  silent 
and  inactive  ;  whether  it  was  that  terror  had  deprived  them  of  voice 
and  motion,  or  that  God,  by  his  almighty  power,  kept  them  en¬ 
chained,  in  order  that  these  new  plants  might  grow  and  multiply. 
But  the  calm  was  not  of  long  duration  :  the  slumbering  powers  were 
soon  aroused  into  action  by  a  startling  prodigy,  which  was  followed 
by  the  most  brilliant  and  complete  success  to  the  cause  of  religion. 
Then  broke  forth  a  war  which  was  destined  to  be  obstinately  main¬ 
tained,  and  in  its  issue  most  disgraceful  to  the  aggressors,  who  were 
at  last  to  find  their  entire  strength  and  power  overcome  by  weak- 


phers  may  think  of  the  comparison,  but  we  are  quite  sure  that  not  one  of  them  is  a 
Plato. 

The  arm  of  God  is  not  shortened  :  the  apostles  of  the  New  World  established  this 
blessed  community  amongst  the  most  barbarous  tribes,  and  to  the  confusion  of  more 
civilized  nations,  this  admirable  policy  subsisted  in  those  remote  regions  for  better  than 
a  centuiy. 

(1)  A  belief  in  the  ruin  predicted  for  Jerusalem  and  Judea  might,  in  some  measure, 
have  facilitated  this  resignation  of  property  ;  still  .the  faith  must  have  been  great,  indeed, 
that  prompted  men  to  make  such  sacrifices. 

(2)  Here  it  is  much  more  probable  that  the  breaking  of  bread  signifies  the  eating  of 
common  bread.  What  renders  this  more  likely  is,  that  it  is  said  immediately  after  : 
They  took  their  meat  with  gladness,  &c. 


-\VU/, 


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586  THE  HISTORY  OE  THE  [gHAP.  ni. 

ness  itself.  The  following  was  the  cause  of  the  first  outbreak  of 
hostilities. 

(«)  “  Peter  and  John  went  up  into  the  temple,”  to  assist  “  at  the 
prayer  of  the  ninth  hour  (1).  And  a  certain  man  who  was  lame 
from  his  mother’s  womb,  was  carried  ;  whom  they  laid  every  day 
at  the  gate  of  the  temple,  which  is  called  Beautiful,  that  he  might 
ask  alms  of  them  that  went  into  the  temple  (2).  He,  when  he  had 
seen  Peter  and  John  about  to  go  into  the  temple,  asked  to  receive 
an  alms.  Peter,  with  John,  fastening  his  eyes  upon  him,  said  :  Look 
upon  us.  He  looked  earnestly  upon  them,  hoping  that  he  should 
receive  something  of  them.  Then  Peter  said:  Silver  and  gold  I 
have  none  (3)  ;  but  what  I  have  I  give  thee  :  in  the  name  of  Jesus 
Christ  of  hvazareth  (4),  arise,  and  walk.  And  taking  him  by  the 
right  hand,  he  lifted  him  up,  and  forthwith  his  feet  and  soles  re¬ 
ceived  strength.  And  he  leaping  up,  stood,  and  walked,  and  went 

(a)  Acts,  iii.  1. 


(1)  Three  o’clock,  P.  M.  The  Jews  were  wont  to  assemble  at  this  hour  in  the  temple 
for  a  general  or  joint  prayer,  which  corresponded  with  our  vespers.  It  is  very  probable 
that  this  prayer  either  accompanied,  or  immediately  preceded  the  evening  sacrifice.  We 
know  that  this  sacrifice  was  offered  daily,  according  to  the  commandment  given  by  God 
to  Moses  (Exodus,  chap.  xxix.).  This  is  what  thou  shalt  sacrifice  upon  the  altar.  Two 
lambs  of  a  year  old,  every  day  continually.  One  lamb  in  the  morning,  and  another  in 
the  evening.  Those  who  place  the  evening  sacrifice  at  three  o’clock  precisely,  believe, 
in  consequence,  that  it  was  to  unite  the  reality  with  the  figure  that  Jesus  Christ  chose 
to  die  at  that  same  hour. 

(2)  Amongst  the  Christians,  as  formerly  amongst  the  Jews,  the  poor  are  found  standing 
at  the  gates  of  the  churches.  They  presume  that  true  piety  is  never  devoid  of  charity,  and 
in  that  they  are  not  mistaken.  We  should  take  care  lest  we  deceive  ourselves  on  this  point. 

A  poor  man  who  solicits  alms  at  the  church-door  is  the  representative  of  that  Jesus 
to  whom  we  there  pray.  Let  us  regard  him  as  we  would  that  he  should  regard  us  ;  let 
us  hearken  to  him  as  we  would  that  he  should  hear  us  ;  let  us  speak  to  him  as  we  would 
that  he  should  speak  to  us  ;  let  us  give  to  him  as  we  would  have  him  give  unto  us  : 
assuredly  our  measure  of  grace  and  mercy  shall  be  his  also  (Matt.,  vii.  2). 

(3)  At  present  the  Church  possesses  both  gold  and  silver,  and  that  by  lawful  right. 
But  the  duties  arising  from  this  possession  are  so  onerous,  that  the  servants  of  God  who 
are  the  depositaries  of  these  treasures,  are  often  tempted  to  sigh  after  the  poverty  of 
early  times. 

(4)  These  miracles  operated  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  were  more  glorious  to  him 
than  if  he  had  performed  them  in  his  own  person.  They  demonstrated  that  the  power 
which  he  possessed  was  not  a  borrowed  power,  but  that  of  an  independent  sovereign, 
exercised  in  whatever  way  seemed  good  to  him,  either  by  himself  or  his  ministers. 


: 


1 


CHAP.  III.]  ACTS  OP  THE  APOSTLES.  587 

in  with,  them  into  the  temple,  walking,  and  leaping,  and  praising 
God.  And  all  the  people  saw  him  walking  and  praising  God.  And 
they  knew  him,  that  it  wras  he  who  sat  begging  alms  at  the  Beautiful 
gate  of  the  temple  ;  and  they  were  filled  with  wronder  and  amaze¬ 
ment  at  that  which  had  happened  to  him.  As  he  held  Peter  and 
John,  all  the  people  ran  to  them,  to  the  porch  which  is  called  Solo¬ 
mon’s  (1),  greatly  wondering.” 

(a)  “  Peter  seeing”  so  great  a  concourse  of  people,  availed  himself 
of  the  opportunity  in  order  to  address  to  them  the  following  dis¬ 
course,  whose  strength  and  sweetness  (for  these  qualities  were  ad¬ 
mirably  blended  together)  might  well  soften  the  hardest  hearts,  and 
make  the  boldest  tremble.  “Ye  men  of  Israel,”  said  he  to  them, 
“  why  wonder  you  at  this  ?  or  why  look  you  upon  us,  as  if  by  our 
strength  or  power  we  had  made  this  man  to  walk?  The  God  of 
Abraham,  and  the  God  of  Isaac,  and  the  God  of  Jacob,  the  God  of 
our  fathers  hath  glorified  his  son  Jesus,  whom  you  delivered  up,  and 
denied  before  the  face  of  Pilate,  when  he  judged  he  should  be  re¬ 
leased.  But  you  denied  the  Holy  One  and  the  Just,  and  desired  a 
murderer  to  lie  granted  unto  you.  But  the  author  of  life  you  killed, 
whom  God  hath  raised  from  the  dead,  of  which  we  are  witnesses. 
And  in  the  faith  of  his  name,  this  man  whom  you  have  seen  and 
known,  hath  his”  almighty  “  name  strengthened  ;”  yes,  “  the  faith 
which  is  by  him  (2)  hath  given  this  perfect  soundness  in  the  sight  of 
you  all.” 

(a)  Acts,  iii.  12. 


(1)  So  called,  it  is  supposed,  because  it  was  built  by  Solomon.  In  that  case  the 
Babylonians  must  have  spared  it,  at  least  in  part,  when  they  destroyed  the  temple,  of 
which  it  was  a  sort  of  out-work.  When  the  temple  was  rebuilt  this  porch  was  repaired, 
and  made  available.  At  the  time  of  which  we  speak  it  was  used  by  the  Gentiles  who 
came  to  worship  at  Jerusalem.  Besides  this  vestibule,  there  was  another  which  was 
reserved  for  the  Jews,  and  even  they  were  not  permitted  to  enter  therein  without  being 
purified.  Otherwise  they  were  obliged  to  remain  amongst  the  Gentiles,  in  Solomon’s 
porch.  Next  to  that  was  that  part  of  the  temple  which  was  called  the  Sanctuary, 
which  Avas  only  to  be  entered  by  the  priests,  Avho  burned  incense  there  on  the  altar  of 
perfumes,  all  the  people  standing  without,  as  we  learn  from  the  history  of  Zacharias 
(Luke,  i.).  The  Holy  of  Holies  was  separated  from  the  Sanctuary  by  that  veil  which 
was  rent  asunder  at  the  moment  of  our  Saviour’s  death.  It  is  Avell  known  that  only  the 
high-priest  could  enter  here,  and  that  once  a  year. 

(2)  We  read  in  the  Latin,  fide. s  quœ  per  eum  est  Most  people  translate  this  by  faith 


k 


588 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  III. 


After  having  thus  reproached  them  with  their  crime,  it  only  re¬ 
mained,  as  it  would  seem,  to  announce  the  punishment  thereof. 
Perhaps  they  expected  this  ;  perhaps  they  even  feared  that  the  min¬ 
ister  of  that  Omnipotent  Just  man,  so  grossly  betrayed,  might 
instantly  command  the  earth  to  open  beneath  their  feet,  or  cause 
lire  from  heaven  to  descend  upon  them.  Great,  therefore,  was  their 
surprise,  when  they  only  heard  from  his  mouth  words  of  grace  and 
of  salvation.  “  I  know”  he  added,  seeking  like  his  master  to  exten¬ 
uate  their  guilt  (1),  “I  know,  brethren,  that  you  did  it  through 
ignorance,  as  did  also  your  rulers  (2).  But  those  things  which  God 
had  showed  by  the  mouth  of  all  the  prophets,  that  his  Christ  should 
suffer,  he  hath  so  fulfilled.  Repent,  therefore,  and  be  converted, 
that  your  sins  may  be  blotted  out  (3).  That,  when  the  times  of 


in  him,  while  others  translate  it  faith  from  him.  The  first  of  these  two  translations  is 
more  natural  here  ;  the  second  is  more  literal  :  each  is  expressive  of  a  true  meaning, 
wherefore  they  are  both  retained  and  united. 

(1)  Lulte,  xxiii. 

(2)  We  have  seen  that  it  was  also  because  of  their  ignorance  that  Jesus  Christ  excused 
them.  It  is,  however,  necessary  to  ascertain  in  what  manner  and  how  far  the  Jews  were 
excused  by  their  want  of  knowledge.  They  knew  well  that  Jesus  was  innocent,  and 
thus  far  they  were  altogether  inexcusable  ;  but  they  knew  not  that  he  was  the  true  Mes¬ 
siah,  and  the  only  Son  of  the  living  God  ;  hence  their  guilt  was  much  less  than  if  they 
had  recognized  him  as  such,  and  yet  treated  him  as  they  did.  But  then  the  question 
arises,  whether  this  ignorance  of  theirs  was  not,  in  itself,  a  crime  ?  Certainly  it  was, 
since  he  had  given  proofs  more  than  sufficient  to  force  conviction  upon  them.  Still  their 
crime  was  not  so  great  as  if  they  crucified  him  with  a  perfect  knowledge  of  what  he  was  ; 
but  if  they  had  known  him,  their  malice  would  have  been  truly  diabolical,  in  doing  as 
they  did.  Yet  such  is  the  lenity  of  Jesus  that  he  sought  to  excuse  them,  because 
their  malice  might  have  been  still  greater  than  it  was.  What  an  example  for  Chris¬ 
tians,  who  are  obliged  to  resemble  him  in  this  point  as  in  all  others  !  and  what  a  con¬ 
demnation  for  those  who,  having  sustained  even  a  trifling  injury,  perhaps  done  unawares, 
not  only  regard  the  offender  with  implacable  hatred,  but  load  him  with  the  foulest 
abuse. 

(3)  .There  is  here,  in  the  Greek,  as  in  the  Latin,  the  conjunction  which  signifies  in 
order  that.  It,  however,  suspends  the  meaning,  and  renders  it  imperfect,  and  has,  there¬ 
fore,  been  omitted  in  this  (French)  translation,  following  the  example  of  several  com¬ 
mentators.  By  this  means  the  sense  is  rendered  complete.  Does  it  not  also  seem  that 
the  same  should  be  done  with  regard  to  the  text?  God  forbid.  There  can  be  no  bet¬ 
ter  proof  of  the  fidelity  with  which  the  Church  has  preserved  the  sacred  deposit  of  the 
Scriptures,  than  the  fact  that  she  will  not  permit  the  omission  of  a  single  syllable  ( utj 
although  it  appears  to  have  no  other  use  than  that  of  embarrassing  the  sense. 


fi  g 4 


Ai 


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CHAP.  III.] 

refreshment  (1)  shall  come  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord,  and  he 
shall  send  him  who  hath  been  preached  unto  you,  Jesus  Christ, 
whom  heaven  (2)  indeed  must  receive  until  the  times  of  the  restitu¬ 
tion  (3)  of  all  things,  which  God  hath  spoken  by  the  mouth  of  his 
holy  prophets  from  the  beginning  of  the  world.  For  Moses  said  : 
A  prophet  shall  the  Lord  your  God  raise  up  unto  you  of  your  breth¬ 
ren  (4)  like  unto  me  :  him  you  shall  hear  according  to  all  things 
whatsoever  he  shall  speak  to  you.  And  it  shall  be  that  every  soul 
which  will  not  hear  that  prophet  shall  be  destroyed  from  amongst 
the  people.  And  all  the  prophets  from  Samuel  and  afterwards,  who 
have  spoken,  have  told  of  these  days,”  and  of  that  which  was  to  hap¬ 
pen.  “  You  are  the  children  of  the  jirophets,  and  of  the  testament 
which  God  made  to  our  fathers,  saying  to  Abraham  :  In  thy  seed 
shall  cdl  the  kindreds  of  the  earth  be  blessed .”  The  blessing,  it  is  true, 
shall  be  general  ;  but  the  family  of  the  holy  patriarch  shall  be 
always  distinguished.  For  “  to  you  (5)  first,  God,”  faithful  to  his 


(1)  Here,  as  in  several  other  passages  of  Scripture,  by  refreshment  is  meant  the  hap¬ 
piness  of  heaven.  This  word,  when  taken  in  connection  with  what  precedes  and  follows, 
signifies  :  Do  penance,  that  you  may  obtain  the  remission  of  your  sins,  so  that  when 
Jesus  Christ  shall  come  to  judge  the  world,  you  may  be  found  just,  and  so  be  made 
participators  in  the  happiness  of  heaven. 

(2)  He  is  in  heaven  in  his  natural  and  visible  state;  but  this  does  not  prevent  him 
from  being  really  here  on  earth,  hidden  under  the  Eucharistic  species.  Judging  of  this 
by  the  senses,  it  is  just  as  if  he  were  not  present.  We  make  this  remark  because  Prot¬ 
estants  have  abused  this  text  in  order  to  combat  the  doctrine  of  the  real  presence. 

(3)  All  shall  be  re-established,  1st,  By  that  renewal  of  heaven  and  earth,  clearly  fore¬ 
told  by  St.  Peter  when  he  said  (2  Peter,  iii.  13)  :  We  loqk  for  new  heavens  and  a  new 
earth — in  which  justice  dwelleth.  These  last  words  signify,  2d,  That  order,  interrupted 
by  the  rebellion  of  angels  and  of  men,  shall  be  perfectly  restored.  All  the  good  shall 
be  happy,  and  all  the  wicked  unhappy  ;  one  only  will  shall  be  accomplished — that  is, 
the  will  of  God — whereby  all  creatures  shall  be  retained  under  the  supreme  and  eternal 
dominion  of  his  mere}'  or  justice. 

(4)  A  prophet,  and  infinitely  more  than  a  prophet,  since  he  is  the  God  of  the  proph¬ 
ets  ;  yet  also  a  prophet  in  the  fullest  signification  of  the  word.  He  spoke  in  the  name 
of  God,  and  by  divine  inspiration  ;  he  revealed  mysteries,  and  foretold  what  was  to 
come  ;  hence  his  disciples  sometimes  gave  him  the  name  of  prophet,  as  we  see  by  the 
conversation  of  the  two  disciples  going  to  Emmaus  (Luke,  xxiw).  He  also  gave  it  to 
himself,  when,  speaking  of  himself,  he  said  :  A  prophet  is  not  without  honor,  save  in  his 
own  country  and  in  his  own  house  (Matt.,  xiii.  57). 

(5)  A  prodigy  of  fidelity  on  the  part  of  God.  They  have  massacred  his  only  Son, 
yet,  because  of  the  promise  which  he  made  to  their  fathers,  it  is  to  them  first  that  that 


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590 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  IV 

promise  that  lie  would  save  Israel,  and  “raising  up  his  Son  (1),  hath 
sent  him  to  bless  you  :  that  every  one  may  convert  himself  from  his 
wickedness.” 


CHAPTER  IV. 

FIVE  THOUSAND  MEN  CONVERTED. - PETER  AND  JOHN  ARE  CAST  INTO  PRISON. - 

COUNCIL  OF  THE  APOSTLES. - DISCOURSE  .OF  SAINT  PETER. - SILENCE  IMPOSED  ON 

THE  APOSTLES. - TIIEIR  PRAYER  FOLLOWED  BY  A  FRESH  INFUSION  OF  THE  HOLY 

GHOST. - SANCTITY  OF  THE  FIRST  CHRISTIANS. - BARNABAS. 

A  discourse  so  touching,  preceded  and  proved  beforehand  by  a 
miracle  so  splendid,  produced  an  effect  still  more  wonderful  than 
the  miracle  itself,  (a)  “  Many  of  them  -who  had  heard  the  word, 

(a)  Acts,  iv.  4. 


salvation  is  to  be  announced  which  his  Son  brought  into  the  world.  They  are  now  about 
to  persecute  his  envoys  ;  they  will  scourge  them,  they  will  stone  them,  they  will  crucify 
them  ;  it  matters  not,  mercy  is  over  them  still,  and  for  forty  long  years  to  come,  it  will 
never  cease  to  call  them  back  ;  that  time  once  expired,  mercy  shall  be  no  more  for  them. 
The  Lord  will  say  :  I  have  draivn  near  to  this  generation  for  forty  years,  and  I  said  : 
Their  heart  is  far  from  me.  They  have  not  considered  my  ways,  because  they  would 
not  know  them  ;  but  at  last  I  have  sioorn  to  them  in  my  anger  that  they  shall  never  enter 
the  land  of  promise. 

This  is  said  of  the  race  then  living,  as  it  was  of  those  whom  God  had  brought  forth 
from  Egypt,  to  bring  them  into  the  promised  land,  the  entrance  to  which  had  been 
closed  by  their  crimes.  Of  all  the  generations  who  composed  the  people  of  God,  these 
two  were  the  most  favored  and  the  most  guilty. 

Christians,  who  are  more  corrupt  than  even  the  infidels,  and  who,  though  professing 
a  holy  religion,  are  more  wicked  than  the  rest  of  mankind,  are  represented  by  these  two 
generations  of  the  Jews.  Well  may  they  tremble  at  those  awful  words:  I  have  sivorn 
in  my  wrath  that  they  shall  never  enter  the  land  of  promise. 

It  is  true  that  the  Lord  waited  forty  years  for  the  conversion  of  these  Jews  ;  but  it  is 
also  true  that  he  granted  to  the  Ninevites  only  as  many  days. 

Moreover,  it  was  the  bulk  of  the  nation  that  God  awaited  during  forty  years.  In  the 
course  of  that  time,  individual  souls  perished  day  by  day.  For  many  amongst  them 
those  forty  years  were  not  even  forty  days. 

(1)  Raising,  and  not  bringing  to  life  again,  in  the  same  sense  that  Moses  had  said: 
God  will  raise  up  a  prophet  of  your  brethren,  &c. 


CHAP.  IV.] 

believed  ;  and  the  number  of  the  men  was  made  five  thousand,” 
without  including  women. 

“  As”  the  two  apostles  (a)  “  were  speaking”  (for  John  supported 
by  his  testimony  all  that  Peter  said),  “  as  they  were  speaking  to  the 
people,  the  priests  and  the  officers  (1)  of  the  temple  and  the  Saddu- 
cees  came  upon  them  (2),  being  grieved  that  they  taught  the  people, 
and  preached  in  Jesus  (3)  the  resurrection  from  the  dead.  They 
laid  hands  upon  them,  and  put  them  in  hold  till  the  next  day,  for  it 
was  now  evening,”  the  meeting  with  the  lame  man  having  only 
occurred  about  three  in  the  afternoon. 

An  event  such  as  this  could  not  be  regarded  with  indifference  by 
the  chief  men  of  the  nation  ;•  wdierefore,  “  it  came  to  pass  on  the 
morrow,  that  their  princes,  aud  ancients,  and  scribes,  were  gathered 
together  in  Jerusalem  ;  and  Annas,  the  high-priest  (4),  and  Caiaphas, 
and  John,  and  Alexander,  and  as  many  as  were  of  the  kindred  of 
the  high-priest.”  Having  brought  forth  the  two  apostles,  “and  set¬ 
ting  them  in  the  midst”  of  the  assembly,  “  they  asked  :  By  what 
power,  or  by  what  name  have  you  done  this  ?” 

How  will  that  apostle  dare  to  answer  these  powerful  rulers — he 
who  quailed  and  shrank,  on  a  former  occasion,  from  the  questions 

(a)  Acts,  iv.  1. 


(1)  In  Latin  magistratus.  The  Greek  word  signifies  a  man  who  exercises  military 
command.  This  was  the  officer  who  commanded  the  guard  of  the  temple.  It  is  thought 
that  this  official  and  his  men  were  always  Jews.  It  is  more  than  probable  that  it  was 
to  this  guard  Pilate  alluded  when  he  said  :  You  have  a  guard  ;  go,  guard  it  (the  body 
of  Jesus)  as  you  know. 

(2)  The  Sadducees  denied  the  resurrection,  which  the  Pharisees  maintained,  and  this 
opposition  of  opinion  rendered  these  two  sects  irreconcilable  enemies.  Still  the  Phari¬ 
sees  could  not  bear  to  have  the  resurrection  preached  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  and 
thus  it  happened  that  the  rival  sects  were  found  acting  together  on  this  occasion;  just 
as  we  see  heretics,  divided  amongst  themselves,  yet  conspiringyogether  against  the  com¬ 
mon  enemy — the  vicar  of  Jesus  Christ. 

(3)  In  Jesus.  Some  translate,  in  the  person  of  Jesus  ;  others,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  ; 
and  others  again,  by  the  power  of  Jesus.  These  three  meanings  are  all  correct,  so  that 
any  one  of  them  corresponds  with  the  text.  We  have  thought  it  best  to  leave  the  choice 
to  the  reader,  without  deciding  in  favor  of  any. 

(4)  It  has  been  already  observed  that  the  supreme  pontificate  was  annual,  and  held 
alternately  by  Annas  and  Caiaphas,  his  son-in-law.  It  was  then  the  father-in-law’s  year 
of  office. 


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[chap.  IV. 


of  their  servants  and  domestics  ?  Let  us  have  no  fear  on  that  head, 
either  for  himself  or  his  cause.  On  that  disgraceful  occasion  he  had 
been  full  of  self  only  ;  but  now  “  Peter,  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost,” 
is  not  afraid  to  say  “to  them”  openly:  “Ye  princes  of  the  people, 
and  ancients,  hear  :  If  we  this  day  are  examined  concerning  the  good 
deed  (1)  done  to  the  infirm  man,  by  what  means  he  hath  been  made 
whole— be  it  known  to  you  all,  and  to  all  the  people  of  Israel,  that 
by  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  (2)  of  Nazareth,  whom  you 
crucified,  whom  God  hath  raised  from  the  dead  (3),  even  by  him 
this  man  standetli  here  before  you  whole.  This”  he  added,  apply¬ 
ing  to  them  that  expression  of  the  Psalmist  which  they  themselves 
understood  as  having  reference  to  the  Messiah,  but  would  not  choose 
to  take  it  to  themselves  ;  “  This  is  the  stone  (4)  which  was  rejected 
byv  you  “  the  builders ,  which  is  become  the  head  of  the  corner. 
Neither  is  there  salvation  in  any  other.  For  there  is  no  other  name 
under  heaven  given  to  men,  whereby  we  must  be  saved  (5).” 


(1)  The  Holy  Ghost  had  put  this  expression  in  the  mouth  of  St.  Peter,  and  it  obvi¬ 
ously  pointed  out  the  absurdity  of  the  proceeding.  The  ground  of  the  indictment  was 
not  any  harm  that  had  been  done;  it  was  Only,  and  by  their  own  avowal,  the  good  deed 
which  had  been  done  to  an  infirm  man.  This  was  the  point  on  which  the  two  apostles 
rested  their  justification. 

(2)  It  was  under  this  name,  written  in  three  languages,  and  fastened  to  the  top  of  the 
cross,  that  Jesus  was  crucified.  ITis  enemies  still  applied  it  to  him  by  way  of  contempt 
(Acts,  vi.).  It  is  also  under  this  name  that  St.  Peter  points  him  out  to  his  fiercest  per¬ 
secutors,  and  dares  to  propose  him  to  them  as  the  sole  object  of  faith  and  hope.  The 
apostles  never  spared  prejudice,  and  in  this  they  triumphed  :  they  never  blushed  for  the 
opprobrium  which  had  been  heaped  upon  their  master,  and  hence  it  was  that  they  were 
raised  to  those  sublime  thrones,  where  they  receive  the  homage  of  an  entire  world. 

(3)  To  see,  with  their  own  eyes,  this  infirm  man  cured  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ 
arisen  from  the  dead,  was  a  proof  of  Christ’s  resurrection  as  convincing  as  if  they  had 
themselves  witnessed  that  event.  If  they  did  not  believe  in  the  one  case,  assuredly  they 
would  not  have  believed  in  the  other. 

Let  us  conclude,  however,  that  they  did  believe,  but  would  not  have  it  known  that 
they  did.  It  is  in  this  way  only  that  we  can  reconcile  the  evidence  before  them  with 
their  determined  efforts  to  suppress  it.  Those  who  know  any  thing  of  the  working  of 
the  passions  will  not  be  surprised  at  the  contradiction  between  their  convictions  and  their 
conduct. 

(4)  This  prophecy  is  taken  from  Psalm  cxvii.  Jesus  Christ  had  already  quoted  it 
with  reference  to  himself  (Matt,  xxi.),  a  short  time  before  his  passion,  and  the  Jews  then 
understood  that  he  alluded  both  to  them  and  to  himself. 

(5)  The  best  theologians  conclude  from  this  text  that  there  is  no  salvation  without 


■o  a  o  a  3  o  ooa 


. \  |  w 


i 

4A',ïk 


CHAP.  IV.] 

Admiration  was  the  first  feeling  excited  by  this  discourse  in  the 
minds  of  those  who  heard  it.  “Seeing  the  constancy  of  Peter  and 
of  John,  understanding  that  they  were  illiterate  and  ignorant  men, 
they  wondered  ;  and  they  knew  them,  that  they  had  been  with 
Jesus.  Seeing  the  man  also  who  had  been  healed  standing  with 
them,  they  could  say  nothing  against  it.  But  they  commanded 
them  to  go  aside  out  of  the  council  ;  and  they  conferred  among 
themselves,  saying:  What  shall  we  do  (1)  to  these  men  ?  for  indeed 
a  known  miracle  hath  been  done  by  them  ;  to  all  the  inhabitants  of 
Jerusalem  it  is  manifest,  and  we  cannot  deny  it.” 

We  cannot  deny  it,  and  must,  therefore,  believe  it.  Even  the 
most  simple  mind  would  have  drawn  this  natural  inference;  ;  but 
these  learned  and  enlightened  men  concluded  otherwise,  for  their 
evil  passions  urged  them  on  to  stifle  the  truth  which  they  could  not 
obviate.  “  But  that  it  may  be  no  further  spread  among  the  people, 
let  us  threaten  them,  that  they  speak  no  more  in  this  name  to  any 
man.  And  calling  them,  they  charged  them  not  to  speak  at  all, 
nor  teach  in  the  name  of  Jesus.” 

People  in  authority,  who  are  accustomed  to  see  those  beneath 
them  humbling  themselves  at  their  very  feet,  are  very  apt  to  imag¬ 
ine  that  they  can  make  them  do  any  and  every  thing  through  fear, 


explicit  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  that  is  to  say,  without  faith  being  accompanied  by  a  distinct 
knowledge  of  him.  This  conclusion  is  certain  and  indubitable. 

Nevertheless,  those  who  have  not  had  this  knowledge  shall  not  be  condemned  pre¬ 
cisely  because  of  their  ignorance,  but  for  their  personal  sins  ;  and  the  words  of  the 
prophet  shall  be  justly  applied  to  them  :  Destruction  is  thy  own,  0  Israel  (Os ee,  xiii.  9), 
although  thou  hast  not  known  Him  from  whom  alone  salvation  cometh. 

Every  day  we  hear  Christians  accuse  God  of  cruelty,  because  he  makes  the  knowledge 
of  Jesus  Christ  necessary  to  salvation,  while  so  many  are  in  utter  ignorance  of  him. 
True  Christians  recognize  and  bless  his  mercy,  in  that  he  has  vouchsafed  to  give  them 
that  knowledge  which  he  might  withhold  from  all. 

(1)  This  question  displays  the  vast  power  of  truth.  Here  we  see  on  the  side  of  its 
assailants  genius,  learning,  wealth,  and  power  ;  its  defenders  are  poor,  humble,  and  un¬ 
learned  :  yet  because  they  have  truth  on  their  side,  they  are  at  no  loss  either  what  to  do 
or  what  to  say,  while  their  proud  persecutors  are  reduced  to  ask  each  other:  What  shall 
we  do  ? 

This  advantage  was  but  the  prelude  of  the  great  victory  which  was  soon  to  astonish 
the  world  ;  wherein  that  same  truth,  weak  and  unarmed  as  it  was,  should  yet  prevail 
over  the  united  powers  of  earth,  up  in  arms  against  it,  and  pursuing  it  with  fire  and  sword. 

38 


% 


SIMHSj 


never  dreaming  that  they  would  dare  oppose  their  wishes.  This 
idea  soon  vanished  when  “Peter  and  John  answering,  said  to  them: 
If  it  be  just  in  the  sight  of  God  to  hear  you  rather  than  God,  judge 
ye  (1)  ;  for  we  cannot  but  speak  the  things  which  we  have  seen  and 
heard.” 

Menaces  were  quite  thrown  away  upon  such  men  as  these,  but  it 
was  the  only  resource  their  enemies  had.  “  But  they”  again  “  threat¬ 
ening,  sent  them  away  ;  not  finding  how  they  might  punish  them, 
because  of  the  people  ;  for  all  men  glorified  what  had  been  done,  in 
that  which  had  come  to  pass.  For  the  man  was  above  forty  years 
old  in  whom  that  miraculous  cure  had  been  wrought.” 

“  Being  let  go,  they  came  to  their  own  company  and  related  all 
that  the  chief  priests  and  ancients  had  said  to  them”  in  order  to 
induce  them  to  keep  silence.  A  still  greater  trial  demanded  an  in¬ 
crease  of  grace.  Wherefore  the  brethren  “having  heard  it,  with 
one  accord  lifted  up  their  voice  to  God  (2),  and  said  :  Lord,  thou  art 
he  that  didst  make  heaven  and  earth,  the  sea,  and  all  things  that 
are  in  them.  Who  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  by  the  mouth  of  our  father 
David  (3)  thy  servant,  hast  said  :  Why  did  the  Gentiles  rage ,  and 


(1)  Where  there  are  two  masters,  of  whom  one  is  subordinate  to  the  other,  should 
their  will  be  different,  and  their  orders  contradictory,  it  is  evidently  the  duty  of  the  per¬ 
son  so  commanded  to  obey  the  orders  of  his  chief  ruler  ;  to  do  the  bidding  of  the  inferior 
master  would  not  be  obedience,  but  rather  rebellion  against  the  common  master. 

St.  Peter’s  reply  relates  entirely  to  this  maxim,  which  lies  at  the  base  of  all  order  both 
in  religion  and  society. 

It  is  so  plain  that  even  children  know  it  well,  yet  interest  often  makes  men  so  blind  as 
to  overlook  it. 

Man  bears  within  him  a  greater  master  than  all  the  masters  of  the  world  :  that  is  to 
say,  his  conscience,  whose  dictates  he  must  always  oppose  to  the  unjust  will  of  the  most 
arbitrary  and  despotic  sovereign. 

If  it  be  objected  that  God  alone  is  above  princes,  then  this  consequence  follows  :  obey, 
then,  the  voice  of  conscience,  for  it  is  the  voice  of  God. 

This  voice  is  so  sure  to  be  heard,  even  by  the  most  wicked,  that  St.  Peter  hesitates 
not  to  say  to  them:  Judge  ye.  It  is  so  imperious  that  they,  at  least,  dare  not  judge 
against  it  ;  which,  on  their  part,  was  tantamount  to  judging  by  it. 

(2)  According  to  the  text,  they  all  lifted  up  their  voice,  and  all  gave  utterance  to  the 
same  prayer.  This  prayer  was,  therefore,  inspired  ;  for,  if  there  had  been  no  inspiration, 
there  would  have  been  some  difference,  at  least,  in  the  form  of  expression. 

(?)  It  appears  that  the  Jews,  when  speaking  of  David,  were  in  the  habit  of  calling 
him  our  father.  St.  Peter,  in  his  first  discourse,  styles  him  the  patriarch  David,  which 


DWG 


é  il 

“VN 


V 


CHAP.  IV.] 

the  people  meditate  vain  things  ?  The  kings  of  the  earth  stood  up, 
and  the  princes  assembled  together  against  the  Lord  and  against  his 
Christ.  For  of  a  truth  there  assembled  together  in  this  city 
against  thy  holy  child  Jesus,  whom  thou  hast  anointed,  Herod,  and 
Pontius  Pilate  (1),  with  the  Gentiles  and  the  people  of  Israel,  to  do 
what  thy  hand  and  thy  council  decreed  to  be  done  (2).  And  now, 
Lord,  behold  their  threatenings,  and  grant  unto  thy  servants  that 
with  all  confidence  (3)  they  may  speak  thy  word,  by  stretching  forth 
thy  hand  to  cures,  and  signs,  and  wonders,  to  be  done  by  the  name 
of  thy  holy  son  Jesus.” 

The  Almighty  heard  this  prayer,  which  had  emanated  from  him¬ 
self.  “  When  they  had  prayed  the  place  was  moved  wherein  they 
were  assembled,  and  they  were  all  (4)  filled  with  the  Iloly  Ghost  (5), 


has  precisely  the  same  meaning.  It  may  also  he  remembered  that  when  Jesus  Christ 
made  his  triumphant  entry  into  Jerusalem,  the  people  said  :  Blessed  be  the  reign  of  our 
father  David.  And  he  might,  in  reality,  be  the  ancestor  of,  at  least,  the  greater  number 
of  the  tribe  of  Judah.  This  conjecture  is  far  from  being  improbable.  David  had  a  great 
number  of  children,  and  whilst  the  sons  multiplied,  the  daughters  entered,  by  marriage, 
into  other  families,  bringing  with  them,  of  course,  the  blood  of  David.  It  might  well  be, 
then,  that  after  the  lapse  of  a  thousand  years,  the  great  bulk  of  the  tribe  of  Judah  were 
lineal  descendants  of  David,  either  by  his  sons  or  by  his  daughters  ;  hence  may  have 
originated  the  common  custom  of  saying  our  father  David. 

(1)  Herod  bad  not  entered  into  the  conspiracy.  It  was  by  a  sort  of  chance  that 
Christ  was  sent  to  him,  and  he  had  no  desire  to  have  him  put  to  death,  as  we  see  by 
that  saying  of  Pilate  :  “  He  hath  found  nothing  in  him  worthy  of  death.”  That  prince 
was  not  then  a  conspirator,  properly  speaking  ;  but  he  was  accessory  to  the  passion  of 
our  Saviour  by  the  grievous  outrage  he  inflicted  upon  him.  Mockery  is  classed  with 
murder,  and  the  scoffer  shall  be  punished  even  as  the  persecutor. 

(2)  The  malice  of  the  Jews  was  the  immediate  cause  of  the  sufferings  of  Jesus  Christ. 
These  were  the  direct  effect  of  that  malice,  and  God  had  foreordained  the  sufferings 
which  were  the  effect,  but  not  the  malice  which  was  the  cause.  This  remark  has  already 
been  made. 

(3)  They  asked  not  of  God  the  cessation  of  persecution,  but  courage  to  brave  it.  They 
forgot  their  own  safety,  and  thought  only  of  his  glory.  This  prayer  contained  a  most 
perfect  act  of  the  love  of  God.  So  it  is  that  hearts,  which  are  truly  filled  with  that 
sacred  flame,  make  numberless  acts  of  that  divine  virtue,  almost  unconsciously  to  them¬ 
selves. 

(4)  It  was  by  this  movement  that  the  Holy  Ghost  rendered  his  presence  sensible,  as 
he  had  done  on  a  former  occasion  by  the  mighty  wind  and  the  tongues  of  fire. 

(5)  They  had  all  been  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost  on  the  day  of  Pentecost.  They 
received  on  this  occasion  a  fresh  plenitude  thereof,  together  with  the  additional  graces 
necessary  for  braving  the  approaching  persecution.  We  have  not  always  the  actual 


~f  Wlj  ■'"'N'j  AAjj  y  ^ 


4^ 

w 

)l\  /H  ~'hV 

0*  f  j 


as 


v 


51)6 


THE  HISTOET  OF  THE 


[chap.  IT. 


and  they  spoke  the  word  of  God  with  confidence.  The  apostles,”  in 
particular,  “  did  with  great  power  give  testimony  of  the  resurrection 
of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.”  • 

“  And  the  multitude  of  believers,”  already  very  numerous,  “  had 
but  one  heart  and  one  soul  :”  which  was  not  surprising,  for  “  neither 
did  any  one  say  that  aught  of  the  things  which  he  possessed  was  his 
own,  but  all  things  were  common  unto  them  (1),  and  great  grace 
was  in  them  all  (2)  ;  for  neither  was  their  any  one  needy  among 
them,  for  as  many  as  were  owners  of  lands  or  houses  sold  them,  and 
brought  the  price  of  the  things  they  sold,  and  laid  it  down  before 
the  feet  of  the  apostles.  And  distribution  was  made  to  every  one 


a.k  ^  a 

Æ 


'V-Aif 


<£= 


grace  for  resisting  any  attack  of  temptation,  but  if  we  ask  it,  as  tbe  apostles' did,  we  shall 
be  sure  to  obtain  it  in  the  moment  of  trial,  and  we  shall  be  sure  to  verify  those  words  of 
St.  Paul  :  God  is  faithful,  who  will  not  suffer  you  to  he  tempted  above  that  ivhich  you 
are  able  j  but  will  make  also  with  temptation  issue,  that  you  may  be  able  to  bear  it 
(1  Cor.,  x.  13). 

(1)  This  community  of  goods  is,  as  has  been  observed,  the  most  perfect  model  of  all 
societies.  St.  Jerome  is  of  opinion  that  it  was  established  by  St.  Mark  in  Alexandria. 
For  the  rest,  it  does  not  appear  that  the  apostles  succeeded  in  establishing  it  in  any 
other  place,  nor  even  that  they  attempted  doing  so.  It  would  seem  that  they  thought 
the  enterprise  would  have  been  impracticable.  God,  who  does  not  call  all  men  to  the 
same  degree  of  perfection,  had  so  ordained  it  that  this  should  be  the  distinctive  mark  of 
the  first  of  all  the  churches.  It  was,  on  that  account,  dearer  and  more  venerable  to  the 
other  churches,  who  did  not  imitate  it  in  this  respect.  The  common  fund  was  exhausted, 
and  there  was  no  means  to  obtain  a  fresh  supply,  so  that  very  soon  those  were  all  poor 
amongst  whom  there  had  at  first  been  no  poor.  Then  it  was  that  the  other  churches 
made  it  their  duty  to  assist  these  who  were  voluntarily  poor.  "YVe  learn  this  fact  from 
the  epistles  of  St.  Paul,  who  represented  the  common  necessity,  and  offered  himself  to 
carry  alms  to  his  people  (1  Cor.,  xvi.  3).  Thus  they  regained  by  charity  a  portion  of 
the  merit  which  the  others  had  acquired  by  their  entire  detachment  from,  and  voluntary 
resignation  of  earthly  treasures. 

It  is  the  glory  of  religion  that  the  Church  never  was,  or  never  is,  without  a  certain 
number  of  pious  souls  to  exemplify  this  perfect  mode  of  living.  Such  are  the  religious 
communities,  amongst  whom  no  one  says  that  aught  of  the  things  which  he  possesses  are 
his  own,  but  all  things  are  common  unto  them,  and  of  all  the  goods  so  possessed  distri¬ 
bution  is  made  to  every  one  according  as  he  has  need.  In  this,  then,  they  resemble  the 
primitive  Christians  of  Jerusalem.  Let  us  also  imitate  the  faithful  of  Corinth  by  assist¬ 
ing  those  poor  religious,  who,  possessing  nothing,  even  in  common,  are  entirely  depend¬ 
ent  on  our  charity. 

(2)  An  extraordinary  grace  produced  in  them  this  extraordinary  charity.  Otherwise, 
they  made  themselves  agreeable,  or  pleasing  to  all  the  people,  as  has  been  already  said. 
We  are  at  liberty  to  choose  between  these  two  meanings. 


=3 


alt 

sill 

wm 

If 

(o  a  °  3  A  °  «  J* 1 2 

A) 

[SAj\V 


CHAP.  Y.]  ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES.  597 

according  as  lie  liacl  need.  And  Joseph,  who  by  the  apostles  was 
surnamed  Barnabas  (1)  (which  is,  by  interpretation,  the  son  of  con¬ 
solation),  a  Levite,  a  Cyprian  born,  having  land,  sold  it,  and  brought 
the  price  and  laid  it  at  the  feet  of  the  apostles.” 


v 

CHAPTER  V. 

ANANIAS  AND  SAPHIRA. - MIRACLES  OF  THE  APOSTLES. - THEY  ARE  PUT  IN  PRISON 

AND  DELIVERED  BY  AN  ANGEL. - ADVICE  OF  GAMALIEL. - THE  APOSTLES  BEATEN 

WITH  RODS. 

Such  is  the  depravity  of  the  human  heart,  that  vice  found  means 
to  insinuate  itself  even  in  the  midst  of  so  many  virtues.  Avarice 
assumed  the  virtue  of  disinterestedness,  the  merit  of  which  it  thought 
to  attain  through  the  medium  of  deceit  and  imposture.  But  such 
is  the  hatred  with  which  God  regards  duplicity  of  heart,  that  even 
then,  under  the  law  of  grace  and  love,  he  signalized  his  wrath  by  a 
punishment  as  terrible  as  any  which  had  been  inflicted  under  the 
law  of  severity  and  dread.  By  this  he  makes  known  to  us  that, 
although  he  is  the  father  of  mercy,  we  must  never  forget  that  he  is 
also  the  God  of  vengeance.  The  following  example  contains  a  fear¬ 
ful  lesson  for  us. 


(1)  Of  all  those  who  made  this  sacrifice,  St.  Barnabas  is  the  only  one  named. 
Amongst  other  reasons  for  this  preference,  we  may  attribute  it  to  the  distinguished  part 
which  he  was  destined  to  take  in  the  ministry.  His  entrance  into  the  Church  was  the 
more  worthy  of  remark,  as  it  was  also  his  entrance  to  the  apostolic  office.  This  he 
attained,  like  the  other  apostles,  by  leaving  all  for  Jesus  Christ.  The  reader  will  remem¬ 
ber  the  young  man  to  whom  Jesus  said  :  Go,  sell  whatsoever  thou  hast,  and  give  it  to  the 
poor.  Come  then  and  follow  me  (Matt.,  xix.  21).  This  last  expression,  in  the  Saviour’s 
peculiar  style  of  speech,  signified  a  vocation  to  the  apostolic  ministry,  and  the  young 
man  would  not  have  it  at  such  a  price.  St.  Barnaby  fulfilled  the  condition,  and  took  his 
place,  for  it  is  likely  that  it  was  to  him  God  transferred  the  grace  which  the  other  had 
refused,  even  as  he  had  before  transferred  to  St.  Matthias  the  dignity  whereof  J udas  had 
deprived  himself  by  his  crime. 


9/\  ' 

/yy 

jav  /fît 
vV 

^  -  WA 


& 


<s^ 


(«)  “  A  certain  man  named  Ananias,  with  Saphira  his  wife,  sold 
a  piece  of  land  (1),  and  by  fraud  kept  back  part  of  the  price  of  the 
land,  his  wife  being  privy  thereunto  :  and  bringing  a  certain  part 
of  it,  laid  it  at  the  feet  of  the  apostles.  But  Peter  said  :  Ananias, 
why  hath  Satan  tempted  thy  heart  that  thou  shouldst  lie  to  the 
Holy  Ghost,  and  by  fraud  keep  part  of  the  price  of  the  land  ? 
Whilst  it  remained  did  it  not  remain  to  thee,  and  after  it  was 
sold  was  it  not  in  thy  power  (2)  ?  Why  hast  thou  conceived 

■"  (a)  Acts,  V.  1. 


(1)  Had  Ananias  taken  the  vow  of  poverty,  or  had  lie  not?  This  question  is  still  dis¬ 
cussed  amongst  commentators.  Nearly  all  the. ancients  have  decided  in  the  affirmative; 
and  if  we  come  to  count  the  voices  for  and  against,  nay,  if  we  even  weigh  the  opinions 
given,  we  can  no  longer  doubt  that  it  was  so,  when  we  see  that  opinion  entertained  by 
St.  Athanasius,  St.  Basil,  St.  Jerome,  St.  Augustine,  St.  Gregory,  &c.  What  renders 
this  very  probable  is  the  word,  he  kept  back  by  fraud,  in  Latin,  fraudavit.  If  Ananias 
had  not  made  a  vow,  there  would  have  been  no  fraud  in  what  he  did.  His  field,  or  the 
money  which  he  got  for  it,  belonged  to  himself,  as  St.  Peter  told  him,  and  he  was  at 
liberty  to  dispose  of  it  in  whatever  way  he  pleased.  In  what,  then,  had  he  sinned  ?  or 
what  fraud  could  there  be  in  sacrificing  a  portion  of  his  property  to  the  wants  of  his 
brethren?  Very  far  from  being  a  sin,  this  would  have  been  an  act  of  charity;  not  so 
great,  of  course,  as  if  he  had  given  up  all,  but  still  good,  as  far  as  it  went,  and  meritori¬ 
ous  in  proportion  to  the  sacrifice  he  had  made.  Viewing  it  in  this  light,  we  could  neither 
understand  the  reproaches  of  St.  Peter  nor  the  punishment  inflicted  by  God.  But  if 
Ananias  had  consecrated  all  his  possessions  to  the  Lord  by  a  solemn  vow,  then  all  is 
explained.  He  defrauded,  he  lied  to  the  Holy  Ghost — he  is,  therefore,  worthy  of  death, 
for  God  is  just,  and  his  ways  are  perfect. 

To  the  first  example  of  a  religious  detachment  from  earthly  things,  God  has  annexed 
the  chastisement  of  the  first  violators  of  the  holy  vow  of  poverty.  We  cannot  doubt 
that  he  thereby  intended  to  instruct  and  frighten  those  who  lightly  make  a  vow  to  him, 
and  break  it  without  much  remorse.  God  is  not  mocked  with  impunity  (Gal.,  vi.  7). 

(2)  By  speaking  thus,  St.  Peter  teaches  us  that  the  apostles  did  not  compel  the  first 
Christians  to  the  sale  and  sacrifice  of  all  their  goods.  It  was  merely  a  counsel,  and  not 
a  precept  of  theirs. 

But  inasmuch  as  Ananias  was  master  of  his  own  possessions,  some  other  interpreters 
have  concluded  that  he  was  bound  by  no  promise.  That  was  the  case,  perhaps,  before, 
and  even  after,  the  sale.  But,  1st,  between  the  time  of  the  sale  and  his  appearance  be¬ 
fore  St.  Peter,  he  might  have  made  the  vow.  We  know  not  what  length  of  time  had 
intervened,  and  it  required  no  long  time  to  make  such  an  engagement.  2d,  While  laying 
his  money  at  the  feet  of  St.  Peter,  he  might  have  pronounced  the  formula  of  the  contract, 
either  by  way  of  vow  or  of  consecration.  Scripture  does  not  positive^  say  so,  but 
neither  does  it  state  the  contrary.  3d,  This  very  action,  without  being  accompanied  by 
words,  might  testify  that  the  persons  so  acting  solemnly  pledged  themselves  to  follow 
the  counsel  of  Jesus  Christ  and  his  apostles,  by  stripping  themselves  of  all,  so  as  to  have 


VU  |  '<nij  1 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


m  f --h 

'&■ 

% 
\  **  *  * 


this  thing  in  thy  heart  ?  Thou  hast  not  lied  to  men,  hut  to 
God  (1).” 

Tlie  effect  of  these  words  was  quicker  than  lightning.  “  Ananias, 
hearing  them,  fell  down,  and  gave  up  the  ghost.  And  there  came 
great  fear  upon  all  that  heard  it.  And  the  young  men,  rising  up, 
removed  him,  and  carrying  him  out,  buried  him.” 

This  tragical  scene  took  place  in  a  private  house.  “  And  it  was 
about'  the  space  of  three  hours  after,  when  his  wife,  not  knowing 
what  had  happened,  came  in.  And  Peter  said  to  her  :  Tell  me, 
woman,  whether  you  sold  the  land  for  so  much  ?  And  she  said  : 
Yea,  for  so  much.  Then  Peter  said  unto  her  :  Why  have  you 
agreed  together  to  tempt  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  (2)  ?  Behold,  the 
feet  of  them  who  have  buried  thy  husband  are  at  the  door,  and  they 
shall  carry  thee  out.  Immediately  she  fell  down  before  his  feet, 
and  gave  up  the  ghost  (8).  And  the  young  men  coming  in,  found 
her  dead  ;  and  carried  her  out,  and  buried  her  by  her  husband.” 


nothing  more  except  in  common  with  others.  There  are  actions  which  speak  for  them¬ 
selves,  and  the  meaning  of  this  one,  sufficiently  expressive  in  itself,  might  also  have  been 
determined  by  the  apostles  ;  in  proposing  the  counsel,  they  might  have  declared  that 
the  promise  would  be  inferred  from  the  act  of  offering,  so  that  giving  and  vowing  should 
be  considered  as  one  and  the  same  thing.  So  it  is  that,  without  uttering  a  single  word, 
men  solemnly  devote  themselves  to  chastity  when  receiving  holy  orders,  being  aware 
that  it  is  one  of  the  implied  conditions. 

(1)  After  having  said  to  Ananias  :  Thou  hast  lied  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  St.  Peter  tells  him 
again  :  Thou  hast  lied  to  God.  “  Therefore,  the  Holy  Ghost  is  God  as  the  holy 
fathers  concluded  against  the  heresiarch  Macedonius. 

Ananias  had  lied  both  to  the  Father  and  the  Son.  It  is  by  appropriation  that  he  is 
said  to  have  lied  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  is  called  by  Jesus  Christ  the  Spirit  of  truth 
(John,  xiv.  17). 

(2)  They  tempted  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord,  because  they  fancied  that  St.  Peter  would 
have  no  knowledge  of  their  fraud.  For  those  who  saw  with  what  plenitude  the  Holy 
Ghost  poured  himself  forth  upon  the  apostles,  it  was  a  sort  of  infidelity  not  to  believe 
that  they  had  received  the  gift  of  prophecy,  with  all  other  miraculous  gifts  ;  and  it  is 
written  :  Thou  shalt  not  tempt  the  Lord  thy  God. 

(3)  Porphyrus,  one  of  the  most  subtle  assailants  of  Christianty,  considered  that  St. 
Peter  had  been  criminally  severe  upon  these  two  persons.  Would  not  one  suppose  from 
this  that  the  holy  apostle  had  put  them  both  to  death,  whereas  God  alone  struck  the 
blow?  The  voice  of  St.  Peter  was  but  the  signal.  An  ancient  father  (Tertulh,  lib.  de 
Pudicitia,  cap.  21)  has  regarded  this  as  an  image  of  excommunication.  There  is  cer¬ 
tainly  a  resemblance,  inasmuch  as,  by  the  word  of  Peter,  the  sinner  is  cut  off  from  the 
society  of  the  faithful,  as  Ananias  and  Saphira  were  cut  off  from  amongst  the  living. 


r  ^ 

fff- 

Ayvli  hud// 

!  -  . 

j 

j?**1  lS,IT  l< 

— - - > 

—■ - - - 

//A 

t  m 

*2r 


Thus  perished,  with  themselves,  the  hope  of  these  hypocrites  (1). 
Instead  of  the  glory  which  they  had  expected  to  procure  for  them¬ 
selves  by  fraud  and  by  perjury,  they  involved  themselves  in  per¬ 
petual  disgrace,  and  consigned  themselves  to  eternal  infamy  ;  an 
almost  infallible  proof  of  their  reprobation.  For,  if  they  had  died 
in  the  state  of  justice,  the  Lord  would  not  have  labored  directly  to 
dishonor  their  memory  by  inspiring  the  sacred  writer  to  record  the 
tale  of  their  disgrace  ;  this  would  have  been  contradicting  that  say¬ 
ing  of  the  Psalmist:  The  just  shall  he  in  everlasting  remembrance  ; 
he  shall  not  fear  the  evil  hearing  (Ps.  cxi.  7). 

“  And  there  came  great  fear  upon  the  whole  church,  and  upon 
all,”  even  beyond  its  communion,  “that  heard  these  things.” 

This  miracle  of  terror  was  the  only  one  of  its  kind,  while  those  of 
grace  and  favor  were  innumerable.  “  By  the  hands  of  the  apos¬ 
tles  (2)  were  many  signs  and  wonders  wrought  amongst  the  people,” 
all  of  them  being  special  benefits.  “  And  they  were  all  (3)  with 
one  accord  in  Solomon’s  porch  (4),  but  of  the  rest  no  man  durst 


But  there  is  also  some  difference  ;  for  here  Peter  spoke,  while  God  alone  acted  ;  whereas, 
in  excommunication,  Peter  speaks  and  acts,  while  God  ratifies. 

(1)  Job,  viii.  12  :  Spes  hypocrites  per  Hit. 

(2)  Our  translators  say  only  by  the  apostles.  The  hands  have  been  indicated  because 
it  wms,  in  fact,  by  the  imposition  of  hands  that  the  apostles  usually  operated  miraculous 
cures,  in  accordance  with  that  promise  of  the  Saviour  :  They  shall  lay  their  hands  upon 
the  sick,  and  they  shall  recover  (Mark,  xvi.  18). 

(3)  All,  according  to  some  interpreters,  must  be  understood  as  having  reference  to 
the  apostles  only.  Others  are  of  opinion  that  it  signifies  all  the  members  of  the  infant 
church,  people  as  well  as  pastors.  By  the  former  it  is  asserted  that  what  follows,  of  the 
rest  no  man  durst  join  himself  unto  them,  regards  the  faithful  who  kept  apart  from  the 
apostles,  either  through  respect  for  those  divine  men,  or  because  they  feared  to  provoke 
persecution.  According  to  the  latter,  it  is  to  be  understood  even  of  those  who  believed 
not,  and  who,  either  through  fear  or  respect,  did  not  venture  to  mingle  with  the  believers. 
The  second  interpretation  is  preferable  to  the  other  :  1st,  Because  respect  merely  obliged 
the  faithful  to  treat  the  apostles  deferentially,  but  not  to  remain  apart  from  them,  whilst 
nothing  can  be  more  unjust  than  to  suspect  those  fervent  Christians  of  that  pusillanimous 
fear  which  is  here  supposed  to  have  been  common  to  all  ;  2d,  Because  what  has  been 
already  said  (chap,  ii.,  ver.  40),  that  they  continued  daily  in  the  temple,  with  one  accord, 
has  manifest  reference  to  all  the  faithful,  and  this  seems  to  be  but  a  repetition  of  that 
passage. 

(4)  See  what  has  been  already  said  of  this  porch.  It  was  the  usual  place  of  assembly 
for  the  apostles  and  the  first  faithful  ;  1st,  Because  being  very  spacious,  it  was  capable 
of  containing  a  great  multitude  ;  2d,  Because,  not  being  a  part  of  the  temple,  properly 


p  a  o  a  a  a  o  o  • 


%Sk 


v- 


v 


1 


iti"" 


m 


CHAP,  y.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


join  himself  unto  them  ;  but  the  people  magnified  them.  And  the 
multitude  of  men  and  women  who  believed  in  the  Lord  was  more 
increased  ;  insomuch  that  they  brought  forth  the  sick  into  the 
streets  (1)  and  laid  them  on  beds  and  couches,  that  when  Peter 
came,  his  shadow  (2)  at  the  least  might  overshadow  any  of  them, 
and  they  might  be  delivered  from  their  infirmities.  And  there 
came  also  together  to  Jerusalem  a  multitude  out  of  the  neighboring 
cities,  bringing  sick  persons  and  such  as  were  troubled  with  unclean 
spirits  ;  who  were  all  healed.” 

This  was  too  much  for  the  rulers  of  the  people  :  miracles  such  as 
these,  followed  by  such  brilliant  success,  were  enough  to  drive  them 
to  despair.  If  this  were  suffered  to  go  on  much  longer,  what  would 
become  of  their  credit  and  consideration  ?  Must  they  be  quietly 
suffered  to  pass  into  the  hands  of  this  fisherman  and  the  handful  of 
low-born  men  who  were  his  companions  ?  No,  all  disguise  must  be 
at  once  thrown  off  ;  wherefore,  “  the  liigh-priest  rising  up,  and  all 
they  that  were  with  him  (which  is  the  heresy  of  the  Sadducees)  (3), 


so  called,  they  could  there  announce  the  word  of  life  to  all  sorts  of  persons,  men  and 
women,  Jews  and  Gentiles,  the  purified  and  the  non-purified  amongst  the  Jews;  3d,  Be¬ 
cause  the  offerings,  the  sacrifices,  and  all  the  service  of  the  temple,  which  were  celebrated 
in  the  interior,  were  in  no  way  interrupted. 

The  Church  was  born  of  the  synagogue,  and  its  cradle  was  the  old  Jewish  temple, 
which,  after  that,  was  only  fit  to  burn.  Its  destiny  was  fulfilled. 

(1)  Many  exposed  their  sick  because  they  already  believed  ;  others  believed  because 
they  saw  that  those  who  had  been  exposed  were  cured,  and  others  because  they  had 
themselves  been  cured.  Hence  it  is  that  St.  Luke  joins  the  cause  to  the  effect — the  cures 
to  the  conversions,  by  the  words  so  that. 

(2)  It  has  been  invariably  seen,  that  on  all  important  occasions  it  was  Peter  who 
spoke,  and  spoke  alone,  which  shows  that  he  had  the  authority  of  a  master,  and  was 
recognized  as  such  by  his  colleagues.  So  must  he  also  have  been  recognized  by  the 
people  in  this  capacity.  It  was  doubtless  for  this  reason  that  God  gave  him  the  gift  of 
working  miracles  in  a  more  remarkable  manner  than  he  did  to  any  of  the  others. 

(3)  It  has  been  already  remarked  that  the  Sadducees  denied  the  resurrection.  It  has 
also  been  shown  that  the  members  of  this  sect  had  a  double  interest  in  arresting  the 
preaching  of  tbfc  apostles.  The  latter  preached  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  which  was 
odious  to  them.  If  the  high-priest  was  not  of  their  party,  and  the  text  might  prove  that 
clearly  enough,  at  least  he  favored  them  openly.  We  must  believe  that  the  foundations 
of  the  Jewish  state  and  of  the  Jewish  religion  were  already  shaken  when  the  chief  of  the 
sacerdotal  order,  and  the  first  man  in  the  nation,  was  not  ashamed  to  appear  as  the 
partisan,  or,  at  least,  as  the  declared  abettor  of  materialism. 


4rli 


V 


IP"' 


were  filled  with  envy  ;  and  they  laid  hands  upon  the  apostles,  and 
put  them  in  the  common  prison.” 

But  what  can  man  do  against  the  Almighty  ?  “  An  angel  (1)  of 

the  Lord  by  night  opening  the  doors  of  the  prison,  and  leading  them 
out,  said  :  Go,  and  standing,  speak  in  the  temple  to  the  people  all 
the  words  of  this”  doctrine  of  “  life.  Who  having  heard  this,  early 
in  the  morning  entered  into  the  temple,  and  taught.” 

They  were  still  there  when  “the  high-priest  coming,  and  they 
that  were  with  him,  called  together  the  council  and  all  the  ancients 
of  the  children  of  Israel  :  and  they  sent  to  the  prison  to  have  them 
brought.  But  when  the  ministers  came,  and  opening  the  prison, 
found  them  not  there,  they  returned  and  told,  saying  :  The  prison 
indeed  we  found  shut  with  all  diligence,  and  the  keepers  standing 
before  the  doors  ;  but  opening  it,  we  found  no  man  within.  When 
the  officer  of  the  temple  and  the  chief  priests  heard  these  words, 
they  were  in  doubt  concerning  them,  what  would  come  to  pass.” 

They  were  not  long  without  knowing,  for  “  one  came  and  told 
them  :  Behold,  the  men  whom  you  put  in  prison  are  in  the  temple 
standing,  and  teaching  the  people.  Then  went  the  officer  with  the 
ministers  and  brought  them  without  violence  ;  for  they  feared  the 
people,  lest  they  should  be  stoned  (2).” 

“  And  when  they  had  brought  them,  they  set  them  before  the 
council.  And  the  high-priest  asked  them,  saying  :  Commanding  (3) 
we  commanded  you  that  you  should  not  teach  in  this  name  (4)  ; 


(1)  The  apostles  wrought  no  miracles  for  themselves,  nor  does  it  appear  that  they 
even  asked  God  to  do  it  for  them.  Their  fate  was  in  his  hands,  and  all  their  desire  was 
that  he  might  dispose  of  them  according  to  his  own  will  and  pleasure.  Thus  many  of 
the  saints,  suffering  all  manner  of  pain,  asked  not  relief  for  themselves,  but  they  asked 
and  obtained  it  for  all  others  who  applied  to  them. 

(2)  As  they  would  certainly  have  been  if  the  apostles  had  called  the  people  to  then 

assistance,  but  it  would  have  been  a  crime  to  excite  the  populace  agmnst  public  author¬ 
ity, -however  unjust  and  oppressive  it  might  be.  ..  ' 

(3)  It  would  seem  that  they  should  first  have  endeavored  to  ascertain  how  the  apos¬ 
tles  had  got  out  of  prison.  Why  did  they  not  do  so  ?  Simply  because  they  doubted 
not  that  the  examination  would  bring  to  light  that  which  they  feared — a  miracle. 

(4)  They  did  not  mention  the  name  of  Jesus.  Was  this  through  contempt,  or  through 
a  secret  horror  of  that  name,  arising  from  the  remembrance  of  their  crime,  and  the 
remorse  of  which  they  could  not  divest  themselves  ? 


f  €f< 

W’ 


i\ 


rx. 

â'ïiHs'il;’  *" 

vAS-^A- 

;l# 


and  behold,  you  have  filled  Jerusalem  with  your  doctrine,  and  you 
have  a  mind  to  bring  (1)  the  blood  of  this  man  (2)  upon  us.  Peter 
and  the  apostles,  answering,  said:  We  ought  to  obey  God  rather 
than  men.” 

This  they  all  said  with  one  voice  ;  but  it  appears  that  it  was  Peter 
alone  who  continued  the  discourse  :  “  The  God  of  our  fathers  hath 
raised  up  Jesus,  whom  you  put  to  death,  hanging  him  upon  a  tree. 
Him  hath  God  exalted  with  his  right  hand  to  be  Prince  and  Saviour, 
to  give  repentance  to  Israel  and  remission  of  sins  (3).  We  are  wit¬ 
nesses  of  these  things,  and”  with  us  “  the  Holy  Ghost  (4),  whom 
God  hath  given  to  all  that  obey  him.”  These  words  must  have 
given  them  to  understand  that  they  were  very  far  from  receiving  so 
great  a  gift,  since  they,  so  far  from  obeying  God,  required  others 
to  obey  them  rather  than  him. 

“  When  they  had  heard  these  things  they  were  cut  to  the  heart, 
and  they”  even  “  thought  to  put  them  to  death,”  when  God,  who 
had  destined  them  to  carry  his  name  to  the  ends  of  the  earth,  raised 
up  for  them  an  advocate  where  there  was  little  reason  to  expect  one. 
“  A  Pharisee  (5)  named  Gamaliel,  a  doctor  of  the  law,  respected  by 


(1)  That  is  to  say  :  Preach  no  more  this  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  for  it  is  an  outrage  upon 
us.  A  fine  reason,  truly  !  Just  as  if  they  said  :  You  preach  that  Jesus  of  Nazareth  is 
risen  from  the  dead,  and  he  is  not  ;  you  say  that  you  do  miracles  in  his  name,  and  you 
do  not.  In  such  a  case  not  to  gainsay  these  facts  is  to  confess  them,  and  they  did  this 
against  their  will  :  such  is  the  empire  of  truth  over  the  most  hardened  hearts  ;  but  so 
great  is  the  obduracy  of  certain  sinners,  that  though  they  cannot  deny  the  truth,  they 
can  never  be  brought  to  admit  it. 

(2)  They  had  once  been  heard  to  cry  out  :  His  blood  be  upon  us  and  upon  our  chil¬ 
dren.  They  then  asked  what  they  now  fear  ;  very  soon  they  shall  feel  its  effects. 

(3)  Repentance  can  only  be  had  through  his  grace  ;  and  the  remission  of  sins,  which 
is  the  fruit  thereof,  is  only  obtained  through  his  merits. 

(4)  The  testimony  of  the  apostles,  and  that  of  the  Holy  Ghost  are  considered  as  two 
distinct  testimonies,  because  the  apostles  testified  that  they  had  seen  Jesus  Christ  after 
he  had  risen  from  the  dead,  while  the  Holy  Ghost  testified,  by  the  miracles  which  he 
operated  through  them,  that  their  testimony  was  true. 

(5)  This  does  not  mean  that  he  had  their  vices,  or  held  their  false  doctrines  ;  hut  it  is 
certain  that  he  believed  as  they  did  with  regard  to  the  capital  dogma  of  the  resurrection. 
This  was  enough  to  constitute  him  a  Pharisee,  and  the  name  was  no  reproach,  when  he 
was  only  a  Pharisee  on  this  point.  Such,  too,  was  Nicodemus,  and  a  few  others,  who 
had  apparently  kept  themselves  free  from  the  bad  leaven  of  the  Pharisees.  Had  Gama¬ 
liel,  then,  been  a  concealed  disciple,  or  were  his  eyes  only  then  opened  to  the  light  ? 


ITT — — \ - p'H  Wji 


•»v 


f.  Cl, 

wt' 


/V 


all  the  people,  rising  up  in  the  council,  commanded  the  men  to  be 
put  forth  a  little  while.  And  he  said  to  them  :  Ye  men  of  Israel, 
take  heed  to  yourselves  what  you  intend  to  do  as  touching  these 
men  ;  for  before  these  days  rose  up  Theodas  (1),  affirming  himself 
to  be  somebody,  to  whom  a  number  of  men,  about  four  hundred, 
joined  themselves.  He  was  slain,  and  all  that  believed  him  were 
scattered  and  brought  to  nothing.  After  this  man  rose  up  Judas  of 
Galilee,  in  the  days  of  the  enrolling  (2),  and  drew  away  the  people 


This  is  a  doubtful  case,  and  his  discourse  does  not  make  it  any  thing  clearer.  The  only 
thing  that  can  be  said  is,  that  if  he  were  only  then  partially  enlightened,  he  spoke  very 
correctly  with  regard  to  his  present  dispositions.  If  he  were  already  a  believer,  while 
keeping  back  whatever  might  have  lessened  the  effect  of  his  words,  he  yet  said  nothing 
contrary  to  truth.  However  that  might  be,  he  finally  believed  and  became  a  saint,  recog¬ 
nized  as  such  by  the  Church.  He  it  was  who,  in  the  reign  of  Honorius,  appeared  to 
the  priest  Lucian,  and  revealed  to  him  the  spot  where  he  would  find  the  body  of  St. 
Stephen,  with  those  of  three  other  saints,  of  whom  he  was  one,  Nicodemus  being  another. 
It  may  be  remembered  that  the  latter  opposed  the  design  of  the  priests  and  Pharisees 
when  they  proposed  to  put  Jesus  to  death.  These  two  examples  serve  to  show  how 
liberal  is  God  towards  those  who,  though  obliged  to  assist  in  the  councils  of  the  wicked, 
choose  rather  to  expose  themselves  to  their  anger  than  consent  to  any  thing  unjust. 

(1)  Josephus,  in  the  20th  Book  of  his  Antiquities,  speaks  of  one  Theoclas,  who  gave 
himself  out  for  a  prophet,  and  against  whorh  Caspius  Fadus,  then  governor  of  Judea, 
sent  out  his  troops,  who  killed  him,  and  with  him  several  of  his  followers,  the  rest  being 
irretrievably  dispersed.  This  happened,  according  to  him,  in  the  fourth  year  of  the 
reign  of  Claudius.  This  is  what  puzzles  the  interpreters,  because  that  period  was  many 
years  later  than  the  discourse  of  Gamaliel,  and  there  is  no  probability  that  Josephus 
could  be  mistaken  forty  years  in  fixing  the  date  of  a  public  event  which  he  said  had 
occurred  in  his  own  time.  Let  this  be  as  it  may,  it  is  still  certain,  1st,  That  Gamaliel 
quoted  this  fact  on  the  present  occasion  ;  2d,  That  he  did  so  before  men  who  were  as 
well  informed  as  himself  ;  3d,  That  these  men,  so  far  from  contradicting,  were  convinced 
by  his  words  :  consequently  this  fact  can  no  longer  be  doubted. 

When  there  is  positive  evidence  of  any  fact,  no  other  objections  can  be  reasonably 
admitted  than  those  which  directly  bear  upon  that  proof. 

This  principle  is  certain  ;  and  it  alone  is  quite  enough  to  annihilate  almost  all  the 
objections  brought  against  religion. 

(2) '  This  enrolling  may  have  been  that  which  took  place  at  the  time  of  the  birth  of 
Christ,  or  perhaps  another  which  was  made  eight  or  ten  years  later,  when  Archelaus 
ceased  to  reign  in  Judea.  One  of  the  reasons  which  induced  Augustus  to  have  this 
numbering  of  the  people  made,  was  that  he  might  levy  a  poll-tax  upon  all  his  subjects. 
The  Jews  being  then  in  immediate  expectation  of  their  conquering  Messiah,  many  of  them 
were  opposed  to  the  paying  of  this  tribute.  Judas  of  Galilee,  who  had  put  himself  at 
their  head,  perished,  as  has  been  seen.  But  let  it  be  remarked  that  Gamaliel,  speaking 
of  the  followers  of  Theodas,  said  that  they  were  dispersed  and  brought  to  nothing, 


\V 


Y\' 


(o  a  o  «  «  O  o  o  < 


CHAP.  Y. J  ACTS  OF  TIEE  APOSTLES.  bU5 

after  him  ;  he  also  perished  ;  and  all,  even  as  many  as  consented  to 
him,  were  dispersed.  And  now,  therefore,  I  say  to  you,  refrain  from 
these  men,  and  let  them  alone  ;  for  if  this  counsel  or  this  work  be 
of  men,  it  will  come  to  nought  ;  but  if  it  be  of  God,  you  cannot 
overthrow  it  ;  lest  perhaps  you  be  found  to  fight  even  against 
God.” 

This  would  have  been  a  bad  advice  had  it  not  been  at  least  prob¬ 
able  that  the  work  was  divine.  God  alone  has  the  right  to  alter 
religion,  because  there  is  no  true  religion  save  that  of  which  he  is 
the  author.  It  was,  therefore,  necessary  to  ascertain  whether  this 
was  his  work  ;  and  if  it  were  not  recognized  as  such,  very  far  from 
letting  those  alone  who  called  themselves  its  apostles,  they  should 
have  been  at  once  put  down,  so  as  to  secure  the  safety  of  religion 
and  of  the  state  itself  ;  for  every  innovation  in  religion  is  sure  to 
shake  the  latter  to  its  very  foundations.  But,  if  they  saw  there  the 
hand  of  God,  they  must  not,  by  opposing  it,  oppose  God  himself, 
and  thereby  expose  themselves  to  ruin  all,  under  pretence  of  saving 
all.  Now  it  was  to  make  this  examination  (the  result  of  wdiich  ap¬ 
peared  to  him  little  less  than  certain)  that  Gamaliel  sought  to  urge 
his  colleagues  ;  aiid  as  they  had  not  yet  done  so,  he  persuaded  them 
not  to  use  any  ultra  measures  until  they  had  considered  the  matter 
over.  This  was  the  point  to  be  gained  at  the  moment,  and  in  this 
he  succeeded.  “And  they  consented  to  him,”  without  starting  any 
objection.  But,  inasmuch  as  they  had  been  persuaded,  without 
being  converted,  “  calling  in  the  apostles,  after  they  had  scourged 
them,  they  charged  them  that  they  should  not  speak  at  all  in  the 


whereas  those  of  Judas  were  only  stated  to  have  been  dispersed.  The  fact  is,  that  Judas 
had  infused  into  the  public  mind  the  leaven  of  sedition,  which  continued  to  ferment, 
especially  amongst  the  Galileans,  many  of  whom,  according  to  Josephus,  chose  rather  to 
suffer  death  and  torture  than  to  pay  tribute  to  Cæsar,  or  recognize  him  for  their  sov¬ 
ereign.  Some  even  hold  that  it  was  because  Jesus  Christ  was  a  Galilean,  at  least  by 
education  and  abode,  that  those  who  tempted  him  put  the  question  to  him  whether  it 
was  permitted  to  pay  tribute  to  Cæsar.  However  this  conjecture  may  be,  it  is  certain 
that  this  bad  spirit  was  never  wholly  crushed  ;  that,  from  Galilee,  where  it  had  been 
fostered,  it  spread  throughout  the  whole  country,  and  ended  in  that  general  insurrection 
which  brought  on  the  final  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  dispersion  of  the  entire 
people. 


606 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  VI. 


name  of  Jesus,  and  they  dismissed  them.  And  they,  indeed,  went 
from  the  presence  of  the  council  rejoicing  (1)  that  they  were 
accounted  worthy  to  suffer  reproach  for  the  name  of  Jesus.”  Their 
zeal,  far  from  being  cooled,  appeared  to  have  acquired  fresh  ardor 
and  intrepidity.  “  And  every  day  they  ceased  not,  in  the  temple, 
and  from  house  to  house,  to  teach  and  preach  Christ  Jesus.” 


CHAPTER  VI. 

MURMUR  OF  THE  GREEKS  AGAINST  THE  HEBREWS. - ELECTION  AND  ORDINATION  OF 

THE  SEVEN  DEACONS. - STEPHEN  FULL  OF  GRACE  AND  STRENGTH. - THE  JEWS 

DISPUTE  AGAINST  IIIM. - HE  IS  SEIZED  BY  THEM  AND  BROUGHT  BEFORE  THE 

COUNCIL. 

Men  are  always  men  ;  and  even  in  the  best  cultivated  garden  the 
shill  of  the  gardener  is  constantly  required  in  pruning  and  planting  ; 
so  also  in  the  holiest  communities  there  will  be  always  deficiencies 
to  supply,  and  excesses  to  prune  away.  Those  who  for  some  time 
had  but  one  heart  and  one  soul  began,  at  length,  to  disagree.  The 
very  bond  of  union  became  a  cause  of  dissension;  and  charity, 
founded  on  the  community  of  goods,  was  disturbed  by  the  inequal¬ 
ity  of  the  respective  shares,  (a)  “  In  those  days,  the  number  of  dis¬ 
ciples  increasing”  (the  blood  of  the  apostles  was  already  fertilizing 
the  soil  of  the  church),  “  there  arose  a  murmuring  of  the  Greeks  (2) 

(a)  Acts,  vi.  1. 


(1)  They  figured  to  themselves  Jesus  Christ  under  the  lash  of  his  tormentors,  and 
they  exulted  in  the  thought  that  they  were  thus  made  like  unto  their  divine  master  in 
undergoing  a  punishment  similar  to  his.  So  it  is  that  the  just,  persecuted,  outraged, 
stripped,  and  tormented,  see  Jesus  Christ  in  all  these  conditions,  and  if  they  are  sensible 
of  grief  it  is  because  they  find  their  sufferings  inferior  to  those  of  their  Lord  and  Saviour. 

(2)  Jews  who  were  natives  of  a  country  wherein  Greek  was  spoken  ;  of  this  class, 
too,  were  those  who  had  been  born  in  Judea  of  Greek  parents,  and  continued  to  speak 
the  language  which  they  learned  from  their  parents. 


y 


W 


CHAP.  VI.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


against  the  Hebrews  (1),  for  that  their  widows  were  neglected  (2) 
in  the  daily  ministration  (3).” 

It  was  reasonable  that  in  supplying  the  provisions  as  well  as  in 
the  distribution  thereof,  Hebrews  rather  than  Greeks  should  be  em¬ 
ployed,  as  it  is  always  to  be  expected  that  the  people  of  the  country 
are  the  best  for  such  purposes.  But  it  wras  natural  that  the  natives 
of  the  country  should  pay  less  attention  to  strangers  than  to  their 
own  countrymen,  amongst  whom  were  their  acquaintances,  friends, 
and  kindred.  That  wras  indeed  so  natural  that  those  who  did  it 
might  be  scarcely  conscious  of  the  preference,  especially  when 
the  applicants  becoming  more  numerous  (owing  to  the  recent  con¬ 
versions),  it  was  found  more  difficult  to  preserve  order  ;  but  also, 
because  the  thing  is  so  very  natural,  that  the  foreigners  might  easily 
imagine  that  it  was  done  when  it  really  was  not,  or,  at  least,  that 
their  own  imagination  magnified'  it  into  a  cause  of  complaint.  The 
apostles  might  well  understand  this,  for  we  do  not  find  that  they 
reproached  any  one  for  this  fault. 

Nevertheless,  it  was  for  them  to  put  a  stop  to  these  murmurs  and 
restore  peace.  So,  “the  twelve,  calling  together  the  multitude  of 
the  disciples,  said  :  It  is  not  reason  that  vjfi,  should  leave  the  word 
of  God  (4)  and  serve  tables  (5).  Wherefafq  brçtkren,  look  ye  out 
among  you  seven  men  of  good  reputation  (6),  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost 

- , - ; - *4— - - f'  -  / - - 

•/ 

(1)  Jews,  natives  of  Judea,  and  speaking  the 'language' of  the  country.  This  could  no 
longer  be  called  the  Hebrew  tongue,  being  a^argon  composed  of  Hebrew  and  Chaldaic, 
owing  to  the  sojourn  of  their  fatlfersdn  Babylon. 

(2)  Despised.  This  is  the  literal JsipEfication  of  the  Latin  and  Greek  word.  Here  it 
means  neglected or  unassisted,  ^s;  on  the  contrary,  the  word  honor  is  often  employed  in 
the  Ntuy  Testament  fcfsignify  assisting,  or  relieving  necessities  (Matt.,  xv.  6  ;  1  Tim.,  v. 
3  ancf  7). 

(3)  Some  interpreters  are  of  opinion  that  the  cause  of  the  discontent  was  the  little 
respect  with  which  the  Greek  women  were  treated,  in  being  excluded  from  the  distri¬ 
bution.  This  explanation  is  very  probable,  and  appears  to  have  been  grounded  on  the 
meaning  usually  given  to  the  word  despise  ( mépriser )  ;  it  has  been  shown,  however,  that 
that  was  not  the  only  meaning  attached  to  the  word. 

(4)  The  administration  of  church  property  belongs  to  the  bishops  as  wrell  as  the  min¬ 
istry  of  the  word.  This  is  only- said  in  order  to  teach  them  what  they  ought  to  do 
through  others,  and  what  they  are  obliged  to  do  themselves. 

(5)  By  the  service  of  tables  is  understood  all  the  many  wants  that  were  to  be  sup¬ 
plied,  such  as  clothing,  <fec.,  as  well  as  the  eating  and  drinking. 

(6)  It  seems  that  if  all  this  trouble  had  proceeded  from  the  national  jealousy  of  the 


41*, 


•foli  M 


'fi Æ 


is  ^ 


\ 


3A 

rv\ 


-k 


and  wisdom,  whom  we  may  appoint  over  this  business.  But  we  will 
give  ourselves  continually  to  prayer  and  to  the  ministry  of  the  word.” 

“  And  the  saying  was  liked  by  all  the  mukitude.  And  they  chose 
Stephen  (1),  a  man  full  of  faith  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  Philip, 
and  Prochorus,  and  Nicanor,  and  Timon,  and  Parmenas,  and  Nicolas, 
a  proselyte  of  Antioch.  These  they  set  before  the  apostles  :  and 
they,  praying,  imposed  hands  upon  them  (2).” 

Thus  religion  acquired  a  new  order  of  ministers.  These  had  been 
dispensed  with  so  long  as  those  of  the  first  order  were  able  to  do  all 
themselves  ;  but  when,  from  the  great  increase  of  the  flock,  the 
apostles  had  need  of  co-operators,  God  inspired  them  to  engage 
these.  The  service  of  the  tables  was  the  direct  purpose  of  their 
ordination.  But  though  it  was  one  of  their  peculiar  functions  to 
preside  there,  it  was  the  least  important  of  their  duties  :  the  regula¬ 
tion  of  all  ecclesiastical  assemblies,  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel,  and 
even  the  administration  of  the  body  and  blood  of  Christ,  were  all 
wdthin  their  province.  The  apostles  being  no  longer  distracted  by 
other  cares,  and  being  now  assisted  by  new  preachers  of  the  Gospel, 
“  the  word  of  the  Lord  increased,  and  the  number  of  the  disciples 
was  multiplied  in  Jerusalem  exceedingly  :  a  great  multitude  also  of 


women,  it  would  have  been  remedied  by  admitting  some  Greek  women  to  minister  with 
the  Jewish  females.  An  election  so  solemn  denotes  an  object  of  much  greater  importance. 

(1)  Stephen  is  known  all  over  the  earth.  Next  to  him  the  most  celebrated  was  Philip, 
who  here  holds  the  second  place.  It  u^as  he  who  baptized  the  eunuch  of  Candace, 
Queen  of  Ethiopia.  He  also  converted  by  his  preaching  and  his  miracles,  a  great  num¬ 
ber  of  Samaritans,,  amongst  whom  was  Simor^the  Magician.  He  had  four  daughters 
who  were  virgins  and  prophetesses.  He  received  (chap,  xxi.)  the  name  of  evangelist, 
which,  in  his  case,  signifies  no  more  than  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel.  The  Church  cele¬ 
brates  his  memory  on  the  6th  of  June.  The  four  next  mentioned  are  all  recognized  as 
saints.  Nicolas  is  the  only  one  whose  name  is  not  found  in  the  Roman  martyrology  ; 
which  omission  leaves  the  question  still  undecided  (a  question  on  which  the  ancients 
could  not  agree)  whether  he  was  not  the  founder  of  that  sect  of  Nicolites  spoken  of  in 
the  second  chapter  of  the  Apocalypse.  The  name  of  proselyte,  given  to  him,  shows  that 
he  was  a  Gentile  who  had  embraced  the  Jewish  religion.  All  the  seven  have  Grecian 
names,  whereby  it  appears  that  the  Greeks  were  deprived  of  all  cause  of  complaint. 

(2)  Notwithstanding  the  opinion  of  some  theologians,  it  is  evident  that  the  imposition 
of  hands,  joined  with  prayer,  decides  this  to  have  been  a  solemn  ordination.  Such  is  the 
opinion  commonly  adopted  by  the  Church,  which,  in  the  ordination  of  deacons,  begs  of 
God  that  the  subjects  presented  may  be  worthy  of  the  grade  and  order  to  which  Stephen 
and  his  companions,  to  the  number  of  seven,  were  elevated  by  the  choice  of  the  apostles. 


7S7iT  j~Ni!pTS(‘  '""'"J  I  1  |  At  '«h 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


the  priests  obeyed  the  faith,”  submitting  thereto  their  reason,  hith¬ 
erto  so  stubborn  and  intractable  (1).  A  remarkable  effect  of  the 
prayer  which  Jesus,  before  he  expired,  offered  up  for  his  persecutors. 

God  wished  to  have  it  understood  that  the  newly  established 
order  was  not  of  human  institution,  but  rather  a  sacred  ministry 
appointed  by  himself.  This  fact  he  manifested  to  the  world  by  the 
triumphant  success  which  followed  the  preaching  of  the  first  of  the 
deacons.  “  Stephen,  full  of  grace  and  fortitude  (2),  did  great  won¬ 
ders  and  signs  among  the  people.”  So  much  so,  that  the  wrath  of 
the  persecutors  was  concentrated  against  him.  “  Then  arose  some 
of  that  which  is  called  the  synagogue  (3)  of  the  Libertines  (4),  and 
of  the  Cyreneans,  and  of  the  Alexandrians,  and  of  them  that  were 
of  Cilicia  and  Asia  (5),  disputing  with  Stephen.  And  they  were  not 
able  to  resist  the  wisdom  and  spirit  (6)  that  spoke”  by  his  mouth. 

They  could  not  answer,  but  they  could  calumniate  him.  “  Then 
they  suborned  men  to  say  they  had  heard  him  speak  words  of  blas¬ 
phemy  against  Moses  and  against  God  (7).  And  they  stirred  up 


(1)  Chrysost.,  Homil.  14,  in  Acta. 

(2)  Full  of  fortitude  because  he  was  full  of  grace  :  man,  if  left  to  bis  own  strength,  is 
but  weakness  itself. 

(3)  As  religion  attracted  to  Jerusalem  Jews  of  all  nations  under  the  sun,  so  each  na¬ 
tion  had  its  synagogue  wherein  all  those  assembled  who  belonged  to  the  same  country, 
and  spoke  the  same  language.  It  was  this  that  had  multiplied  the  synagogues  in  J eru- 
salem  even  to  the  number  of  four  hundred  and  upwards,  as  has  been  said  elsewhere. 

(4)  The  Latin  word  tibertinorum,  in  its  proper  signification,  means  the  sons  of  f  reed- 
men.  They  were  Jews  who  had  been  born  in  Rome  of  parents  who  had  been  slaves, 
but  were  afterwards  freed.  Augustus  assigned  them  a  district  beyond  the  Tiber,  where 
they  were  free  to  dwell,  and  to  profess  their  own  religion. 

(5)  Asia  Minor,  now  called  Natolia,  is  only  a  province  of  Asia  proper,  one  of  the  four- 
quarters  of  the  globe.  It  has  been  remarked  that  St.  Stephen  had  to  dispute  with  men 
from  three  different  quartern  of  the  world,  being  all  that  was  then  known  ;  for  the  Cyre¬ 
neans  and  the  Alexandrians  were  from  Africa,  and  the  Libertines,  being  natives  of  Rome, 
were  of  course  Europeans. 

(6)  There  was  seen  in  his  person  the  accomplishment  of  our  Saviour’s  promise  to  his 
disciples,  that  it  would  not  be  they  who  should  speak,  but  the  spirit  of  his  Father  speak¬ 
ing  through  them  (Matt.,  x.  20),  and  that  he  would  give  them  a  mouth  and  wisdom, 
which  all  their  adversaries  should  not  be  able  to  resist  or  gainsay  (Luke,  xxi.  15). 

(7)  If  he  had  blasphemed  against  Moses  he  would  have  blasphemed  against  God,  by 
whom  Moses  had  been  sent  ;  but  this  was  a  manifest  calumny,  for  there  can  be  no  doubt 
that  he  spoke  of  Moses  according  to  the  principles  of  Christianity.  Now,  a  Christian, 


610 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap,  vn 

the  people,  and  the  ancients  and  the  scribes  ;  and,  running  together, 
they  took  him,  and  brought  him  to  the  council.  And  they  set  up 
false  witnesses,  who  said  :  This  man  ceaseth  not  to  speak  words 
against  the  holy  place  and  the  law.  For  we  have  heard  him  say 
that  this  Jesus  of  Nazareth  (1)  shall  destroy  this  place  (2),  and  shall 
change  the  traditions  which  Moses  delivered  unto  us.  And  all  that 
sat  in  the  council  looked  on  him,  and  saw  his  face  as  if  it  had  been 
the  face  of  an  angel.”  This  prodigy  suspended  their  fury,  and,  as  it 
were,  restrained  their  hands  while  he  addressed  to  them  a  long  dis¬ 
course,  which  it  was  the  will  of  God  that  they  should  hear  to  the  end. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

DISCOURSE  OF  ST.  STEPHEN. - HIS  DEATH. - SAUL  IS  ACCESSORY  THERETO,  AND 

KEEPS  THE  GARMENTS  OF  THOSE  WHO  STONE  HIM. 

Stephen  being  in  the  midst  of  the  assembly,  and  the  witnesses 
having  been  heard  («),  “  the  high-priest  said  :  Are  these  things  so  ?” 
Whereupon  Stephen  “  said  :  Ye  men,  brethren,  and  fathers,  hear. 
The  God  of  glory  appeared  to  our  father  Abraham  when  he  was  in 
Mesopotamia  (3),  before  he  dwelt  in  Charan.  And  he  said  to  him  : 

(a)  Acts,  vii.  1. 


who  knows  his  religion,  never  thinks  of  speaking  ill  of  Moses,  whom  he  regards  as  the 
greatest,  and  perhaps  the  holiest  man  of  the  Old  Testament. 

(1)  It  has  been  already  shown  that  it  was  with  a  view  to  render  Jesus  contemptible 
that  they  called  him  the  Nazarene. 

They  produced  against  Stephen,  not  his  own  words,  but  their  interpretation  of  their 
meaning,  together  with  whatever  inferences  they  pleased  to  deduce  therefrom  ;  this  is 
what  made  them  false  witnesses.  In  order  to  give  true  testimony,  they  should  have 
given  his  own  very  words,  and  their  natural  signification. 

(2)  He  might  have  said  that  the  new  law  which  he  promulgated  was  the  perfection, 
but  not  the  destruction  of  the  old  law  ;  and  he  might  have  said,  too,  that  Jesus  Christ 
had  predicted  that  the  temple  should  be  destroyed,  but  not  that  He  should  be  its  de¬ 
stroyer. 

(3)  How  Diarben,  or  Diarbekir,  a  country  situate  between  the  Tigris  and  the  Euphra- 


fi 

\>:k 

aW  \  % 


Ü' 


■y 


Jk 


f/'iv 


CHAP.  VII.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


611 


l-o  forth  out  of  thy  country  and  from  thy  hind  red ,  and  come  into  the 
and  which  I  shall  show  thee.  Then  he  went  out  of  the  land  of  the 
Chaldeans,  and  dwelt  in  Charan.  And  from  thence,  after  his  father 
was  dead,  he  removed  him  into  this  land,  wherein  y@u  now  dwell. 
And  he  gave  him  no  inheritance  in  it,  no,  not  the  space  of  a  foot  : 
but  he  promised  to  give  it  him  in  possession,  and  to  his  seed  after 
him,  when  as  yet  he  had  no  child  (1).  And  God  said  to  him  :  That 
his  seed  should  sojourn  in  a  strange  country ,  and  that  they  should 
bring  them  under  bondage ,  and  treat  them  evil  for  the  space  of  four 
hundred  years  (2)  :  and  the  nation  which  they  shall  serve  will  I 
judge ,  said  the  Lord ,  and  after  these  things  they  shall  go  out  and 
shall  serve  me  in  this  place.  And  he  gave  him  the  covenant  of  cir¬ 
cumcision,  and  so  he  begot  Isaac,  and  circumcised  him  the  eighth 
day.  Isaac  begot  Jacob,  and  Jacob  the  twelve  patriarchs.  And 


tes.  It  is  said  in  Genesis  that  Abraham  was  then  in  Ur  of  the  Chaldeans,  a  province 
bordering  upon  Mesopotamia,  properly  so  called  ;  but  as  there  are  authors  who  give  a 
greater  extent  to  Mesopotamia,  and  others  to  Chaldea,  so  Moses  might  have  said,  in 
accordance  with  the  latter,  that  Abraham  was  then  in  Chaldea  ;  and,  agreeing  with  the 
former,  St.  Stephen  might  have  said  that  he  was  in  Mesopotamia.  There  are  some  other 
points  of  difference  between  the  accounts  given  by  St.  Stephen  and  by  Moses,  but  it  will 
be  seen  that  they  are  as  easily  reconciled  as  in  this  instance. 

(1)  Abraham  well  deserved  to  be  called  the  Father  of  the  Faithful,  and  nothing  could 
be  more  just  than  that  expression  of  St.  Paul  :  He  against  hope  believed  in  hope  (Rom., 
iv.  18).  For  he  believed  that  Sara  should  bear  him  a  son,  though  they  were  both  far 
beyond  the  age  for  having  children  ;  he  believed  that  this  son  should  be  the  progenitor 
of  an  innumerable  posterity,  even  when  he  had  his  arm  raised  to  immolate  him,  and  had 
no  reason  to  hope  that  he  could  avoid  making  the  sacrifice  ;  he  believed  that  the  country 
of  which  he  owned  not  one  foot  should  yet  be  the  inheritance  of  his  descendants  ;  and, 
being  bound  to  believe  that  they  were  to  obtain  it  by  conquest,  he  had  also  to  believe 
that  they  were  previously  to  be  slaves  and  wanderers  for  full  four  hundred  years.  Man 
is  so  entirely  governed  by  the  senses,  that  whatever  is  contrary  to  their  evidence  he  in¬ 
variably  sets  down  as  improbable  ;  and  on  this  account  it  may  be  said  that  it  was  harder 
for  Abraham  to  believe  all  this  than  it  is  for  us  to  believe  in  the  mystery  of  the  Trinity. 
Zacharias,  who  never  doubted  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation,  could  scarcely  believe  that 
he  and  his  wife  (who  was  far  advanced  in  years,  and,  moreover,  considered  barren) 
should  have  a  son  born  to  them. 

(2)  St.  Stephen  said  four  hundred  years.  Moses  (Exod.,  xii.  40)  and  St.  Paul  (Gal., 
iii.  17)  say  four  hundred  and  thirty  years.  These  latter  reckon  from  the  time  of  Jacob’s 
journey  into  Egypt,  when  the  famine  compelled  him  to  leave  Chanaan,  and  go  in  quest 
of  provisions;  St.  Stephen  counts  from  the  birth  of  Isaac,  when  the  posterity  of  Abra¬ 
ham  commenced,  that  being  the  chief  object  of  this  prophecy. 


m 


HIM 


ff. 

% 


PM' 


41!?,. 


the  patriarchs,  through  envy,  sold  Joseph”  to  be  taken  “  into  Egypt  ; 
but  God  was  with  him,  and  delivered  him  out  of  all  his  tribulations. 
He  gave  him  favor  and  wisdom  in  the  sight  of  Pharaoh,  the  king  of 
Egypt,  who  appointed  him  governor  over  Egypt,  and  over  all  his 
house.” 

“Now  there  came  a  famine  upon  all  Egypt,  and  Chanaan,  and 
great  tribulation  ;  and  our  fathers  found  no  food.  But  when  Jacob 
had  heard  that  there  was  corn  in  Egypt,  he  sent  our  fathers  first  ; 
and,  at  the  second  time,  Joseph  was  known  by  his  brethren,  and  his 
kindred  was  made  known  to  Pharaoh.  And  Joseph  sending,  called 
thither  his  father  Jacob  and  all  his  kindred,  in  all  seventy-five 
souls  (1).  So  Jacob  went  down  into  Egypt,  and  he  died,  and  our 
fathers.  And  they  were  translated  (2)  into  Sichem,  and  were  laid 
in  the  sepulchre  that  Abraham  bought  for  a  sum  of  money  of  the 
sons  of  Hemor,  the  son  of  Sichem  (3).” 


(1)  Moses  reckons  seventy-six,  including  Jacob,  Joseph,  and  those  of  his  children  who 
were  bom  in  Egypt.  The  Septuagint  says,  with  St.  Stephen,  seventy-five,  exclusive  of 
Jacob,  Joseph,  and  his  children  ;  but  it  is  more  than  probable  that  this  includes  the 
wives  of  the  sons  of  Jacob,  who  passed  into  Egypt  with  their  husbands.  According  to 
these  different  modes  of  reckoning  all  these  calculations  are  correct,  and  by  no  means 
contradictory. 

(2)  They  were  translated,  that  is,  the  sons  of  Jacob,  and  not  Jacob  himself,  Who  was 
buried  in  the  double  cave  which  Abraham  had  bought  together  with  the  field  fior  a  pos¬ 
session  of  a  burying -place,  of  Ephron  the  Hethite  (Gen.,  1.).  Mention  is  only  made  in 
the  Old  Testament  of  the  translation  of  the  bones  of  Joseph  ;  yet  it  is  quite  certain  that 
the  bodies  of  all  his  brethren  were  likewise  removed,  and  that  they,  too,  were  interred  in 
Sichem  ;  St.  Stephen  makes  the  assertion  too  positively  for  us  to  entertain  any  doubt 
about  it.  This  tradition  had  been  handed  down  amongst  the  Jews,  and  St.  Jerome 
speaks  of  having  seen  at  Sichem  the  tombs  of  the  twelve  patriarchs,  so  that  they  were 
pointed  out  so  lately  as  his  time. 

(3)  It  was  not  at  Sichem,  but  adjacent  to  Hebron,  and  over  against  Mambre,  that 
Abraham  purchased  the  field  wherein  he  was  interred,  and  after  him  Isaac  and  Jacob, 
as  has  been  stated.  Yet  we  do  not  read  in  Genesis  that  Abraham  had  bought  a  field 
at  Sichem.  No;  but  we  read  there,  1st,  That  Jacob  bought  part  of  a  field  of  the  sons 
of  Hemor,  father  of  Sichem,  and  that  he  there  erected  an  altar  (Gen.,  xii.  and  xiii.).  Now 
we  have  only  to  suppose  that  Abraham  had  bought,  as  Jacob  did,  the  place  whereon  he 
raised  the  altar  at  Sichem,  and  St.  Stephen  will  be  in  perfect  accordance  with  Moses. 
If  it  be  objected  that  it  is  not  very  likely  that  Abraham  purchased  all  the  places  whereon 
he  erected  altars,  rve  may  reply  that  he  might  have  done  on  this  particular  occasion  what 
he  was  not  in  the  habit  of  doing  ;  and  it  may  well  be  imagined  that  if  Abraham  could 
sometimes  erect  an  altar  in  a  field  without  purchasing  the  right  to  do  so,  it  might  often 


•y. 


Y/l 


i< 


I- 


-J 


fùfiyp  // 


(Y 


N 


SK 


A!  h'C 


Y 


J 


CHAP.  vn.J 

“  And  when  the  time  of  the  promise  drew  near,  Avhich  God  had 
promised  to  Abraham,  the  people  increased  and  was  multiplied  in 
Egypt,  till  another  king  arose  in  Egypt  who  knew  not  Joseph.  This 
same  dealing  craftily  with  our  race,  afflicted  our  fathers,  that  they 
should  expose  their  children,  to  the  end  they  might  not  be  kept 
alive.” 

“  At  the  same  time  (1)  was  Moses  born,  and  he  was  acceptable  to 
God  ;  he  was  nourished  three  months  in  his  father’s  house.  And 
when  he  was  exposed,  Pharaoh’s  daughter  took  him  up  and  nourished 
him  for  her  own  son.  And  Moses  was  instructed  in  all  the  wisdom 
of  the  Egyptians:  and  he  was  mighty  in  his  words  and  in  his 
deeds  (2).  When  he  was  full  forty  years  old,  it  came  into  his  heart 


happen  that  the  owner  would  not  give  his  consent.  The  truth  of  the  Scriptures,  taken 
altogether,  is  quite  independent  of  these  trifling  discrepancies,  whether  we  can  succeed 
in  making  them  agree,  or  are  forced  to  leave  them  as  we  find  them. 

(1)  Here  then  properly  begins  the  apology  of  St.  Stephen.  It  may,  indeed,  be  found 
to  have  its  foundation  in  the  preceding  ;  but  if  it  be  compared  with  the  subject  of  the 
accusation,  it  will  be  seen  that  he  has  not  yet  replied  thereto.  Wherefore,  then,  this 
long  preamble  ?  Its  use  or  necessity  cannot,  indeed,  be  clearly  ascertained,  and  what 
we  are  going  to  say  on  the  subject  is  but  a  conjecture  of  our  own.  Those  who  spoke 
of  religion  in  the  assemblies  of  the  Jews,  were  in  the  habit  of  commencing  by  a  brief 
summary  of  their  past  history,  at  least  in  its  earlier  stages,  such  as  the  vocation  of  Abra¬ 
ham,  the  deliverance  from  Egyptian  bondage,  the  conquest  of  Chanaan,  &c.  This  method 
might  have  its  peculiar  advantages  which  need  not  here  be  explained,  but  it  is  evident 
that  it  was  the  usual  way  of  making  the  exordium,  which  they  brought  to  bear  on  the 
particular  subject  of  which  they  meant  to  treat.  This,  as  we  have  said,  is  no  more  than 
a  supposition,  supported,  however,  by  the  fact  that  we  find  the  same  method  adopted 
by  St.  Paul  (Acts,  xiii.).  He  had  to  prove  to  the  Jews  of  Antioch  of  Pisidia  that  Jesus 
Christ  was  the  true  Messiah,  and  his  proof  commenced  only  at  the  place  where  he  speaks 
of  David,  to  whom  God  had  promised  that  the  Messiah  should  spring  from  his  blood  ; 
nevertheless,  he  sets  out  with  an  abridged  account  of  the  history  of  the  Hebrew  people, 
runs  through  the  principal  events  thereof,  from  the  going  forth  out  of  Egypt  till  the  time 
when  God  made  choice  of  David  to  succeed  Saul  :  a  recital  which  would  have  been 
quite  superfluous  had  it  not  been  warranted  by  custom. 

(2)  It  will  be  seen  (ver.  35)  that  St.  Stephen  reproaches  them  with  having  on  this 
occasion  refused  to  receive  the  mission  of  Moses  :  whereby  it  became  necessary  that  God 
should  attest  its  authenticity  by  some  miraculous  sign  which  should  force  them  to  ac¬ 
knowledge  it.  We  do  not  find;  however,  that  Moses  had  as  yet  performed  a  miracle  ; 
but  does  not  the  Scripture  clearly  insinuate  that  he  had  when  it  describes  him  as  mighty 
in  words  and  in  deeds,  which  is  the  same  form  of  speech  employed  bjr  St.  Luke,  the 
author  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  to  express  the  miraculous  power  of  Jesus  Christ  ? 
(Luke,  xxiv.  19). 


irairrr" 

I!»!! 


z 


es 


rM>yS^ 


f  01 


\! 


sx 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  Vil, 


to  visit  liis  brethren,  the  children  of  Israel.  And  when  he  had  seen 
one  of  them  suffer  wrong,  he  defended  him  ;  and  striking  the  Egyp¬ 
tian  (1),  he  avenged  him  who  suffered  the  injury.  And  he  thought 
that  his  brethren  understood  that  God  by  his  hand  would  save 
them  ;  but  they  understood  it  not.  And  the  day  following,  he 
showed  himself  to  them  when  they  were  at  strife,  and  would  have 
reconciled  them  in  peace,  saying  :  Men,  ye  are  brethren,  why  hurt 
ye  one  another  ?  But  he  that  did  the  injury  to  his  neighbor  thrust 
him  away,  saying:  Who  hath  appointed  thee  prince  and  judge  over 
ils  ?  What,  wilt  thou  hill  me,  as  thou  didst  yesterday  hill  the  Egyp¬ 
tian  ?  And  Moses  fled  upon  this  word,  and  was  a  stranger  in  the 
land  of  Madian,  where  he  begot  two  sons.” 

“  And  when  forty  years  were  expired  there  appeared  to  him  in 
the  desert  of  Mount  Sina,  an  angel  (2)  in  a  flame  of  fire  in  a  bush. 
And  Moses  seeing  it,  wondered  at  the  sight.  And  as  he  drew  near 
to  view  it,  the  voice  of  the  Lord  came  unto  him,  saying  :  I  am  the 
God  of  thy  fathers  ;  the  God  of  Abraham,  the  God  of  Isaac,  and 
the  God  of  Jacob.  And  Moses  being  terrified,  durst  not  behold. 
And  the  Lord  said  to  him:  Loose  the  shoes  from  thy  feet,  for  the 
place  wherein  thou  standest  is  holy  ground.  Seeing  I  have  seen  the 
affliction  of  my  people  which  is  in  Egypt,  and  I  have  heard  their 
groaning,  and  am  come  down  (8)  to  deliver  them.  And  noiu  come , 


(1)  He  killed  him  lawfully,  because  by  divine  inspiration.  This  is  the  opinion  of  St. 
Augustine.  We  find  in  the  Old  Testament  several  inspirations  of  this  kind,  and  it  would 
he  impious  to  deny,  or  yet  to  condemn  them.  The  evangelical  law  recognizes  no  equals, 
and  it  would  be  the  height  of  fanaticism  to  presume  either  to  find  fault  with  or  to  im¬ 
prove  it. 

(2)  He  who  is  here  called  an  angel  is  spoken  of  as  the  Lord  in  the  following  verse. 
This  difference  has  given  rise  to  two  different  opinions  amongst  theologians.  Some  have 
thought  that  he  who  spoke  to  Moses  was  the  Son  of  God,  who  is  called  by  Isaiah  the 
Angel  of  the  Great  Council.  Many  others  think  that  it  was  an  angel  who  is  called  the 
Lord,  because  he  represented  the  Lord,  and  spoke  in  his  name.  This  last  opinion  is 
more  generally  received,  and  seems  to  be  the  most  probable.  God,  says  St.  Paul,  hav¬ 
ing  spoken  on  divers  occasions,  and  many  ways,  in  times  past,  by  the  prophets  ;  last  of  all, 
in  these  days  hath  spoken  to  us  by  his  Son  (Heb.  i.  1).  Do  not  these  words  seem  to 
give  to  the  evangelical  law  the  exclusive  privilege  of  having  been  announced  by  the  Son 
in  person? 

(3)  God,  by  his  immensity,  is  always  present  in  every  place.  He  can  neither  descend, 
nor  ascend,  nor  pass  in  any  way  from  one  place  to  another,  since  he  would  still  remain 


and  I  will  send  thee  into  Egypt.  This  Moses,  whom  they  refused, 
saying  :  Who  hath  appointed  thee  prince  and  judge  ?  him  God  sent 
to  be  prince  and  redeemer  by  the  hand  of  the  angel  who  appeared 
to  him  in  the  bush.  He  brought  them  out,  doing  wonders  and 
signs  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  in  the  lied  Sea,  and  in  the  desert 
forty  years.  This  is  that  Moses  who  said  to  the  children  of 
Israel  (1)  :  A  prophet  shall  God  raise  up  to  you  of  your  own  breth¬ 
ren ,  as  myself  ;  him  shall  you  hear.  This  is  he  that  was  in  the 
church  in  the  wilderness,  with  the  angel  who  spoke  to  him  on  Mount 
Sina,  and  with  our  fathers  ;  who  received  the  words  of  life  (2)  to 
give  to  ns.  Whom  our  fathers  would  not  obey  ;  but  thrust  him 
away,  and  in  their  hearts  turned  back  into  Egypt,  saying  to  Aaron  : 
Make  us  gods  to  go  before  us.  For ,  as  for  this  Moses,  who  brought 
us  out  of  the  land  of  Egypt,  we  knoiu  not  what  has  become  of  him. 
And  they  made  a  golden  calf  in  those  days,  and  offered  sacrifice  to 
the  idol,  and  rejoiced  in  the  works  of  their  own  hands.  And  God 
turned,  and  gave  them  up  (3)  to  serve  the  host  of  heaven  (4),  as  it 


in  the  place  which  he  left,  as  he  also  had  been  in  the  place  whither  he  was  supposed  to 
go.  Hence,  when  he  says  in  Scripture  :  I  have  come  down,  or  I  will  come  down,  he 
means  that  his  presence,  which  is  only  visible  in  heaven,  shall  then  be  made  sensible  on 
earth  by  some  signal  manifestation  either  of  justice  or  of  mercy. 

(1)  In  reporting  the  conversation  of  God  with  Moses,  St.  Stephen  had  made  it  very 
evident  that  he  was  not  opposed  to  Moses,  since  he  thereby  admitted  the  divinity  of  his 
mission.  Yet  still  it  might  be  objected  that  lie  was,  nevertheless,  endeavoring  to  put 
an  end  to  his  law,  and  substitute  another  in  its  place.  He  meets  this  objection,  or  rather 
forestalls  it,  by  referring  to  the  prophecy  of  Moses,  which  announced  another  legislator, 
who  was  to  be  obeyed  under  pain  of  incurring  the  eternal  vengeance  of  God.  This, 
then,  was  not  speaking  against  Moses,  but  announcing  after  him,  and  in  accordance  with 
his  words,  a  second  legislator.  They  who  rejected  the  latter  without  any  other  reason 
were  virtually  making  Moses  a  false  prophet. 

(2)  The  words  of  life,  that  is  to  say,  the  law  of  God,  which  should  confer  life  on  those 
who  observed  it.  Some  understand  this  of  temporal  life,  others  of  that  which  is  eternal. 
Both  meanings  are  correct.  It  must  only  be  observed  that  the  ancient  law  only  procured 
for  its  observers  temporal  life  ;  that  is  to  say,  temporal  prosperity  ;  and  that  eternal  hap¬ 
piness,  which  was  attained  by  its  observers,  could  only  be  merited  by  the  grace  of  Jesus 
Christ. 

(3)  Gave  them  up  ;  a  form  of  speech  used  in  Scripture  to  signify  that  God  permitted 
them  to  be  delivered  up.  God  never  instigates  to  crime  ;  but  it  often  happens  that  he 
does  not  restrain  those  who  commit  it.  Past  sins  are  the  cause  thereof,  and  it  is  in  this 
sense  that  we  say  that  one  sin  is  punished  by  another. 

(4)  The  stars  and  planets,  which  were  amongst  the  earliest  objects  of  idolatry.  Then 


CHAP,  vn.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


615 


JT' 

m 

àm 

v  Jt 


\, 


\\ 


a -?>•* 


is  written  in  the  book  of  the  prophets  :  Did  you  offer  victims  and 
sacrifices  to  me  for  forty  years  in  the  desert  (1),  O  house  of  Israel f 
And  you  took  unto  y  oil  the  tabernacle  of  Moloch  (2),  and  the  star  of 
your  god  Bempham,  figures  which  you  made  to  adore  them.  And 
I  will  carry  you  away  beyond  Babylon .” 

Moses  was  recognized,  and  his  pretended  adversary  rendered  10 
L,x  him  the  most  magnificent  testimony  which  we  find  recorded  of  him 
in  the  sacred  Scriptures.  It  remained  to  speak  of  the  temple,  to 
which  the  holy  Levite  paid  equal  homage,  since  he  virtually  ac¬ 
knowledged  that  it  was  by  divine  inspiration  David  had  conceived 
the  design  of  erecting  it,  a  design  which  Solomon  carried  into  exe¬ 
cution.  But  it  was  further  necessary  to  undeceive  the  Jews  by 
showing  them  that  the  true  worship,  which  they  associated  exclu¬ 
sively  with  their  own  temple,  was  not  necessarily  connected  with 
stone  walls  and  a  house  built  by  the  hand  of  man.  With  this  inten¬ 
tion,  Stephen  continues  thus  : 

“The  tabernacle  of  the  testimony  (3)  was  with  our  fathers  in  the 
desert,  as  God  ordained  for  them,  speaking  to  Moses  that  he  should 
make  it  according  to  the  form  which  he  had  seen.  Which,  also,  our 
fathers  receiving,  brought  in  with  Joshua  into  the  possession  of  the 


the  nations  decreed  divine  honors  to  extraordinary  men,  who  had  distinguished  themselves 
by  great  actions  or  by  benefits  conferred  on  the  human  race.  These  two  worships 
appear  to  have  been  united  in  course  of  time  by  the  appropriation  of  the  names  of  these 
celebrated  men  to  the  stars  and  planets,  which  were  then  called  Saturn,  Jupiter,  Mars, 
Mercury,  &c.,  names  which  they  still  retain. 

(1)  Sacrifices  were  offered  to  God  in  the  desert,  when  he  gave  the  law,  when  Aaron 
and  his  children  were  consecrated,  and  also  at  the  consecration  of  the  tabernacle.  The 
sacred  writers  mention  no  others,  which  fact,  joined  with  the  preceding,  gives  rise  to  the 
opinion  that  the  sacrifices  then  instituted  were  only  to  be  observed  after  the  Israelites 
had  been  established  in  the  land  of  promise. 

(2)  According  to  ancient  records  cited  by  some  able  critics,  Moloch  was  the  God 
Mars,  and  Rempham  was  Saturn.  Rempham  is  only  named  in  Scripture  on  this  one 
occasion.  Moloch  we  find  often  mentioned,  and  he  is  called  the  god  of  the  Ammonites. 
It  was  in  honor  of  this  sanguinary  divinity  that  parents  burned  their  infant  children  ; 
God  often  reproaches  the  Israelites  for  having  imitated  them  in  these  inhuman  sacri¬ 
fices. 

(3)  Of  the  testimony,  or  declaration  of  the  divine  will,  which  is  principally,  and  per¬ 
haps  wholly  understood  of  the  tables  of  the  law,  according  to  what  God  said  to  Moses  : 
“  The  ark  wherein  you  shall  place  the  testimony  which  I  will  give  you”  (Exod.,  xxv.  21). 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


617 


CHAP.  VII. J 

Gentiles,  whom  God  drove  out  before  the  face  of  our  fathers  there 
was  then  only  the  tabernacle  “  unto  the  days  of  David.  Who  found 
grace  before  God,  and  desired  to  find”  a  place  whereon  to  build  “  a 
tabernacle  for  the  God  of  Jacob.  But  Solomon  built  him  a  house. 
Yet  the  Most  High  dwelleth  not  in  houses  made  by  hand,  as  the 
prophet  saith  :  Heaven  is  my  throne ,  and  the  earth  my  footstool. 
What  house  will  you  build  me ,  saith  the  Lord ,  or  what  is  the  place 
of  my  resting  ?  Hath  not  my  hand  made  all  these  things  f” 

The  foregoing  was  pronounced  in  that  calm  and  moderate  tone 
which  befits  an  instructive  recital  ;  but  Stephen  soon  changes  it  for 
another.  Whether  he  considered  that  invective  would  be  the  most 
successful,  because  the  least  expected  ;  or  that,  reading  in  the  eyes 
of  his  auditors  their  inflexible  obstinacy,  he  found  it  useless  to 
attempt  conciliation  :  “  You  stiff-necked,”  he  suddenly  added,  in  a 
transport  of  indignant  zeal,  Jews  are  ye  in  name,  but  “  un  circum¬ 
cised  in  heart  and  ears,  you  always  resist  the  Holy  Ghost  :  as  your 
fathers  did,  so  do  you  also.  Which  of  the  prophets  have  not  your 
fathers  persecuted  ?  And  they  have  slain  them  who  foretold  of  the 
coming  of  the  Just  One  ;  of  whom  you  have  been  now  the  betrayers 
and  murderers  :  you,  who  have  received  the  law  of  the  ministry  of 
angels,  and  have  not  kept  it.” 

Notwithstanding  the  impetuosity  of  this  attack,  its  reasoning  was 
both  strong  and  cogent  against  the  Jews.  The  argument  it  con¬ 
tained  was  :  Your  fathers  have  at  all  times  resisted  those  who  spoke 
to  them  on  the  part  of  God.  We  believe  that  you  resemble  them 
in  this  point.  Believe  it  also  yourselves  :  at  least,  fear  it,  and  give 
not  way  too  rashly  to  that  passion,  which,  under  the  appearance  of 
zeal,  may  well  be  in  active  opposition  to  the  divine  will.  This  is 
what  Gamaliel  had  before  established,  though  in  a  different  way, 
His  discourse  had  been  to  a  certain  extent  satisfactory  to  his  hear¬ 
ers,  but  not  so  with  this.  Being  more  vehement,  it  did  but  embitter 
and  exasperate  the  wicked  hearts  of  those  who  heard  him.  “  Hear¬ 
ing  these  things  they  were  cut  to  the  heart,  and  they  gnashed  with 
their  teeth  at  him.”  God  permitted  it  to  be  so,  that  Stephen  might 
have  the  honor  of  being  the  first  martyr.  “  But” — and  this  it  was 
that  excited  them  to  fury — “  he  being  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  look¬ 
ing  steadfastly  up  to  heaven,  saw  the  glory  of  God,  and  Jesus  stand 


618 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  VII. 

ing  on  tlie  right  hand  of  God  (1).  And  he  said  :  Behold,  I  see  the 
heavens  opened,  and  the  Son  of  man  standing  on  the  right  hand  of 
God.”  Then,  as  if  it  had  been  blasphemy  to  relate  a  celestial  vision, 
“they,  crying  out  with  a  loud  voice,  stopped  their  ears,  and  with 
one  accord  ran  violently  upon  him.  And  casting  him  forth  without 
the  city,  they  stoned  him  (2)  :  and  the  witnesses  laid  down  their 
garments  at  the  feet  of  a  young  man  whose  name  was  Saul.  And 
they  stoned  Stephen,  invoking  and  saying  :  Lord  Jesus,  receive  my 
spirit  (3).  And  falling  on  his  knees  he  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  say¬ 
ing  :  Lord,  lay  not  this  sin  to  their  charge  (4).  And  when  he  had 
said  this,  he  fell  asleep  in  the  Lord  (a).  And  devout  men  took 
order  for  Stephen’s  funeral,  and  made  great  mourning  over  him  (5). 

(a)  Chap,  viii.,  ver.  2. 


(1)  St.  Stephen  saw  with  the  eyes  of  his  body  the  sacred  humanity  of  the  Saviour  ; 
God  having,  by  a  miracle,  rendered  it  visible  to  him  at  such  an  immense  distance.  It 
is  difficult  to  determine  what  he  saw  that  is  here  called  the  glory  of  God.  Whatever  it 
was  we  are  bound  to  believe,  though  some  maintain  the  contrary,  that  it  was  not  the 
divine  essence  in  itself,  for,  many  years  subsequent  to  this  vision,  the  apostle  St.  John 
wrote:  No  man  hath  seen  God  at  any  time  (John,  i.  18). 

It  is  said  in  several  passages  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  that  Jesus  is  seated  on  the  right 
hand  of  God.  This  is  expressive  of  his  equality  with  his  Father,  and  of  the  eternal  re¬ 
pose  which  has  succeeded  the  toils  of  his  mortal  life.  On  this  occasion  he  appears 
standing,  ready  to  succor  and  to  crown  his  champion. 

(2)  Was  this  the  punishment  which  God  had  decreed  for  blasphemers?  It  was  or¬ 
dained  that  the  witnesses  should  be  those  who  threw  the  first  stone  (Deut.,  xvii.  1). 
They  took  off  their  outer  garments  so  as  to  have  their  arms  free. 

They  stoned  him  without  any  judgment  having  been  pronounced  upon  him.  One 
would  suppose  that  having  no  longer  the  right  of  condemning  to  death,  they  would  have 
gone  to  Pilate  to  solicit  his  consent.  But  it  seems  that  their  rage  would  not  permit 
them  to  wait  for  any  form.  This  was  one  of  those  tumultuous  movements  then  so  com¬ 
mon  amongst  the  Jews,  and  which  the  Roman  magistrates  could  not  always  control. 

(3)  Jesus,  when  expiring,  addressed  the  same  prayer  to  his  Father.  To  address  it  to 
himself  was  confessing  his  divinity,  and  his  equality  with  the  Father. 

(4)  We  here  see  the  difference  between  the  false  zeal  which  springs  from  fanaticism, 
and  that  true  zeal  which  has  charity  for  its  basis.  The  former  smites,  while  the  lattei 
demands  mercy  for  its  persecutors. 

Zeal  is,  of  all  virtues,  the  noblest,  and  yet  the  most  liable  to  illusion  ;  just  as  the  most 
precious  substances  are  the  most  exposed  to  be  adulterated  and  counterfeited  It  must 
be  cherished,  and  yet  carefully  watched. 

(5)  By  this  great  mourning  is  not  only  understood  tears  and  lamentations,  but  also 
the  funeral  honors  which  were  rendered  to  St.  Stephen. 


CHAP.  VIII.  J 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


619 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

PERSECUTION  OF  THE  FAITHFUL. - CONVERSION  OF  THE  SAMARITANS. - SIMON  THE 

MAGICIAN. - THE  EUNUCH  BAPTIZED. 

(a)  “And  Saul  was  consenting  to  His  death.”  It  may  even  be  said 
that  in  keeping  the  garments  of  the  murderers  he  became  an  accom¬ 
plice  in  their  crime.  This  man,  who  is  to  occupy  so  prominent  a  place 
in  this  history,  tells  us  himself  that  he  was  an  Israelite  (1),  of  the 
tribe  of  Benjamin  ;  a  Pharisee  in  what  regards  the  law  ;  in  his  zeal, 
persecuting  the  Church  of  God  ;  as  far  as  legal  justice  was  concerned 
living  a  blameless  life,  surpassing  the  greater  part  of  his  age  and 
nation  in  the  knowledge  and  practice  of  Judaism,  and  in  his  ardent 
attachment  to  the  traditions  of  his  fathers.  In  this  portrait,  drawn 
by  his  own  hand,  we  may  perceive  both  the  germ  of  his  virtues  and 
the  source  of  his  fiery  zeal.  Integrity  so  great,  joined  to  a  disposi¬ 
tion  so  ardent,  must  of  necessity,  if  he  were  in  error,  make  him  a 
furious  persecutor  of  the  truth  ;  and,  supposing  that  he  knew  the 
truth,  these  same  causes  were  sure  to  make  him  a  zealous  apostle,  in 
so  far  as  the  natural  temperament  can  influence  the  grace-enlightened 
mind.  He  must  be  either  one  or  the  other  in  the  highest  degree, 
and  there  was  a  good  opportunity  just  then  for  persecution.  Jew¬ 
ish  zeal,  emboldened  by  success,  had  just  thrown  off  all  restraint, 
and  its  thirst  for  blood  was  increased  to  fury  by  the  sight  of  that 
already  shed.  (£)  “  At  that  time  there  was  raised  a  great  persecu¬ 
tion  against  the  Church,  which  was  at  Jerusalem.”  All  its  ministers 
were  dispersed  through  the  countries  of  Judea  and  Samaria,  except 

(a)  Chap,  vii.,  ver.  59.  ( b )  Chap,  viii.,  ver.  1. 


(1)  Of  the  stock  of  Israel,  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin  ;  according  to  the  law,  a  Phari¬ 
see  ;  according  to  zeal,  'persecuting  the  Church  of  God  ;  according  to  the  justice  that  is  in 
the  law,  conversing  without  blame  (Phil.,  iii.  5).  And  1  made  progress  in  the  Jews' 
religion  above  many  of  my  equals  in  my  own  nation,  being  more  abundantly  zealous  far 
the  traditions  of  my  fathers  (Gal.,  i.  14). 


Pl\ 

}  v  AV 

Vf 

A 


the  apostles  (1).  (a)  “  But  Saul,”  the  most  furious  of  all,  “  made 

havoc  of  the  Church,  entering  in  from  house  to  house,  and  dragging 
away  men  and  women,  committed  them  to  prison  whence,  as  he 
himself  relates,  he  only  allowed  them  to  come  forth  to  go  to  the 
place  of  execution,  unless  he  had  succeeded  in  making  them  blas¬ 
pheme  the  religion  of  Christ. 

The  malice  of  men  was  instrumental  to  the  work  of  God.  “  They, 
therefore,  that  were  dispersed,  went  about  preaching  the  word  of 
God.”  Amongst  these  new  preachers  we  observe  him  who,  by  the 
death  of  Stephen,  had  become  the  chief  of  the  Levitical  order. 
Philip  appears  to  have  replaced  him,  not  only  by  evangelical  zeal, 
but  also  by  the  extraordinary  gifts  which  God  transferred  to  the 
second  of  the  deacons  immediately  on  the  death  of  the  first. 

“  And  Philip,  going  down  to  the  city  of  Samaria  (2),  preached 

(a)  Chap,  viii.,  ver.  3. 


(1)  The  new  Church  required  the  presence  of  its  founders.  Thus,  although  Jesus 
Christ  had  told  them  to  fly  from  one  city  to  another  in  time  of  persecution,  they  yet 
stood  their  ground,  because  this  was  the  time  when  the  pastors  were  to  expose  their 
life  for  their  sheep. 

If  they  had  fled  on  this  occasion,  it  might  have  been  said  that  they  deserted  the 
Church,  which  was  as  yet  inclosed  within  the  walls  of  Jerusalem.  For  several  years 
after  this  it  so  happened  that  the  city  which  had  been  the  cradle  of  the  Church,  con¬ 
tinued  to  be  its  centre,  and,  as  it  were,  its  metropolis. 

(2)  Samaria  was  the  name  both  of  a  country  and  a  city.  Hence  it  might  be  trans¬ 
lated,  as  some  have  done,  into  a  city  of  Samaria  ;  but  the  greater  number  translate  it 
as  the  city  of  Samaria,  which  was  the  capital  of  the  country.  It  was  founded  by  Amri, 
king  of  Israel,  and  destroyed  by  Hircan,  but  was  magnificently  rebuilt  by  Herod  the 
Great,  who,  in  order  to  conciliate  the  Emperor  Augustus,  gave  it  the  name  of  Sebaste, 
a  Greek  word  signifying  Augustus. 

When  Jesus  Christ  sent  the  apostles  on  their  first  mission,  he  forbade  them  to  enter 
the  cities  of  the  Samaritans  (Matt.,  x.  5).  He  had  made  himself,  however,  an  exception 
to  this  general  prohibition,  when,  at  the  request  of  the  inhabitants  of  Sichar,  he  stopped 
two  days  in  their  city  (John,  iv.).  The  interdict  was  removed  when,  after  his  resurrec¬ 
tion,  he  announced  to  the  apostles  that  they  should  be  witnesses  unto  him  in  Jerusalem, 
in  all  Judea,  in  Samaria,  and  to  the  uttermost  confines  of  the  earth.  There  was,  there¬ 
fore,  no  objection  to  their  preaching  the  Gospel  amongst  the  Samaritans.  What  is  said 
of  the  ends  of  the  earth,  gives  no  very  clear  intimation  of  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles. 
It  might  as  well  have  been  understood  of  the  Jews  who  were  scattered  abroad  through 
every  country,  and  so  it  appears  to  have  been  understood  up  to  the  time  when  St.  Peter 
saw  that  wonderful  vision  on  the  occasion  of  the  conversion  of  Cornelius  the  centurion. 


A 


chap,  vm.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


621 


Christ  unto  them.  And  the  people  with  one  accord  were  attentive 
to  those  things  which  were  said  by  Philip,  hearing  and  seeing  the 
miracles  which  he  did.  For  many  of  them  who  had  unclean  spirits, 
crying  with  a  loud  voice,  went  out.  And  many  taken  with  the 
palsy,  and  that  were  lame,  were  healed.  There  was,  therefore,  great 
joy  in  that  city.” 

“Now  there  was  a  certain  man  named  Simon,  who  before  had 
been  a  magician  in  that  city,  seducing  the  people  of  Samaria,  giving 
out  that  he  was  some  great  one.  To  whom  they  all  gave  ear,  from 
the  least  to  the  greatest,  saying  :  This  man  is  the  power  of  God, 
which  is  called  great.  And  they  were  attentive  to  him,  because  for 
a  long  time  he  had  bewitched  them  with  his  magical  practices.  But 
when  they  had  believed  Philip  preaching  of  the  kingdom  of  God, 
in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  they  were  baptized,  both  men  and  wo¬ 
men.  Then  Simon  himself  believed  also  (1),  and  being  baptized,  he 
stuck  close  to  Philip  ;  and  being  astonished,  wondered  to  see  the 
signs  and  exceeding  great  miracles  which  were  done.” 

“  When  the  apostles  who  were  in  Jerusalem  had  heard  that  Sama¬ 
ria  had  received  the  word  of  God,  they  sent  unto  them  Peter  and 
John  (2),  who,  when  they  were  come,  prayed  for  them,  that  they 
might  receive  the  Holy  Ghost.  For  he  was  not  as  yet  come  upon 
any  of  them  (3)  :  but  they  were  only  baptized  in  the  name  of  the 


(1)  Most  of  the  ancient  fathers,  seeing  how  very  soon  Simon  relapsed  into  his  former 
sin,  are  of  opinion  that  he  only  pretended  to  believe  ;  but  as  the  text  simply  says  that 
he  believed,  we  have  no  reason  to  doubt  of  his  conversion.  The  miracles  operated  by 
Philip  might  well  convince  him  of  the  truth  of  the  doctrine  announced  by  him.  Never¬ 
theless,  the  desire  of  being  enabled  to  work  similar  wonders  was  the  sole  motive  which 
induced  him  to  embrace  this  faith  ;  therefore  he  understood  it  not  in  its  real  object, 
which  was  the  sanctification  and  salvation  of  those  who  professed  it.  Hence  it  might 
be  said  that  he  believed,  and  yet  believed  not. 

(2)  This  sending  was  not,  on  the  part  of  the  apostles,  an  act  of  authority,  but  the 
result  of  a  common  deliberation.  Thus  they  sent  signifies  that  they  thought  it  right  for 
Peter  and  John  to  go  there. 

It  was  because  another  nation  was  to  be  added  to  the  Church,  that  St.  Peter,  the  head 
of  the  Church,  went  to  Samaria. 

(3)  They  had  received  in  baptism  the  sanctifying  spirit,  but  they  had  not  yet  received 
the  Spirit  of  strength,  or  any  other  of  those  gifts  which  are  the  proper  effect  of  confirma¬ 
tion 


.N 


vgG  '  '  M? 


»'r 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  Till. 


Lord  Jesus.  Then  they  laid  their  hand  upon  them  (1),  and  they 
received  the  Holy  Ghost.” 

“  And  when  Simon  saw  that  by  the  imposition  of  the  hands  of 
the  apostles  the  Holy  Ghost  was  given,  he  offered  them  money  (2), 
saying  :  Give  me  also  this  power,  that  on  whomsoever  I  shall  lay 
my  hands  he  may  receive  the  Holy  Ghost.  But  Peter  said  to  him  : 
Keep  thy  money  to  thyself,  to  perish  with  thee,  because  thou  hast 
thought  that  the  gift  of  God  may  be  purchased  with  money  (3). 
Thou  hast  no  part  nor  lot  in  this  matter,  for  thy  heart  is  not  right 
in  the  sight  of  God.  Do  penance,  therefore,  for  this  thy  wicked¬ 
ness  ;  and  pray  to  God,  if  perhaps  (4)  this  thought  of  thy  heart  may 
be  forgiven  thee.  For  I  see  thou  art  in  the  gall  of  bitterness  (5) 


(1)  In  this  imposition  of  hands,  the  ancients  always  recognized  the  sacrament  of  con¬ 
firmation.  There  is  no  mention  of  the  holy  chrism,  on  which  subject  the  theologians  are 
divided.  Some  assert  that  it  was  used  by  the  apostles,  though  not  specially  mentioned  ; 
while  others  are  of  opinion  that  it  was  their  special  privilege  to  confer  the  sacrament 
solely  by  the  imposition  of  hands.  However  that  might  be,  it  is  certain  that  unction 
with  the  holy  chrism  has  ever  since  been  regarded  as  indispensable  to  the  due  adminis¬ 
tration  of  the  sacrament. 

Baptism  makes  the  Christian  ;  confirmation,  if  one  may  say  so,  finishes  and  perfects 
him.  The  eagerness  with  which  the  apostles  hastened  to  bestow  it  on  the  newly  bap¬ 
tized  would  alone  suffice  to  prove  its  importance.  To  neglect  receiving  this  sacrament 
when  one  can  obtain  it,  is  a  great  sin.  But  how  enormous  is  the  guilt  of  those  who, 
being  charged  with  its  administration,  yet  leave  whole  nations  destitute  of  so  great  a 
boon  ! 

(2)  Every  one  knows  that  it  is  from  this  sacrilegious  proposal  that  the  traffic  of  sacred 
things  has  taken  the  name  of  Simony.  Simon  was  also  the  first  heresiarch,  and  most  of 
the  heresies  of  the  three  first  centuries  sprang  from  his  foundation.  It  was  always  a 
mixture  of  Christianity  and  Platonism,  to  which  each  succeeding  heresiarch  added  his 
own  peculiar  notions.  There  is  no  certainty  regarding  the  dispute  between  Simon  and 
St.  Peter — his  flight  through  the  air,  and  his  fall,  being  obtained  through  the  prayers  of 
the  holy  apostle.  If  there  is  good  authority  for,  there  are  also  strong  presumptions 
against  it. 

(3)  He  announces  to  him  the  chastisement  which  he  merited  ;  perhaps  he  even  pre¬ 
dicted  it,  as  has  been  already  remarked  when  he  spoke  of  Judas  (chap.  L).  But  although 
he  speaks  in  the  tone  of  imprecation,  he  wishes  him  no  ill,  since  he  immediately  adds  : 
Do  penance. 

(4)  This  perhaps  relates  to  the  dispositions  of  the  penitent,  which  are  always  uncer¬ 
tain.  For  if  the  dispositions  were  assuredly  good,  however  enormous  the  crime  might 
be,  its  forgiveness  was  certain. 

(5)  Commentators  cannot  agree  as  to  the  meaning  of  this  expression — the  gall  of  bit¬ 
terness.  Some  take  it.  to  mean  a  soul  poisoned  with  malice  ;  others,  the  vexation  with 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


623 


CHAP.  VHI.] 

and  in  the  bonds  of  iniquity.  Simon,”  frightened  but  not  converted, 
“  answering,  said  :  Pray  you  for  me  (1)  to  the  Lord,  that  none  of 
these  things  which  you  have  spoken  may  come  upon  me.” 

The  two  apostles,  “  having  testified,  and  preached  the  word  of  the 
Lord,  returned  to  Jerusalem.”  Their  return  was  but  another  mis¬ 
sion  ;  for  as  they  went  along,  “  they  preached  the  Gospel  to  many 
countries  of  the  Samaritans.” 

The  decrees  of  God  were  gradually  made  manifest  ;  and  through 
the  agency  of  one  man,  another  nation  was  soon  to  be  called  to  the 
faith.  Philip  was  again  the  instrument  employed  by  God.  “  An 
angel  of  the  Lord  spoke  to  Philip,  saying:  Arise,  go  towards  the 
south,  to  the  way  that  goeth  down  from  Jerusalem  into  Gaza  (2)  ; 
this  is  desert.  And  rising  up,  he  went.  And  behold  a  man  of 
Ethiopia,  an  eunuch  (3),  of  great  authority  under  Candace,  the 
queen  of  the  Ethiopians  (4),  who  had  charge  over  all  her  treasures, 
had  come  to  Jerusalem  to  adore.  And  he  was  returning,  sitting  in 
his  chariot,  and  reading  Isaias  the  prophet.  And  the  Spirit  said  to 
Philip  :  Go  near,  and  join  thyself  to  this  chariot.  And  Philip,  run¬ 
ning  thither,  heard  him  reading  the  prophet  Isaias  (5),  and  he  said  : 


which  Simon  saw  himself  refused  ;  and  others,  the  hatred  of  God  for  Simon,  owing  to 
his  horrible  sacrilege.  Of  these  three  explanations,  the  first  is  the  most  probable. 

(1)  It  is  always  good  to  recommend  ourselves  to  the  prayers  of  virtuous  persons,  but 
we  must  also  pray  ourselves.  The  prayers  of  others  will  be  of  little  service  to  us  if  we 
employ  them  solely  to  avoid  the  trouble  of  praying  for  ourselves. 

(2)  Gaza  had  been  formerly  a  city  of  the  Philistines,  and  was  that  of  which  Samson 
carried  off  the  gates,  and  where  he  destroyed,  together  with  himself,  several  thousands 
of  the  Philistines,  by  pulling  down  the  pillars  of  a  certain  edifice.  Gaza  was  taken  by 
Alexander  the  Great  after  a  siege  of  two  months,  and  was  by  him  totally  destroyed. 
In  course  of  time  a  new  city  was  built  in  its  vicinity,  and  received  the  name  of  Gaza. 
It  is  the  first  that  is  here  mentioned,  and  it  is  described  as  desert,  or  waste,  in  order  to 
distinguish  it  from  the  new  and  inhabited  city. 

(3)  The  word  eunuch,  in  its  original  meaning,  signifies  simply  an  officer  of  the  royal 
household,  and  we  are  at  liberty  to  believe  that  this  man  was  only  a  eunuch  in  this  sense. 

(4)  A  people  of  Africa,  now  better  known  by  the  name  of  Abyssinians.  They  still 
regard  this  eunuch  as  their  first  apostle,  and  pride  themselves  on  being  the  first  nation 
which  embraced  Christianity,  according  to  that  saying  of  David  :  Ethiopia  shall  soon 
stretch  out  her  hands  to  God  (Ps.  lxvii.  32). 

(o)  If  this  man  was  not  of  Jewish  origin  he  was  at  least  a  proselyte,  and  a  good  one, 
too,  since  he  had  come  to  Jerusalem  to  adore,  and  whilst  on  his  way,  was  occupied  in 
reading  the  Holy  Scripture.  Because  he  practised  the  good  which  he  knew,  God  was 


624  THE  IIISTOKY  OF  THE  [CHAP.  VIII. 

Thinkest  thou  that  thou  unclerstandest  what  thou  readest  ?  Who 
said  (1)  :  And  how  can  I,  unless  some  man  show  me  ?  And  he  de¬ 
sired  Philip  that  he  would  come  up  and  sit  with  him.  And  the 
place  of  the  Scripture  which  he  was  reading  was  this  :  He  was  led 
as  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter  ;  and  like  a  lamb  without  voice  before  his 
shearers ,  so  openetli  he  not  his  mouth  (2).  In  humility ,  his  judgment 
was  taken  away.  Ilis  generation  who  shall  declare ,  for  his  life 
shall  be  taken  from  the  earth  f” 

“And  the  eunuch,  answering  Philip,  said:  I  beseech  thee,  of 
whom  doth  the  prophet  speak  this  ?  of  himself,  or  of  some  other 
man  ?  Then  Philip,  opening  his  mouth,  and  beginning  at  this  Scrip¬ 
ture,  preached  unto  him  Jesus.  And  as  they  wrent  on  their  way, 
they  came  to  a  certain  water  ;  and  the  eunuch  said  :  See,  here  is 
water,  what  doth  hinder  me  from  being  baptized?  And  Philip 
said  :  If  thou  believest  with  all  thy  heart,  thou  mayest.  And  he 
answeriDg,  said  :  I  believe  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son  of  God. 
And  he  commanded  the  chariot  to  stand  still  ;  and  they  went  down 
into  the  water,  both  Philip  and  the  eunuch  (3),  and  he  baptized 

pleased  to  give  him  the  knowledge  in  which  he  was  deficient.  This  is  the  ordinary 
course  of  grace,  and  perhaps  also  the  literal  meaning  of  those  mysterious  words  of  St. 
Paul:  The  justice  of  God  is  revealed  therein  (that  is  to  say,  in  the  Gospel)  from  faith 
unto  faith  (Rom.,  i.  17)  ;  from  the  Jewish  to  the  Christian  faith  ;  from  faith  in  a  Mes¬ 
siah  to  come  to  faith  in  a  Messiah  come  and  declared. 

(1)  A  good  Protestant,  even  were  he  otherwise  the  most  ignorant  of  all  men,  yet 
speaking  according  to  the  fundamental  principle  of  his  sect,  would  have  answered  :  Oh  ! 
yes,  I  understand — at  least  I  require  no  interpreter  :  there  is  no  need  of  explanation. 

(2)  This  text  has  been  translated  word  for  word,  and  though  interpreters  have  ex¬ 
plained  it  in  various  ways,  there  is  yet  no  certainty  with  regard  to  its  real  meaning.  It 
seems  to  us  more  fitting  to  leave  it  in  its  obscurity  than  to  give  it  a  forced  meaning.  We 
must  simply  confess  ourselves  at  a  loss  to  understand  it,  and  this  we  are  not  ashamed  to 
do,  since  St.  Augustine,  the  most  enlightened  of  all  the  doctors  of  the  Church,  has  not 
scrupled  to  own  that  there  is  in  the  sacred  Scriptures  much  that  he  does  not  understand, 
in  fact,  far  more  than  his  understanding  did  or  could  fathom  :  In  sacris  scripturis  multo 
plura  nescio,  quam  scio  (Aug.  Epist.  119).  It  wras  undoubtedly  the  Holy  Ghost  who 
conducted  the  eunuch  to  the  passage  in  question,  contained  in  the  fifty-third  chapter  of 
Isaias.  In  this  chapter  there  are  found  so  many  passages  which  manifestly  refer  to  Je¬ 
sus  Christ,  and  to  him  only,  that  it  would  suffice  to  give  to  that  prophet  the  title  of  the 
Evangelist  of  the  Old  Testament.  Philip  could  not  have  had  a  more  favorable  opportu¬ 
nity.  He  had  merely  to  relate  the  passion  of  Jesus  Christ,  to  bring  light  and  conviction 
to  the  mind  of  a  man  who  saw  that  it  had  all  been  predicted  so  many  ages  before. 

(3)  St.  Jerome  speaks  of  this  water,  which  is  ".ailed  the  Ethiopian’s  Fountain;  it  is 


him  (1).  And  when  they  were  come  up  out  of  the  water,  the  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  took  away  Philip,  and  the  eunuch  saw  him  no  more.  And 
he,”  strengthened  by  this  new  prodigy,  “  went  on  his  way  rejoicing,” 
and  delighted  with  his  good  fortune,  he  gave  himself  but  little  con¬ 
cern  that  he  had  lost  sight  of  its  visible  author.  As  for  “  Philip,” 
he  “  was  found  in  Azotus  (2),  and,  passing  through,  he  preached  the 
Gospel  to  all  the  cities  till  he  came  to  Cesarea  (3).”  That  city  was 
his  usual  residence,  and  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  might  at  once  have 
transported  him  thither;  but  the  time  had  come  when  the  Lord 
had  decreed  that  the  Gospel  should  be  announced  to  the  people  of 
all  that  region. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


THE  CONVERSION  OF  SAUL. 


The  eunuch  had  been  gradually  conducted  from  the  darkness  of 
Judaism  to  the  full  light  of  faith.  His  fidelity  to  the  first  grace 
given  him,  whereby  he  had  become  a  pious  proselyte,  obtained  for 
him  that  additional  grace  which  made  him  a  perfect  Christian.  We 
have  already  remarked  that  such  is  the  ordinary  course  of  God’s 
ways,  for  his  operations  in  the  supernatural  as  well  as  in  the  natural 


on  the  road  from  Jerusalem  to  Gaza,  adjacent  to  a  place  named  Bethsura,  where  it  springs 
from  the  earth,  and  immediately  enters  again. 

(1)  It  must  be  inferred  that  Philip  had  previously  explained  to  him  at  least  the  prin¬ 
cipal  mysteries  of  the  faith,  together  with  the  chief  duties  of  Christianity.  His  profes¬ 
sion  of  faith  includes  all  that  in  an  abridged  form  ;  for  in  confessing  that  Jesus  Christ  is 
truly  the  Son  of  God,  it  follows  that  one  believes  all,  whatsoever  he  has  said,  and  is  wil¬ 
ling  to  do  what  he  has  commanded. 

(2)  An  ancient  city  of  the  Philistines,  between  Gaza  and  Cesarea,  but  much  nearer  to 
the  former. 

(3)  Called  in  earlier  times  the  Tower  of  Straton.  It  is  situated  on  the  Mediterranean 
Sea,  and  is  distinct  from  another  Cesarea,  surnamed  Philippi,  from  Philip,  the  son  of 
Herod,  who  had  built  it  in  honor  of  Tiberius  Cæsar.  The  latter  city,  which  is  men¬ 
tioned  in  Scripture,  was  at  the  foot  of  Mount  Lebanon. 

40 


à 


A 


SfeM _ . 

J 


626 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE 


[CHAP.  IX. 


order,  have  almost  invariably  their  beginning,  their  progress,  and 
their  perfection.  But  God,  the  author  of  this  order,  is  by  no  means 
bound  to  follow  it  on  all  occasions.  He  departs  from  it  when  he 
pleases  ;  and  at  times  signalizes  his  omnipotent  mercy,  by  striking 
down  the  most  rebellious  will,  and  subduing  hearts  which  so  far 
from  being  disposed  for  the  reception  of  grace,  were  entirely  occu¬ 
pied  with  self,  and  opposed  to  all  beside.  Of  this  class  was  the  con¬ 
version  which  we  are  about  to  relate  ;  a  conversion  which  snatched 
from  Judaism  its  most  strenuous  supporter— changed  in  one  moment 
a  persecutor  into  an  apostle,  and,  by  the  conquest  of  a  single  man, 
paved  the  way  for  the  subjection  of  the  entire  world. 

“  (a)  And  Saul  (1)  as  yet  breathing  out  threatenings  and  slaugh¬ 
ter  against  the  disciples  of  the  Lord,  went  to  the  high-priest,  and 
asked  of  him  letters  to  Damascus  (2),  to  the  synagogues,  that  if  he 
found  any  men  or  women  of  this  way,  he  might  bring  them  bound 
to  Jerusalem.  And  as  he  went  on  his  journey,  it  came  to  pass  that 
he  drew  nigh  to  Damascus  ;  and  suddenly  a  light  from  heaven  shined 
round  about  him.  And  falling  on  the  ground,  he  heard  a  voice 
saying  to  him  :  Saul,  Saul,  why  persecutest  thou  me  (3)  ?  He  said  : 
Who  art  thou,  Lord  ?  And  the  Lord  answered  :  I  am  Jesus,  whom 
thou  persecutest.  It  is  hard  for  thee  to  kick  against  the  goad  (4). 

(a)  Chap,  ix.,  ver.  1. 


(1)  The  same  name  as  King  Saul’s,  although  differently  pronounced  ;  but  the  He¬ 
brews  pronounced  it  in  the  same  way,  that  is  to  say,  as  though  it  were  two  syllables. 
We  learn  this  from  the  words  of  the  Saviour,  who  speaking  in  Hebrew,  said  twice. 
Saoul,  Saoul,  according  to  the  Greek  text,  which  is  that  here  followed.  We,  therefore, 
pronounce  it  wrongly,  and  though  the  error  is  of  small  importance,  we  are  of  opinion 
that  any  thing  connected  with  so  great  a  man  cannot  but  be  worthy  of  notice. 

(2)  Formerly  the  capital  of  Syria.  We  learn  from  this  passage  that  the  Jews  were 
very  numerous  there,  since  it  appears  that  they  had  several  synagogues.  Those  of  Jeru¬ 
salem  could  have  had  no  authority  in  that  city  which  was  under  subjection  to  a  foreign 
prince.  It  seems,  notwithstanding,  that  the  decrees  of  the  high-priest  were  executed 
there  ;  whether  it  was  that  the  sovereigns  of  the  country  had  allowed  them  that  privi¬ 
lege,  or  that  they  had  purchased  it  for  themselves,  as  we  see  in  certain  places,  that  peo¬ 
ple,  by  paying  well,  obtain  indulgences  which  the  laws  do  not  sanction. 

(3)  Those  who,  in  any  way  whatsoever,  persecute  the  righteous,  may  here  leam  who 
it  is  that  they  attack. 

(4)  This  is  a  metaphor  borrowed  from  the  oxen,  which,  being  goaded,  do  but  irritate 
the  driver  if  they  kick,  and  draw  greater  punishment  on  themselves.  This  saying  of  the 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


627 


CHAP.  IX.] 

And  lie  trembling  and  astonished,  said  :  Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have 
me  to  do  (1)  ?  And  the  Lord  said  to  him  :  Arise,  and  go  into  the 
city,  and  there  it  shall  be  told  thee  what  thou  must  do  (2).  Now 
the  men  who  went  in  company  with  him  stood  amazed,  hearing  in¬ 
deed  a  voice  (3),  but  seeing  no  man.  And  Saul  arose  from  the 
ground,  and  when  his  eyes  were  opened  he  saw  nothing.  But  they, 
leading  him  by  the  hands,  brought  him  to  Damascus.  And  he  was 
there  three  days  without  sight,  and  he  did  neither  eat  nor  drink.” 

“  Now  there  was  a  certain  disciple  at  Damascus,  named  Ananias  : 
and  the  Lord  said  to  him  in  a  vision  :  Ananias.  And  he  said  :  Be¬ 
hold  I  am  here,  Lord.  And  the  Lord  said  to  him  :  Arise,  and  go 
into  the  street  that  is  called  Straight,  and  seek  in  the  house  of  Ju- 


Lord  expresses  some  resistance,  either  past  or  present,  on  the  part  of  Saul.  It  is  very 
probable  that  even  when  he  persecuted  the  faithful  with  so  much  fury,  he  was  visited  by 
some  rays  of  divine  light,  which  occasioned  certain  misgivings  in  his  mind.  But  having 
once  gone  so  far,  he  would  not  recede.  A  first  engagement  often  carries  men  far  beyond 
what  they  had  intended  ;  hurried  on  by  impulse,  they  cannot  stop  midway  in  their  course. 

(1)  This  brief  sentence  comprises  the  entire  conversion  of  St.  Paul.  Happy  the  peni¬ 
tent  who,  like  him,  cries  out  with  all  his  heart  :  Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me  to  do  ? 

(2)  Yet  St.  Paul  declares  in  his  epistles  that  he  had  no  other  teacher  than  Jesus 
Christ.  A  distinction  must  here  be  made:  he  learned  by  revelation  from  Jesus  himself 
the  knowledge  requisite  for  him  as  an  apostle,  and  for  the  instruction  of  others  ;  but 
that  which  it  behooved  him  to  learn  as  a  catechumen,  and  for  his  own  sanctification,  he 
acquired  through  the  agency  of  Ananias.  Hence  it  was  that  Jesus  had  said  to  him:  It 
shall  be  told  thee  what  thou  must  do.  In  all  that  regards  the  particular  salvation  of 
each,  men  must  be  guided  by  men.  The  law  is  general,  and  without  exception.  Even 
those  who  are  charged  with  public  instruction  are  not  exempt  from  the  obligation.  Woe 
to  any  one  of  them  who  imagines  himself  competent  for  his  own  instruction  ! 

Jesus  Christ  further  told  him  for  what  ministry  he  designed  him,  as  will  be  seen, 
chap,  xxvi.,  16th  and  following  verses,  when  St.  Paul  related  this  vision  before  King 
Agrippa. 

(3)  Here  it  is  said  that  they  heard  a  voice  ;  in  chap,  xxii.,  St.  Paul,  relating  the  his¬ 
tory  of  his  conversion,  says  that  they  who  were  with  him  heard  not  the  voice  of  him  who 
spoke  to  him  ;  the  voice,  therefore,  which  they  are  here  said  to  have  heard,  is  that  of 
Saul,  so  that  there  is  no  contradiction  between  the  two  accounts.  If  it  be  asked,  where¬ 
fore,  then,  the  astonishment  of  the  men,  it  is  easy  to  answer  that  there  was  still  quite 
enough  to  excite  both  surprise  and  terror.  The  wondrous  light  wherewith  they  were 
surrounded  ;  Saul  struck  to  the  ground  ;  and  the  sight  of  him  who  had  ever  been  so 
courageous,  lying  grovelling  in  the  dust,  and  quivering  with  fear  ;  the  sound  of  his  voice, 
too,  whereby  they  knew  that  he  was  conversing  with  some  unseen  being  ;  all  this  was 
sufficient  to  make  them  fear  and  wonder,  although  they  heard  not  the  voice  of  the  Lord, 
whose  will  it  was  that  none  but  Saul  should  either  see  or  hear  him. 


t'/X 

%  Cl, 


H 


628 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  LX. 


das,  one  named  Saul  of  Tarsus.  For  behold  he  prayetb.”  At  the 
same  time  Saul,  who  had  to  be  assured  that  this  man  was  sent  by 
God,  “  saw,”  in  spirit,  “  a  man  named  Ananias,  coming  in  and  put¬ 
ting  his  hands  upon  him  that  he  might  receive  his  sight.  Ananias 
answered  :  Lord,  I  have  heard  by  many  of  this  man,  how  much  evil 
he  hath  done  to  thy  saints  in  Jerusalem  ;  and  here  he  hath  authority 
from  the  chief  priests  to  bind  all  that  invoke  thy  name.  And  the 
Lord  said  to  him  :  Go  thy  way,  for  this  man  is  to  me  a  vessel  of 
election,  to  carry  my  name  before  the  Gentiles,  and  kings,  and  the 
children  of  Israel.  For  I  will  show  him  (1)  how  great  things  he 
must,”  in  his  turn,  “  suffer  for  my  name’s  sake.” 

“  And  Ananias  went  his  way,  and  entered  into  the  house,  and  lay¬ 
ing  his  hands  upon  him  (2),  he  said:  Brother  Saul,  the  Lord  Jesus 
hath  sent  me,  he  that  appeared  to  thee  in  the  way  as  thou  earnest, 
that  thou  mayest  receive  thy  sight,  and  be  filled  with  the  Holy 
Ghost  (3).  And  immediately  there  fell  from  his  eyes  as  it  were 

(1)  Although  Jesus  Christ  might  have  shown  it  to  him  in  a  revelation,  yet  this  word 
I  will  show  him,  does  not  at  all  prove  it  ;  it  may  recur  to  that  fashion  of  speech  in  use 
amongst  us,  he  shall  see  how  much  he  has  to  suffer.  Jesus  Christ  here  glorifies  himself 
because  of  what  St.  Paul  is  to  suffer  for  his  sake.  This  seems  to  signify  :  The  persecu¬ 
tor  shall  be  persecuted  ;  and,  after  being  so  inveterate  against  me  and  mine,  I  shall  have 
the  glory  of  seeing  him  suffer  for  my  name  even  more  than  he  made  others  undergo. 

(2)  This  imposition  of  hands  was  not  confirmation,  as  Calvin  fancied  ;  Ananias  was 
neither  an  apostle  nor  a  bishop  ;  and  supposing  that  he  had  been,  he  would  have  given 
confirmation  to  Saul  after  and  not  before  baptism.  It  was  merely  that  Saul  might  be 
cured  of  his  blindness  that  Ananias  imposed  hands  upon  him,  in  accordance  with  the 
promise  of  the  Saviour  to  those  who  should  believe  in  him  :  They  shall  lay  their  hands 
upon  the  sick,  and  they  shall  recover  (Mark,  xvi.). 

(3)  He  received  the  plenitude  thereof  in  baptism.  There  is  no  doubt,  however,  that 
being  so  perfectly  converted,  he  had,  with  the  remission  of  his  sins,  received  the  Holy 
Ghost,  who  already  dwelt  within  him  as  the  principle  of  all  sanctity.  But  in  baptism 
he  received  a  measure  still  more  abundant,  being,  indeed,  equal  to  that  which  the  apos¬ 
tles  received  on  the  day  of  Pentecost  ;  God,  who  associated  him  in  their  ministry,  had 
decreed  that  the  Holy  Ghost  should  be  given  to  him,  as  well  as  to  them,  without  any 
human  agency.  In  a  vocation  so  extraordinary,  nothing  need  excite  surprise. 

He  says  again,  as  we  see  in  chap.  xxii.  :  The  God  of  our  fathers  hath  preordained 
thee  that  thou  shouldst  know  his  will,  and  see  the  Just  One,  and  shouldst  hear  the  voice 
from  his  mouth.  For  thou  shalt  be  his  witness. . .  .of  those  things  which  thou  hast  seen 
and  heard.  This  makes  it  evident  that  Jesus  Christ  appeared  to  him  in  person,  as  St. 
Paul  himself  says  (l  Cor.,  xv.).  It  was  necessary  that  all  the  apostles  should  be  ocu¬ 
lar  witnesses  of  his  resurrection,  so  that  each  of  them  could  say  to  the  world  :  He  ia 
risen,  and  I  have  seen  him. 


CHAP.  IX.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


629 


scales,  and  he  received  his  sight  ;  and  rising  up,  he  was  baptized. 
And  when  he  had  taken  meat,  he  was  strengthened.  And  he  was 
with  the  disciples  that  were  at  Damascus  for  some  days.” 

“  And  immediately  he  preached  Jesus  in  the  synagogues,  that  he 
is  the  Son  of  God.  And  all  that  heard  him  were  astonished,  and 
said  :  Is  not  this  he  who  persecuted  in  Jerusalem  those  that  called 
upon  this  name  ;  and  came  hither  for  that  intent  that  he  might  carry 
them  bound  to  the  chief  priests  ?  But  Saul  increased  much  more  in 
strength,  and  confounded  the  Jews  who  dwelt  at  Damascus,  affirm¬ 
ing  that”  Jesus  was  “the  Christ.” 

This  great  publicity  was  the  splendid  reparation  due  to  the  honoi 
of  Him  whom  he  had  so  grievously  persecuted  ;  and  in  spreading 
abroad  the  history  of  his  conversion,  he  multiplied  the  fruit  which 
an  example  so  striking  must  needs  have  produced.  Having  thus 
acquitted  himself  of  his  duty  to  God  and  to  men,  he  withdrew  from 
Damascus.  St.  Luke  says  nothing  of  this  journey,  of  which  we  only 
find  an  account  in  St.  Paul’s  own  epistle  to  the  Galatians  (a). 
“  When  it  pleased  Him,”  said  he,  “  to  reveal  his  Son  in  me,  that 
might  preach  him  among  the  Gentiles,  immediately  I  condescended 
not  to  flesh  and  blood  (1)  ;  neither  went  I  to  Jerusalem  to  the  apos¬ 
tles  who  were  before  me  ;  but  I  went  into  Arabia.” 

It  appears  by  what  follows  that  he  made  a  considerable  stay 
there,  perhaps  nearly  three  years.  For  the  rest,  we  know  nothing 
of  what  he  did  while  there,  as  neither  he  nor  any  other  of  the  in¬ 
spired  writers  says  any  thing  of  it.  Could  it  have  been  unknown, 
if  he  had  preached  the  Gospel  there,  he  whose  ardent  zeal  and  fer¬ 
vid  eloquence  were  always  sure  to  be  effective?  Would  not  the 

(a)  Gal.,  i.  15. 

(1)  I  condescended  not.  This  expression  seems  to  convey  that  no  considerations  of 
flesh  and  blood  were  able  to  deter  him  from  following  the  divine  vocation.  But  it  is 
plain,  from  the  context,  that  St.  Paul  means  to  say  that  he  received  no  instruction  from 
any  man,  being  sufficiently  enlightened  by  the  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ.  The  Greek 
word  which  the  Vulgate  has  rendered  by  condescend  approaches  much  nearer  to  the 
meaning  here  assigned  it,  for  i  really  signifies  confer,  which  reverts  again  to  what  Jesus 
Christ  said  to  St.  Peter  :  “Blessed  art  thou,  Simon  Barjonas;  for  flesh  and  blood  hath 
not  revealed  it  to  thee,  but  my  Father  who  is  in  heaven  whence  we  see  clearly  that 
what  he  congratulates  him  on  is  his  having  learned,  not  by  any  human  teaching,  but  by 
revelation  from  his  heavenly  Father,  the  doctrine  which  he  had  just  professed. 


630 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  IX 


Christians  of  Judea  have  been  apprised  of  it,  seeing  that  their  coun 
try  lay  so  near  Arabia  ?  and  if  they  had  known  any  thing  of  it 
would  they  have  been  so  suspicious  of  him  as  they  were  when,  three 
years  after  his  conversion,  he  appeared  for  the  first  time  at  Jerusa¬ 
lem?  These  reflections  have  given  rise  to  a  conjecture  which  is  not 
without  some  foundation,  viz.,  that  he  lived  privately  while  in  Ara¬ 
bia,  and  that  God,  as  he  generally  does,  prepared  him  for  the  sacred 
ministry  by  the  exercises  of  a  solitary  life. 

“  And  again,”  said  he,  “  I  returned  to  Damascus  (a).  And  when 
many  days  were  passed  (5)”  after  his  conversion,  resumes  St.  Luke 
(and  this  interval  was  the  time  passed  in  Arabia),  “  the  Jews,”  whom 
he  began  again  to  oppose  and  to  confound,  “  consulted  together  to 
kill  him.”  Either  deceived  by  their  calumnies,  or  bribed  by  their 
gold,  the  officer  who  governed  the  city  for  King  Aretas  (c)  caused 
the  gates  to  be  guarded,  so  as  to  prevent  his  escape.  “  But  their 
lying  in  wait  was  made  known  to  Saul.  And  they  watched  the 
gates  also  day  and  night,  that  they  might  kill  him.  But  the  disci¬ 
ples,  taking  him  in  the  night,  conveyed  him  away  by  the  wall,  let¬ 
ting  him  down  in  a  basket.”  Thus  it  was  that  he  escaped  from  the 
hands  of  the  governor,  and  all  those  who  had  conspired  against  him. 

Then,  and  as  we  have  already  observed,  three  years  after  his  con¬ 
version,  he  came  for  the  first  time  to  Jerusalem.  His  purpose  was 
to  see  Peter  (d),  with  whom  he  remained  fifteen  days.  Indeed,  he 
saw  none  of  the  other  apostles,  with  the  exception  of  James,  the 
brother  of  the  Lord  (1).  But  as  his  conversion  was  not  yet  gener¬ 
ally  known,  or  at  least  well  authenticated,  “  (e)  the  disciples  to  whom 
he  essayed  to  join  himself  were  all  afraid  of  him,  not  believing  that 
he  was  a  disciple.  But  Barnabas  took  him  and  brought  him  to  the 
apostles,  and  told  them  how  he  had  seen  the  Lord,  and  that  he  had 
spoken  to  him  ;  and  how  in  Damascus  he  had  dealt  confidently  in 
the  name  of  Jesus.  And  he  was  with  them  coming  in  and  going 


(a)  Gal.,  i.  17. 

(d)  Gal.,  i.  18,  19. 


( b )  Acts,  ix.  23. 
(e)  Acts,  ix.  26. 


(c)  2  Cor.,  xi.  32 


(1)  This  was,  on  the  part  of  St.  Paul,  a  visit  of  respect  which  he  believed  it  his  duty 
to  pay  to  him  whom  Jesus  had  established  as  head  of  his  Church  ;  it  is  very  certain  that 
he  did  not  go  for  the  sake  of  receiving  instruction,  since  Peter’s  teacher  had  also  been  his. 


7 


?< 


(/■ 


w 


Pi 


u'V'C 


out  in  Jerusalem,  and  dealing  confidently  in  the  name  of  the  Lord. 
He  spoke  also  to  the  Gentiles  (1),  and  disputed  with  the”  Jews  who 
were  “  Greeks  :  but  they  sought  to  kill  him.  Which,  when  the 
brethren  had  known,  they  brought  him  down  to  Cesarea,  and  sent 
him  away  to  Tarsus.”  It  is  to  this  voyage  he  alludes  when  he  says 
that  it  was  then  he  went  into  Syria  and  Cilicia  («),  of  which  latter 
province  Tarsus  was  the  capital. 

The  Jews,  enraged  at  his  conversion,  had  concentrated  all  their 
fury  against  him.  When  they  lost  sight  of  him,  they  appeared  to 
have  forgotten  the  Church,  at  least  for  a  time.  “Now  the  Church 
had  peace  throughout  all  Judea,  and  Galilee,  and  Samaria,  and  was 
edified,  walking  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord,  and  was  filled  with  the  con¬ 
solation  of  the  Holy  Ghost.” 


CHAPTER  X. 

PETER  CURES  ENEAS,  THE  PARALYTIC,  AT  LYDDA,  AND  AT  JOPPA  RAISES  TABI- 

TIIA  TO  LIFE. - AN.  ANGEL  APPEARS  TO  CORNELIUS,  THE  CENTURION. - VISION 

OF  ST.  PETER. - CORNELIUS,  WITH  ins  FAMILY",  IS  INSTRUCTED  AND  BAPTIZED. 

The  time  had  at  last  arrived  which  God  had  marked  out  for  the 
full  manifestation  of  the  great  secret  of  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles. 
This  had  been  announced  by  all  the  prophets,  and  clearly  indicated 
by  the  manner  in  which  even  Jesus  Christ  had  spoken  of  it  both 
before  and  after  his  resurrection.  Notwithstanding  this  testimony, 
so  decisive,  it  was  still  an  impenetrable  mystery  to  every  soul  of 
Jewish  origin.  Not  that  they  absolutely  believed  salvation  to  be 
only  reserved  for  the  children  of  the  patriarchs  ;  Peter  and  John 

(a)  Gal.,  i.  21. 


(l)  The  Gentile  proselytes.  It  was  not  yet  understood  that  the  Gospel  was  to  be 
indiscriminately  announced  to  all  the  Gentiles.  This  was  not  fully  known  until  after  the 
admirable  vision  of  St.  Peter,  and  the  miraculous  effects  thereby  produced,  which  shall 
be  related  in  their  proper  place. 


632 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  X. 


had  received  the  Samaritans  into  the  Church  ;  Philip,  the  deacon, 
had  baptized  the  eunuch  of  Ethiopia,' and  the  apostles  had  admitted 
Nicolas,  a  proselyte  of  Antioch,  amongst  the  deacons.  All  this  was 
done  without  any  opposition,  and  as  being  in  the  ordinary  course  of 
things.  It  was,  therefore,  believed  that  the  Gentiles  might  be  in¬ 
corporated  with  the  Church,  but  not  without  having  gone  through 
the  intermediate  form  of  Judaism.  Hence  the  reproach  made  to  St. 
Peter  for  that  he  had  communicated,  not  precisely  with  Gentiles, 
but  with  the  uncircumcised  (a),  that  is  to  say,  with  men  who,  bear¬ 
ing  no  mark  of  the  ancient  covenant,  were  considered  as  debarred 
from  entering  upon  the  new.  At  length  the  clouds  were  all  dis¬ 
persed,  and  a  truth  so  important  to  mankind  is  made  manifest  to 
the  entire  world.  It  is  not,  however,  to  the  apostle  of  nations  that 
the  revelation  is  made,  but  to  the  chief  of  the  apostles.  This  qual¬ 
ity,  that  it  might  not  be  an  empty  title,  required  that  the  world 
should  learn  this  great  truth  from  him.  It  also  appeared  necessary 
that  he  should  throw  open  the  gate  of  the  Gospel  to  the  Gentiles, 
as  he  had  already  done  to  the  Jews,  and  that  his  colleagues  should 
not  commence  to  reap  either  harvest  until  he  had  gathered  the  first 
fruits  thereof.  But,  in  order  to  secure  to  him  a  still  greater  author¬ 
ity,  and  also  to  dispose  the  Jews  for  the  reception  of  a  doctrine  so 
obnoxious  to  them,  God  was  pleased  to  operate,  by  the  ministry  of 
Peter,  two  signal  miracles,  immediately  before  the  promulgation  of 
this  important  truth. 

Profiting  by  the  calm  in  which  the  Church  then  was,  this  vigilant 
pastor  labored  to  strengthen  and  to  increase  his  flock.  “It  came 
to  pass  that  Peter,  as  he  passed  through,  visiting  all,  came  to  the 
saints  (1)  who  dwelt  at  Lydda  (2).  And  he  found  there  a  certain 

(a)  Acts,  vi.  1. 


(1)  The  first  Christians  were  frequently  styled  thus,  as  we  see  by  many  passages  in 
the  Epistles  of  St.  Paul.  Christian  and  saint  were  then  synonymous  terms.  Unhap¬ 
pily  they  did  not  long  continue  so. 

(2)  A  city  of  Palestine,  not  far  distant  from  the  Mediterranean  Sea.  It  was  subse¬ 
quently  called  Diospolis,  and  was  famous  for  the  council  held  there,  in  which  the  errors 
of  Pelagius  were  condemned.  Pelagius  had  craft  enough  to  screen  himself  from  the 
condemnation,  by  subscribing  to  it,  or  acknowledging  its  justice,  such  dissimulation  being 


CTTAP.  X.J  ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES.  633 

man  named  Eneas,  who  had  kept  his  bed  for  eight  years,  who  was 
ill  of  the  palsy.  Peter,”  inspired  by  God,  “  said  to  him  :  Eneas,  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  healeth  thee  ;  arise,  and  make  thy  bed.  And 
immediately  he  arose.  And  all  that  dwelt  at  Lydda  and  Saron  saw 
him  (1)  and  “  were  converted  to  the  Lord.”  The  other  miracle 
was  still  more  striking.  “In  Joppa  there  was  a  certain  disciple 
named  Tabitha,  which  by  interpretation  is  called  Dorcas  (2).  This 
woman  was  full  of  good  works  and  alms-deeds  which  she  did.  And 
it  came  to  pass  in  those  days  that  she  was  sick  and  died.  Whom 
when  they  had  washed,  they  laid  her  in  an  upper  chamber.  And 
forasmuch  as  Lydda  was  nigh  to  Joppa,  the  disciples,  hearing  that 
Peter  was  there,  sent  unto  him  two  men,  desiring  him  that  he  would 
not  be  slack  to  come  unto  them  (3).” 

Whether  they  had  made  known  to  him  the  cause  of  the  deputa¬ 
tion  being  sent,  or  that  he  was  inspired  to  go  with  them,  as  they  had 
been  inspired  to  ask  him,  “  Peter,  rising  up,  went  with  them.  And 
when  he  was  come  they  brought  him  into  the  upper  chamber,  and 
all  the  widows  stood  about  him  weeping,  and  showing  him  the  coats 
and  garments  which  Dorcas  made  them  (4).  And  they  all  being 
put  forth,  Peter,  kneeling  down,  prayed,  and  turning  to  the  body, 
he  said  :  Tabitha,  arise.  And  she  opened  her  eyes  ;  and  seeing  Pe¬ 
ter,  she  sat  up.  And  giving  her  his  hand,  he  lifted  her  up.  And 
when  he  had  called  the  saints  and  the  widows,  he  presented  her 
alive  (5).  And  it  was  made  known  throughout  all  Joppa,  and  many 


quite  characteristic  of  heresiarchs,  especially  while  they  are  engaged  in  planting  the  first 
seeds  of  their  heresy. 

(1)  It  appears  that  Saron  was  not  the  name  of  a  city,  but  of  a  district,  remarkable 
for  its  fertility  (as  St.  Jerome  tells  us),  and,  therefore,  thickly  inhabited. 

(2)  The  Greek  name  Dorms  signifies  a  goat,  as  Tabitha  does  in  the  Syriac.  It  is  not 
said  whether  this  woman  was  married,  a  widow,  or  a  virgin.  Charity  sanctifies  all  states. 

(3)  The  Latin  and  Greek  texts  may  both  signify  :  Think  it  no  trouble  to  come  ;  or 
otherwise  :  Delay  not  to  come.  The  interpreters  are  divided  between  these  two  mean¬ 
ings.  They  have  here  been  taken  together. 

(4)  They  testified,  says  St.  Cyprian,  not  by  their  mouths,  but  by  the  works  of  Tabitha, 
the  most  eloquent  of  all  prayers.  Peter  could  not  resist  the  mute  appeal  ;  and  how  much 
more  touching  it  was  to  him,  seeing  that  it  was  Jesus  Christ  who,  in  the  person  of  these 
widows,  had  been  the  object  of  Tabitha’s  charity  (Cypr.  de  Oper.  et  Ekom.,  c.  2). 

(5)  It  is  certain  that  Tabitha  was  saved,  since  she  had  carried  with  her  to  the  other 
world  the  treasure  of  her  good  works  and  alms-deeds  ;  it  has  been  asked,  in  consequence, 


634 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  X. 


believed  in  the  Lord.  And  it  came  to  pass  that  he  abode  many 
days  in  Joppa,  with  one  Simon,  a  tanner.”  The  holy  fathers  take 
occasion  from  this  circumstance  to  commend  the  modesty  of  Peter, 
who  took  up  his  abode  in  the  house  of  an  artisan  at  a  time  when, 
owing  to  the  stupendous  miracle  he  had  just  wrought,  he  might 
have  chosen  a  dwelling  amongst  the  first  houses  of  the  city. 

Thence  he  was  to  set  forth  on  his  journey  to  make  a  conquest  of 
the  Gentiles,  for  which  great  event  preparations  were  already  going 
forward  in  a  neighboring  city.  ( a )  “  There  was  a  certain  man  in  Ce- 
sarea,  named  Cornelius,  a  centurion  of  that  which  is  called  the  Ital¬ 
ian  band.  A  religious  man,  and  fearing  God  with  all  his  house  (1), 

(a)  Chap,  x.,  ver.  1. 


whether  St.  Peter,  when  he  restored  her  to  life,  did  not  do  her  an  injury  rather  than  a 
service.  Let  us  drop  St.  Peter,  who  is  here  but  the  instrument,  and  consider  only  God, 
the  author  of  the  miracle.  All  the  ways  of  the  Lord  are  mercy  and  truth,  says  the 
prophet,  and  these  words  should  suffice  to  silence  all  objections  of  this  nature  ;  even  if 
no  other  answer  were  at  hand,  it  would  be  impious  to  reject  or  cavil  at  this.  Yet  still  it 
is  not  forbidden  those  who  content  themselves  with  respectful  meditation  on  the  ways  of 
the  Lord,  to  examine  the  matter  for  themselves,  and  in  the  absence  of  certainty,  to  abide 
by  that  which  is  most  probable.  This  is  what  the  theologians  do  ;  and  they  are  of  opin¬ 
ion  that  it  is  very  unlikely  that  God  would  again  expose  those  who  died  in  the  state  of 
grace  to  the  fearful  risk  of  losing  their  souls.  But  if  it  cannot  be  absolutely  said  that 
they  become  impeccable  after  their  resurrection,  yet  the  Lord  secures  their  salvation  by 
means,  the  infallible  result  of  which  is  clearly  known  to  himself  ;  so  that,  while  losing 
nothing  on  that  side,  they  gain  on  the  other  by  the  increased  merit  of  a  longer  life.  Not 
so  with  those  who  died  in  enmity  against  God.  Being  restored  to  life  they  may  attain 
the  state  of  grace,  and  persevere  therein  to  the  end.  Theologians  add  that  judgment 
might  not  have  been  pronounced  on  these,  or  that  its  execution  might  hâve  been  at  least 
suspended,  because  it  is  said  that  out  of  hell  there  is  no  redemption,  and  they  all  agree 
that  this  rule  has  no  exception. 

(1)  Cornelius  was  just,  even  before  his  conversion  to  Christianity,  since  it  is  of  him 
that  St.  Peter  says  (v.  34,  35)  :  “  God  is  not  a  respecter  of  persons  ;  but  fn  every  nation 
loe  that  feareth  him,  and  worketh  justice,  is  acceptable  to  him."  The  Pelagians  concluded 
from  this  text  that  man  may  become  just  by  the  mere  exertion  of  his  own  free  will. 
Catholic  doctors  have  refuted  them  by  establishing  the  necessity  of  a  supernatural  pre¬ 
venting  grace,  co-operating  in  all  works,  either  justifying  or  meritorious.  “  But,”  say 
they,  “  if  Cornelius  were  already  just,  what  need  had  he  of  the  preaching  of  St.  Peter  ?” 
The  answer  is,  1st,  That  God,  according  to  his  usual  course  of  proceeding,  rewarded 
him  for  the  good  use  of  one  grace  by  another  still  more  excellent,  whereby  perfection 
was  added  to  justice  ;  and  to  the  sanctity  of  the  natural  law,  the  more  sublime  holiness 
of  Christianity  ;  2d,  That  this  additional  grace  became  necessary  to  him,  even  for  salva¬ 
tion,  seeing  that  ever  since  the  first  promulgation  of  the  Gospel,  which  took  place  on  the 


CHAP.  X.]  ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES.  635 

giving  much  alms  to  the  people  (1),  and  always  praying  to  God.” 
This  faithful  observer  of  the  natural  law,  this  just  man  living  in  the 
midst  of  a  corrupt  world,  as  did  Noah  and  the  ancient  patriarchs 
ere  yet  the  law  was  -written,  this  was  the  man  whom  God  had  pre¬ 
destined  to  be  the  first-fruit  of  the  Gentiles.  “  This  man,”  being  at 
prayer,  “saw  in  a  vision  manifestly,  about  the  ninth  hour  of  the 
day,  an  angel  of  God  (2)  coming  in  unto  him,  and  saying  to  him  : 
Cornelius.  And  he  beholding  him,  being  seized  with  fear,  said  : 
What  is  it,  Lord  ?  And  he  said  to  him  :  Thy  prayers  and  thy  alms 
are  ascended  for  a  memorial  in  the  sight  of  God.  And  now  send 
men  to  Joppa,  and  call  hither  one  Simon,  who  is  surnamed  Peter. 
He  lodgeth  with  one  Simon,  a  tanner,  whose  house  is  by  the  sea¬ 
side.  He  will  tell  thee  what  thou  must  do.  And  when  the  angel 
who  spoke  to  him  was  departed,  he  called  two  of  his  household  ser¬ 
vants,  and  a  soldier  who  feared  the  Lord,  of  them  that  were  under 
him.  To  whom,  when  he  had  related  all,  he  sent  them  to  Joppa.” 

“  And  on  the  next  day,  whilst  they  were  going  on  their  journey, 
and  drawing  nigh  to  the  city,  Peter  went  up  to  the  higher  parts  of 
the  house,  to  pray,  about  the  sixth  hour  (3).  And  being  hungry, 


day  of  Pentecost,  there  was  no  chance  of  salvation  without  explicit  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  ; 
that  the  bare  possibility  of  the  Gentiles  being  called  had  been  hitherto  rejected,  for 
which  reason  Cornelius  was  justified  in  not  having  embraced  the  Jewish  religion;  but 
that  now  this  great  mystery  was  on  the  point  of  being  fully  revealed,  as  it  was,  in  his 
person,  by  a  distinction  glorious  to  him,  God  wished  to  pny  a  manifest  tribute  of  honor 
to  his  virtues. 

(1)  He  was  not  yet  a  Christian  by  faith,  but  he  was  by  his  works,  and  to  these  God 
was  pleased  very  soon  to  add  the  light  of  faith.  How  many  Christians  in  faith  are  pagan 
in  their  works,  wherefore  they  are  speedily  punished  by  the  total  loss  of  faith  ! 

(2)  Theologians  say  that  if  a  Gentile  had  faithfully  observed  the  natural  law,  God 
would  send  an  angel  to  enlighten  him  rather  than  leave  him  to  perish  for  want  of  the 
knowledge  necessary  to  his  salvation.  The  example  of  Cornelius  is  a  proof  of  this, 
strengthened,  moreover,  by  that  saying  of  St.  Augustine,  which  has  passed  into  an  axiom  : 
God  refuses  not  his  grace  to  him  who  does  what  he  can. 

It  has  been  already  remarked  that  in  Palestine  the  roofs  of  the  houses  were  flat,  and 
Peter  went  up  there  to  pray  with  greater  recollection.  This  practice  he  had  learned 
from  his  divine  Master,  who  was  in  the  habit  of  retiring  to  some  mountain  to  pray. 

(3)  About  noon  Cornelius  prayed  at  the  ninth  hour,  that  is  to  say,  about  three  in  the 
afternoon.  He  did  this  in  imitation  of  the  Jews,  who  consecrated  to  prayer  the  first, 
the  third,  the  sixth,  and  the  ninth  hours  of  the  day.  Hence  the  names  of  prime,  terce, 
sexte,  and  nones,  which  have  passed  into  the  Christian  church,  and  been  retained  by  her 


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lie  was  desirous  to  taste  somewhat.  And  as  they  were  preparing, 
there  came  upon  him  an  ecstasy  of  mind.  And  he  saw  the  heaven 
opened,  and  a  certain  vessel  descending,  as  it  were  a  great  linen 
sheet  (1),  let  down  by  the  four  corners  from  heaven  to  the  earth. 
Wherein  were  all  manner  of  four-footed  beasts,  and  creeping  things 
of  the  earth,  and  fowls  of  the  air.  And  there  came  a  voice  to  him  : 
Arise,  Peter,  kill  and  eat.  But  Peter  said  :  Far  be  it  from  me  ; 
for  I  never  did  eat  any  thing  that  is  common  and  unclean  (2). 
And  the  voice  spoke  to  him  again  the  second  time  :  That  which 
God  hath  cleansed,  do  not  thou  call  common.  And  this  was  done 
thrice  (3)  ;  and  presently  the  vessel  was  taken  up  into  heaven.” 

“Now  whilst  Peter  was  doubting  within  himself  what  the  vision 
that  he  had  seen  should  mean,  behold  the  men  who  were  sent  from 
Cornelius,  inquiring  for  Simon’s  house,  stood  at  the  gate.  And 
when  they  had  called,  they  asked  if  Simon,  who  is  surnamed  Peter, 
were  lodged  there.  And  as  Peter  was  thinking  of  the  vision,  the 
Spirit  said  to  him  :  Behold  three  men  seek  thee.  Arise  therefore, 
get  thee  down,  and  go  with  them,  doubting  nothing;  for  I  have 
sent  them.  Then  Peter,  going  down  to  the  men,  said  :  Behold,  I 
am  he  whom  you  seek  ;  what  is  the  cause  for  which  you  are  come  ? 
Who  said  :  Cornelius,  a  centurion,  a  just  man,  and  one  that  feareth 
God,  and  having  good  testimony  from  all  the  nation  of  the  Jews, 
received  an  answer  of  a  holy  angel  to  send  for  thee  into  his  house, 


(1)  This  sheet  represented  the  Church,  which  was  to  receive  into  its  bosom  the  Gen¬ 
tiles,  whom  the  Jews  regarded  as  unclean  and  abominable.  The  Church  comes  from 
heaven,  and  is  to  return  thither  :  hence  the  descending  and  ascending  of  the  sheet.  Many 
interpreters  think  that  all  the  animals  it  contained  were  unclean.  Others  assert  that  it 
had  both  clean  and  unclean.  There  is  nothing  in  the  text  to  decide  for  or  against. 
What  appears  certain  from  St.  Peter’s  reply  is,  either  that  all  the  animals  were  unclean, 
or  that  he  understood  the  voice  as  commanding  him  to  eat  indiscriminately  of  both. 

(2)  God  made  use  of  this  figure  because,  independent  of  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles, 
which  was  its  principal  object,  he  wished  to  show  that  the  distinction  between  clean  and 
unclean  beasts,  so  strictly  enjoined  by  the  old  law,  was  abolished  by  the  new.  Some 
have  even  thought  that  this  line  of  distinction  wras  effaced  from  the  very  time  of  the 
Messiah. 

(3)  The  three  repetitions  were  apparently  for  the  purpose  of  assuring  St.  Peter  that 
the  celestial  vision  was  no  illusion.  They  also  represented  the  invocation  of  the  three 
persons  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  and  the  three  baptismal  immersions  by  means  of  which  the 
Gentiles  were  to  enter  the  Church. 


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and  to  hear  words  of  thee.  Then  bringing  them  in,  he  lodged  them. 
And  the  day  following  he  arose  and  went  with  them,  and  some  of 
the  brethren  from  Joppa  accompanied  him.  And  the  morrow 
after”  his  departure,  “he  entered  into  Cesarea.  And  Cornelius 
waited  for  them,  having  called  together  his  kinsmen  and  special 
friends  (1).  And  it  came  to  pass  that  when  Peter  was  come  in,  Cor¬ 
nelius,”  being  apprised  by  one  of  his  messengers  who  had  hastened 
on  in  advance  of  the  others  (2),  “  came  to  meet  him,  and  falling  at 
his  feet,  adored.  But  Peter  lifted  him  up,  saying  :  Arise,  I  myself 
also  am  a  man  (3).  And  talking  with  him,  he  went  in”  to  his  house, 
where  he  “  found  many  that  were  come  together.  And  he  said  to 
them  :  You  know  how  abominable  it  is  for  a  man  that  is  a  Jew  to 
keep  company  or  to  come  unto  one  of  another  nation.  But  God 
hath  showed  to  me  to  call  no  man  common  or  unclean  (4).  For 
which  cause,  making  no  doubt,  I  came  when  I  was  sent  for.  I  ask, 
therefore,  for  what  cause  you  have  sent  for  me  ?” 

The  messengers  sent  to  Joppa  had  already  made  this  known  to 
him  ;  but  it  was  only  proper  that  he  should  learn  it  from  Cornelius 
himself,  and  therefore  had  he  put  the  question.  “  Cornelius  said  : 
Four  days  ago,  unto  this  hour,  I  was  praying  in  my  house,  at  the 
ninth  hour,  and  behold  a  man  (5)  stood  before  me  in  white  apparel, 
and  said  :  Cornelius,  thy  prayer  is  heard,  and  thy  alms  are  had  in 


(1)  He  had  already  sanctified  his  house.  Behold  him  now  laboring  to  sanctify  his 
friends  and  neighbors.  Can  a  soldier,  then,  be  an  apostle  ?  Yes,  if  he  be  a  saint  :  sanc¬ 
tity  produces  zeal  in  every  state. 

(2)  The  circumstance  of  the  servant  hurrying  on  to  apprise  his  master  of  the  coming 
of  St.  Peter,  is,  in  itself,  very  likely.  Besides,  it  is  found,  word  for  word,  in  an  ancient 
Greek  manuscript,  wherein  it  constitutes  a  part  of  the  text. 

(3)  It  was  not  because  Cornelius  took  him  for  a  god  that  St.  Peter  thus  addressed 
him.  Cornelius  was  already  too  enlightened  to  be  capable  of  such  an  error,  since  he  had 
not  mistaken  the  angel  who  appeared  to  him  in  the  lustre  of  glory  for  other  than  the 
ambassador  of  God.  But  he  regarded  St.  Peter  as  an  extraordinary  man,  whom  he  was 
bound  to  accost  with  all  possible  reverence.  This  was  the  homage  which  St.  Peter’s 
humility  rejected,  though  it  was  only  the  respect  due  to  his  exalted  dignity. 

(4)  Peter  had  already  understood  that  the  beasts  contained  in  the  sheet  represented 
all  men,  and  that  all  that  had  since  passed  had  been  revealed  to  him  in  his  vision  :  the 
rest  will  shortly  be  explained. 

(5)  A  man,  that  is  to  say,  an  angel  who  appeared  to  him  under  the  figure  of  a  man  ; 
for  his  was  not  a  spiritual  vision,  but  a  corporal  and  sensible  apparition. 


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THE  IIISTOKY  OF  THE 


[chap.  X. 

remembrance  in  the  sight  of  God  (1).  Send  therefore  to  Joppa, 
and  call  hither  Simon,  who  is  surnamed  Peter.  He  lodgeth  in  the 
house  of  Simon,  a  tanner,  by  the  sea-side.  Immediately,  there 
fore,  I  sent  to  thee;  and  thou  hast  done  well  in  coming.  Now, 
therefore,  all  we  are  present  in  thy  sight,  to  hear  all  things  what¬ 
soever  are  commanded  thee  by  the  Lord.  And  Peter,  opening  his 
mouth,  said  :  In  very  deed  I  perceive  that  God  is  not  a  respecter  of 
persons  ;  but  in  every  nation  he  that  feareth  him  and  worketh  jus¬ 
tice,  is  acceptable  to  him.” 

They  who  had  been  acknowledged  as  agreeable  to  God  could  no 
longer  be  considered  unworthy  of  knowing  Jesus  Christ.  He  is, 
therefore,  to  be  announced  unto  them,  and  the  wall  of  separation 
between  Jew  and  Gentile  is  no  longer  to  exist.  “  God,”  continues 
Peter,  “sent  the  word  to  the  children  of  Israel,  preaching  peace  by 
Jesus  Christ  (he  is  Lord  of  all).  You  know  the  word  which  hath 
been  published  through  all  Judea  ;  for  it  began  from  Galilee,  after 
the  baptism  which  John  preached.  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ;  how  God 
anointed  him  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  with  power,  who  went 
about  doing  good  and  healing  all  that  were  oppressed  by  the  devil, 
for  God  was  with  him  (2).  And  we  are  witnesses  of  all  things  that 
he  did  in  the  land  of  the  Jews  and  in  Jerusalem,”  that  Jesus  “  whom 
they  killed,  hanging  him  upon  a  tree.  Him  God  raised  up  the  third 
day,  and  gave  him  to  be  made  manifest,  not  to  all  the  people  (3), 


(1)  As  often  as  it  is  said  that  his  prayers  have  been  heard,  his  alms  are  also  men¬ 
tioned.  This  is  to  teach  us  that  his  prayers  derived  their  chief  efficacy  from  his  alms- 
deeds.  They  who  unite  these  two  means  have  found  the  infallible  secret  of  touching 
the  heart  of  God. 

(2)  God  was  with  him  in  the  sense  of  unity  of  person.  This  explanation  is  given 
because  Nestorius  abused  this  text  and  some  others  of  a  similar  kind,  for  the  purpose  of 
designating  two  persons  in  Jesus  Christ — the  person  of  God  who  was  with  Jesus  Christ, 
and  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ  with  whom  God  was.  It  is  true  that  unity  of  persons  is 
not  here  expressed,  but  neither  is  it  gainsayed,  and  that  is  enough  to  establish  the  force  of 
those  texts  which  do  express  it. 

This  Catholic  doctrine  is  the  combination  of  several  distinct  texts.  He  who  separates 
them  has  but  a  portion  of  the  truth,  and  if  he  deny  the  remainder  he  is  wholly  in  error. 

(3)  And  why  not  to  all  the  people  ?  demands  the  unbeliever.  God  had  his  own  rea¬ 
sons  for  this.  But,  even  had  Jesus  Christ  appeared  after  his  resurrection  to  all  the  peo¬ 
ple,  the  incredulous  would  not  yet  have  believed.  Lazarus  risen  from  the  dead  had  been 
seen  by  all  the  people  ;  and  the  only  effect  produced  by  the  miracle  in  the  minds  of 


CHAP.  X.]  ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES.  639 

but  to  witnesses  preordained  by  God,  even  to  us,  who  did  eat  and 
drink  with  him  after  he  rose  again  from  the  dead.  And  he  com¬ 
manded  us  to  preach  to  the  people,  and  to  testify  that  it  is  lie  who 
was  appointed  by  God  to  be  judge  of  the  living  and  of  the  dead  (1). 
To  him  all  the  prophets  give  testimony,  that  by  his  name  all  re¬ 
ceive  remission  of  sins  who  believe  in  him  (2).” 

“  While  Peter  was  yet  speaking  these  words,  the  Holy  Ghost,” 
whose  invincible  action  accompanied  his  words,  “  fell  on  all  them 
that  heard  the  word  (3).  And  the  faithful  of  the  circumci- 


tliese  perverse  men  was  to  inspire  them  with  the  design  of  putting  him  to  death.  If 
they  hear  not  Moses  and  the  prophets,  neither  will  they  believe  if  one  rise  again  from  the 
dead  (St.  Luke,  xvi.). 

(1)  Judge  of  the  living  and  of  the  dead.  The  same  expression  is  found  in  the  creed. 

Its  precise  meaning  has  not  jet  been  clearly  determined.  By  the  living  and  the  dead, 
some  understand  the  just  and  the  wicked.  Others,  explaining  the  dead  in  its  literal 
sense,  understand  by  the  living  those  who,  being  still  alive  when  Jesus  Christ  shall  come  ) 
to  judge  the  world,  shall  die,  in  fulfilment  of  the  common  law,  and  instantly  rise  again 

to  receive  their  sentence.  Their  brief  subjection  to  the  power  of  death  may  cause  them 
to  be  distinguished  from  the  other  dead  by  the  name  of  living. 

We  venture  to  hazard  a  third  explanation,  and  it  is  so  simple  that  it  might  well  be  the 
true  one.  By  the  dead  we  understand  those  who  are  already  dead,  and  by  the  living 
those  who  are  still  alive.  Thus,  when  it  is  said  that  Christ  shall  come  to  judge  the  liv¬ 
ing  and  the  dead,  the  meaning  is  that  he  shall  judge  those  who  have  gone  before  us  to 
the  grave,  and  we  who  shall  have  passed  away  in  our  turn,  but  are  now  living  on  the 
earth  :  in  a  word,  that  Jesus  Christ  shall  judge  all  men  who  have  ever  existed  ;  for  the 
proposition  will  be  literally  true  even  till  the  end  of  the  world,  because  ever  until  then 
there  will  be  men  in  existence  who  can  say  :  Jesus  Christ  shall  judge  us  who  now  live 
on  the  earth,  and  all  those  who  have  gone  before  us.  We  have  said  that  we  merely 
venture  on  this  explanation  ;  yet  we  find  some  foundation  for  it  in  those  words  of  St. 

Paul  (1  Thess.  iv.,  15,  16)  :  The  dead  who  are  in  Christ  shall  rise  first.  Then  we  who 
are  alive,  who  are  left,  <&c.  Let  us  pass  over  the  obscurity  of  this  passage,  and  pause 
only  at  the  words  :  The  dead  shall  rise  first,  then  we  who  are  alive.  We  here  see  in 
unequivocal  terms,  the  resurrection,  and  the  consequent  judgment  of  the  living  and  the 
dead.  The  living  are  evidently  those  who  were  alive  when  the  apostle  wrote  his  epistle, 
that  is  to  say,  they  are  called  living  in  the  sense  of  our  explanation,  which  has  undenia¬ 
bly  some  support  in  this  saying  of  St.  Paul. 

(2)  At  the  same  time  that  he  is  declared  judge,  he  is  also  declared  as  Saviour,  to 
teach  us  how  we  ought  both  to  love  and  fear  him. 

(3)  They  had  received  the  sanctifying  grace  prior  to  their  baptism,  which  happens  as 
often  as  the  dispositions  brought  to  this  sacrament  are  perfected  by  charity.  So  it  is 
with  regard  to  the  sacrament  of  penance.  They  had  even  received  the  effect  of  confir¬ 
mation  together  with  the  sensible  and  miraculous  gifts  by  which  it  was  accompanied  in 
those  early  times.  God,  who  made  this  rule,  is  in  no  way  bound  to  follow  it  ;  and  there 


sion  (1),  who  came  with  Peter,  were  astonished,  for  that  the  grace  of 
the  Holy  Ghost  was  poured  out  upon  the  Gentiles  also.  For  they 
heard  them  speaking  with  tongues,  and  magnifying  God.”  This  last 
prodigy  was  the  full  manifestation  of  the  divine  secret.  Peter  under¬ 
stood  this,  and  seeing  in  it  at  the  same  time  the  complete  refutation 
of  the  Jewish  prejudice,  he  “answered:  Can  any  man  forbid  water, 
that  these  should  not  be  baptized,  who  have  received  the  Holy 
Ghost  as  well  as  we  ?  and  he  commanded  them  to  be  baptized  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Then  they  desired  him  to  tarry 
with  them  some  days.”  He  willingly  acceded  to  their  wishes,  and 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  he  availed  himself  of  the  opportunity  to 
give  them  further  instruction.  It  is  probable  that  on  leaving  them 
he  consigned  them  to  the  care  of  Cornelius,  whom  he  subsequently 
established  as  bishop  of  Cesarea,  in  whjch  see  he  succeeded  Zacheus, 
as  we  learn  from  the  Roman  martyrology,  wherein  Cornelius  is  com¬ 
memorated  as  a  saint  on  the  2d  of  February.  His  house  was  con¬ 
verted  into  a  church,  which  was  still  devoutly  visited  in  the  time 
of  St.  Jerome. 


was  a  good  reason  for  setting  it  aside  on  this  occasion,  since  it  was  this  last  miracle  which 
completed  the  proof  of  the  dentiles’  vocation. 

(1)  Hence  there  were  even  then  believers  who  were  uncircumcised.  Such  is  the  in¬ 
ference  drawn  by  some  commentators,  but  it  appears  that  they  are  mistaken.  If  there 
had  been  any  uncircumcised  Christians,  wherefore  did  it  require  so  many  prodigies  to 
persuade  St.  Peter  that  the  uncircumcised  might  be  admitted  to  baptism  ?  The  faithful 
of  the  circumcision  are,  therefore,  not  distinguished  here  from  the  uncircumcised  believers, 
but  from  the  circumcised  unbelievers,  viz.,  those  Jews  who  had  not  embraced  the  faith 
of  Jesus  Christ. 


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CHAPTER  XI. 


PETER  SHOWS  CAUSE  FOR  HIS  CONDUCT. - PREACHING  OF  BARNABAS  AND  SAUL  AT 


ANTIOCH,  WHERE  THE  NAME  OF  CHRISTIAN  IS  FIRST  GIVEN  TO  THE  FAITHFUL. 

“  (a)  And  the  apostles  and  brethren,  who  were  in  Judea,  heard 
that  the  Gentiles  also  had  received  the  word  of  God.  And  when 
Peter  was  come  up  to  Jerusalem,  they  that  were  of  the  circumcision 
contended  with  him.  Saying  :  Why  didst  thou  go  in  to  men  unciiv 
cumcised,  and  didst  eat  with  them  ?  But  Peter,  began  and  declared 
to  them  the  matter  in  order,  saying  :  I  was  in  the  city  of  Joppa 
praying,  and  I  saw  in  an  ecstasy  of  mind  a  vision,  a  certain  vessel 
descending,  as  it  were  a  great  sheet  let  down  from  heaven  by  four 
corners,  and  it  came  even  unto  me.  Into  which  looking  I  considered, 
and  saw  four-footed  creatures  of  the  earth,  and  beasts,  and  creeping 
things,  and  fowls  of  the  air.  And  I  heard  also  a  voice  saying  to 
me;  Arise,  Peter,  kill  and  eat.  And  I  said:  Not  so,  Lord,  for 
nothing  common  or  unclean  hath  ever  entered  my  mouth.  And 
the  voice  answered  again  from  heaven  :  What  God  hath  made  clean 
do  not  thou  call  common.  And  this  was  done  three  times,  and  all 
were  taken  up  again  into  heaven.  And  behold,  immediately  there 
were  three  men  come  to  the  house  wherein  I  was,  sent  to  me  from 
Cesarea.  And  the  Spirit  said  to  me  that  I  should  go  with  them, 
nothing  doubting.  And  these  six  brethren  went  with  me  also  ;  and 
we  entered  into  the  man’s  house.  And  he  told  us  how  he  had  seen 
an  angel  in  his  house,  standing  and  saying  to  him  :  Send  to  Joppa, 
and  call  hither  Simon,  who  is  surnamed  Peter,  who  shall  speak  to 
thee  words,  whereby  thou  shalt  be  saved  (1),  and  all  thy  house. 
And  when  I  had  begun  to  speak,  the  Holy  Ghost  fell  upon  them, 
as  upon  us  also  in  the  beginning.  And  I  remembered  the  word  of 

(a)  Chap,  xi.,  ver.  1. 


(1)  The  angel  had  previously  told  him  :  Thy  'prayer  is  heard  ;  which,  conjointly  with 
this,  proves  to  us  that  it  was  salvation  for  which  he  had  asked,  or,  what  i§,all  the  same, 
the  means  of  obtaining  it. 

41 


is 


SMl/7, 


the  Lord,  now  that  he  said:  John  indeed  baptized  with  water 
lut  you  shall  be  baptized  with  the  Holy  Ghost.  If  then  God  gave 
them  the  same  grace  (2),  as  to  us  also  who  believed  in  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  who  was  I  that  could  withstand  God?” 

The  ancients  have  justly  commended  St.  Peter  for  not  having 
exerted  his  authority  on  this  occasion,  and  for  having  condescended 
to  justify  his  conduct  to  his  inferiors.  When  people  have  to  deal- 
with  captious  persons,  who  have  always  something  to  object,  even 
against  the  truth  itself,  then  recourse  must  be  had  to  authority,  as 
they  could  never  otherwise  be  silenced  ;  but  treating  with  those  who 
love  the  truth,  and  desire  only  to  know  it,  the  best  course  is  to  rea¬ 
son  calmly  with  them.  Authority  becomes  more  persuasive,  and 
submission  less  painful.  They  to  whom  Peter  spoke  were  of  the 
latter  class.  Hence,  “having  heard  these  things,  they  held  their 
peace  ;  and  glorified  God,  saying  :  God  then  hath  also  to  the  Gen¬ 
tiles  given  repentance  (3)  unto  life.” 

This  auspicious  commencement  failed  not  to  have  still  more  en¬ 
couraging  effects.  “  Now  they  who  had  been  dispersed  by  the  per¬ 
secution  that  arose  on  occasion  of  Stephen,  went  about  as  far  as 
Phenicia,  and  Cyprus,  and  Antioch,  speaking  the  word  to  none  but 
to  the  Jews  only.  But  some  of  them  were  men  of  Cyprus  and  Cy- 
rene,  who  when  they  were  entered  into  Antioch,  spoke  also  to  the 
Greeks  (4),  preaching  the  Lord  Jesus.  And  the  hand  of  the  Lord 


(1)  The  baptism  of  Christ  is  also  a  baptism  of  water;  but  that  of  John  was  nothing 
more,  whereas  that  of  Jesus  Christ  confers  the  Holy  Ghost. 

(2)  This  reasoning  of  St.  Peter  was  unanswerable.  It  was  plain  that  Cornelius  and 
his  household  had  received  the  grace  of  the  sacrament — why  should  they  be  refused  the 
sign  thereof? 

(3)  This  is,  in  a  word,  salvation,  designated  by  the  eternal  life  which  is  its  term,  and 
by  the  penance  which  is  its  means.  How  can  he  who  embraces  not  the  means  hope  to 
arrive  at  the  desired  end  ? 

(4)  To  the  Greeks,  that  is  to  say,  to  the  Gentiles,  and  not  to  the  Jews  born  amongst 
the  Greeks,  which  appears  from  the  distinction  here  made  between  these  Greeks  and  the 
Jews.  Were  these  new  preachers  then  informed  of  the  conversion  of  Cornelius,  or  did 
they  but  follow  the  impulse  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  urging  them  interiorly  to  continue  the 
work  which  he  had  commenced  at  Cesarea  ?  On  this  point  we  are  entirely  at  a  loss,  and 
it  is,  in  any  case,  of  small  importance.  What  appears  more  than  probable  is,  that  the 
Gospel  was  not  preached  to  the  Gentiles  until  after  the  conversion  of  Cornelius. 


1 


fill 


<a  »  a  a  o  o  1 


ér 


,r  m  p  vnipkiir'' ^  ^ — \ — Y 


w  «1 


v^4 


was  with  them  ;  and  a  great  number  believing  was  converted  to  the 
Lord.” 

The  enterprise  would  have  been  sufficiently  justified  by  its  success, 
even  if  it  bad  not  already  been  by  the  conversion  of  Cornelius.  But 
after  that  event,  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles  was  no  longer  a  prob¬ 
lem  ;  wherefore  “  the  tidings  came  to  the  ears  of  the  Church  that 
was  at  Jerusalem,  touching  these  things  :  and  they  sent  Barnabas  as 
far  as  Antioch,”  to  confirm  the  work  already  commenced,  and,  if  ne¬ 
cessary,  to  help  it  forward. 

The  seed  was  already  sowed,  and  it  only  remained  to  preserve 
and  multiply  it.  Barnabas,  “  when  he  was  come,  and  had  seen  the 
grace  of  God,  rejoiced,  and,”  finding  that  he  had  nothing  more  to 
do,  “  he  exhorted  them  all  with  purpose  of  heart  to  continue  in”  the 
service  of  “the  Lord.  For  he  was  a  good  man,  and  full  of  the  Holy 
Ghost  and  of  faith.”  His  preaching,  seconded  by  the  sanctity  of  his 
life,  produced  the  fruits  which  might  be  expected.  “  And  a  great 
multitude  was”  again  “  added  to  the  Lord.” 

A  harvest  so  abundant  demanded  new  laborers,  and  the  first-fruits 
of  the  Gentiles  seemed  to  cry  aloud  from  all  parts  of  the  earth  for 
him  whom  God  had  appointed  to  gather  them  in.  Whether  it  was 
that  Barnabas  saw  this,  or  that  God  had  revealed  it  to  him,  he 
“  went  to  Tarsus  to  seek  Saul  :  whom  when  he  had  found,  he  brought 
to  Antioch.  And  they  conversed  there  in  the  Church  a  whole  year  ; 
and  they  taught  a  great  multitude,  so  that  at  Antioch  the  disciples 
were  first  named  Christians  (1).” 

Attracted  by  the  rumor  of  this  success,  and  wishing  to  see  it  with 
their  own  eyes — perhaps  ambitious  of  helping  it  on — “  In  those  days 
there  came  prophets  from  Jerusalem  to  Antioch.  And  one  of  them, 


(1)  This  name  has  remained.  The  virtues  which  it  implies  are  still  found  in  some  of 
those  who  bear  it  ;  but  in  the  greater  number  it  does  but  render  more  glaring  and  more 
criminal  the  contrast  between  their  actual  vices  and  those  virtues  which  they  ought  to 
have. 

Julian  the  apostate  published  an  edict  suppressing  the  name  of  Christians,  which  he 
changed  into  that  of  Galileans.  He  feared  that  name,  says  one  of  the  fathers,  even  as 
the  demons  fear  it.  However  that  might  be,  he  showed  himself  lamentably  void  of  good 
sense,  for  though  things  may  well  depend  on  princes,  yet  with  names  they  have  nothing 

to  do 


T^l 17 - (  *11]  '1^'  Wl«j  ^ - ] - pTT 


s?: 


f 

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i  o  a  a  a  3  o  o  <t  «1 

644 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XII. 


named  Agabus,  rising  up,  signified  by  the  Spirit  that  there  should 
be  a  great  famine  over  the  whole  world,  which  came  to  pass  under 
Claudius.  And  the  disciples,  every  man  according  to  his  ability,* 
purposed  to  send  relief  to  the  brethren  who  dwelt  in  Judea  (1)  : 
which  also  they  did,  sending  it  to  the  ancients  by  the  hands  of  Bar¬ 
nabas  and  Saul.” 


CHAPTER  XII. 

JAMES  THE  BROTHER  OF  JOHN  IS  PUT  TO  DEATH  BY  HEROD. - PETER  DELIVERED 

FROM  PRISON  BY  AN  ANGEL.— DEATH  OF  HEROD. 

From  the  baptism  of  Cornelius  till  the  events  recorded  in  this 
chapter,  that  is  to  say,  within  the  space  of  about  seven  years,  many 
remarkable  events  took  place  which  the  sacred  author  of  this  his¬ 
tory  has  not  been  inspired  to  write,  but  which  have,  nevertheless, 
come  down  to  us  by  constant  tradition,  supported  by  the  testimony 
of  the  gravest  historians  of  the  Church.  Such  is  the  dispersion  of 
the  apostles,  who,  at  length  assured  of  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles, 
carried  the  light  of  the  Gospel  to  the  furthest  extremities  of  the 
then  known  world.  They  had  previously  composed  the  Creed, 
which  still  bears  their  name,  and  this  precaution  was  indispensable 
in  order  that  their  teaching  might  be  everywhere  exactly  the  same. 
The  opinion  that  each  one  of  the  twelve  composed  an  article  (which 
seems  to  be  implied  by  the  very  name  of  the  Creed),  is  so  ancient 
and  so  well  authenticated,  that  it  cannot  be  disputed  without  the 
greatest  temerity.  When  about  to  quit  Judea,  St.  Matthew  left  to 


(l)  There  were  two  reasons  for  the  extraordinary  dearth  of  provisions  amongst  the 
faithful  of  Judea:  1st,  They  had  given  up  all  their  possessions,  which  the  Gentile  Chris¬ 
tians  had  not  done.  2d,  The  Gentile  converts  were  not  yet  persecuted  by  their  idola¬ 
trous  brethren,  as  the  Jewish  Christians  were  by  the  unbelievers  of  their  nation. 

Since  the  famine  was  to  be  universal,  avarice  would  have  said  :  Think  of  ourselves, 
that  we  may  not  die  of  hunger  whilst  we  nourish  strangers.  Charity  says,  on  the 
contrary  :  Let  us  run  all  risks  rather  than  leave  our  brethren  in  distress. 


pfw 


liis  countrymen  his  Gospel,  which  he  had  written  in  their  own 
tongue.  The  original  is  no  longer  to  be  found,  and  the  Greek, 
which  now  holds  its  place,  is  but  a  faithful  translation  made  in  those 
early  times.  It  would  seem  that  God  chose  to  withdraw  it  from 
the  Jews,  who  had  rendered  it  useless  by  their  incredulity.  It  was 
about  the  same  time  that  St.  Peter  established  his  principal  see  at 
Antioch.  In  order  to  do  that,  there  was  no  need  of  his  going  there 
in  person  ;  he  went,  however,  but  not  to  make  it  his  permanent 
abode,  for  he  still  continued  to  visit  those  cities  or  provinces  where 
his  presence  was  found  useful  or  necessary.  He  and  his  colleagues 
returned  to  Jerusalem  either  when  the  wants  of  the  Church  required 
their  personal  superintendence,  or  that  the  course  of  their  evangeli¬ 
cal  missions  brought  them  within  a  short  distance  of -it.  This  re¬ 
mark  is  here  made  because  it  has  a  close  connection  with  what 
follows. 

The  unbridled  fury  wherewith  the  Jews  pursued  the  disciples  ap¬ 
peared  to  be  somewhat  more  cautious  with  regard  to  the  apostles, 
the  latter  being  the  objects  of  a  deeper  and  more  concentrated 
hatred.  “At  the  same  time  (1),”  says  the  sacred  writer,  “Herod 
the  king  (2)  stretched  forth  his  hands  to  afflict  some  of  the  Church.” 
As  its  chiefs  were  the  principal  objects  of  his  vengeance,  “he  killed 
James  (3)  the  brother  of  John  with  the  sword.  And  seeing  that 

(1)  Tlie  events  here  spoken  of  took  place  about  ten  years  after  the  ascension  of  our 
Saviour.  Hence,  at  the  same  time  can  only  have  reference  to  the  time  of  the  famine,  the 
prediction  of  which  is  the  last  thing  spoken  of  by  St.  Luke. 

(2)  Herod  Agrippa,  a  different  person  from  the  Herod  who  beheaded  St.  John  the 
Baptist,  and  distinguished  also  from  that  Agrippa  before  whom  St.  Paul  pleaded  his 
cause.  The  former  was  his  paternal  uncle,  and  the  latter  his  son.  This  prince  had  no 
power  in  Jerusalem.  Nevertheless,  he  was  allowed  to  exercise  authority  over  the  people 
of  his  own  household,  since  we  find  that  he  caused  St.  Peter’s  guards  to  he  put  to  the 
torture  ;  and  also  over  the  Galileans,  his  own  subjects,  to  which  nation  belonged  the  two 
apostles,  one  of  whom  he  beheaded,  and  imprisoned  the  other.  This  also  was  the  reason 
why  Pilate  paid  him  the  compliment  of  sending  Jesus  to  him  for  judgment  as  soon  as  he 
heard  of  his  being  a  Galilean. 

(3)  One  of  the  sons  of  Zebedee,  he  who  is  styled  James  the  major.  He  was  one  of 
the  three  disciples  whom  Jesus  regarded  with  special  affection  ;  and  he  was  also  the  first 
of  the  apostles  who  had  the  honor  of  shedding  his  blood  for  his  Master’s  sake — a  distinc¬ 
tion  much  more  enviable  than  that  which  he,  in  his  human  blindness,  had  desired  to  at¬ 
tain.  His  body,  which  was  conveyed  to  Spain,  has  ever  been  the  object  of  pious  pil¬ 
grimages  from  all  parts  of  the  Catholic  world. 


1^-— - . 


fv 

m 

pJl 


ir 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[ciiap.  xir. 


it  pleased  tlie  Jews(l),  lie  proceeded  to  take  up  Peter  also.  Now 
it  was  in  tlie  days  of  the  azymes.  When  he  had  apprehended  him, 
he  cast  him  into  prison,  delivering  him  to  four  files  of  soldiers  to  bè 
kept,  intending  after  the  pasch  to  bring  him  forth  to  the  people. 
Peter,  therefore,  was  kept  in  prison,  but  prayer  was  made  without 
ceasing  by  the  Church  unto  God  for  him.”  This  was  the  only  de¬ 
fence  which  God  permitted  him  to  make  against  oppression,  and  the 
result  shows  how  efficacious  it  was.  “  And  when  Herod  would  have 
brought  him  forth,  the  same  night  Peter  was  sleeping  between  two 
soldiers,  bound  with  two  chains  :  and  the  keepers  before  the  door 
kept  the  prison.  And  behold  an  angel  of  the  Lord  stood  by  him  : 
and  a  light  shined  in  the  room,  and  he,  striking  Peter  on  the  side, 
raised  him  up,  saying  :  Arise  quickly.  And  the  chains  fell  olf  from 
his  hands.  And  the  angel  said  to  him  :  Gird  thyself,  and  put  on 
thy  sandals.  And  he  did  so.  And  he  said  to  him  :  Cast  thy  gar 
ment  about  thee,  and  follow  me.  And  going  out  he  followed  him, 
and  lie  knew  not  that  it  wms  true  which  was  done  by  the  angel,  but 
thought  he  saw  a  vision.  And  passing  through  the  first  and  the 
second  ward,  they  came  to  the  iron  gate  that  leadeth  to  the  city  (2), 
which  of  itself  opened  to  them.  And  going  out,  they  passed  on 
through  one  street,  and  immediately  the  angel  departed  from  him. 
And  Peter,  coming  to  himself,  said  :  Now  I  know  in  very  deed  that 
the  Lord  hath  sent  his  angel,  and  hath  delivered  me  out  of  the  hand 
of  Herod,  and  from  all  the  expectation  of  the  people  of  the  Jews.” 

Left  to  himself,  it  behooved  him  to  think  of  seeking  an  asylum 


(1)  Pilate  allowed  Jesus  to  be  crucified  because  be  feared  the  people.  Herod,  in 
order  to  please  the  people,  caused  James  to  be  beheaded,  and  resolved  on  a  similar  pun¬ 
ishment  for  Peter.  They  were  both  murderers  :  the  first  because  he  was  a  pusillanimous 
man,  and  the  other  because  he  was  a  sycophant.  How  was  it  that  their  mere  weakness 
made  them  both  so  cruel  ? 

Jf  the  people  are  often  flatterers  of  princes,  they,  in  their  turn,  are  often  flatterers  of 
the  people. 

(2)  Translators  say,  the  town.  It  is  inferred  from  thence  that  this  prison  was  without 
the  walls  of  the  town.  It  might  be  so,  it  is  true;  but  it  might  also  be  that  Jerusalem, 
like  some  of  our  great  modern  cities,  had  one  district  especially  called  the  city.  There 
is  even  some  probability  that  such  was  the  case.  Moreover,  the  Latin  and  Greek  words 
both  signify  more  literally  the  city.  It  has,  therefore,  been  chosen  with  a  view  to  leave 
the  matter  undecided,  as  the  sacred  text  has  done. 


î  A 


V/ï 


=d 


ohap.  xn.] 


“  And  considering,  lie 


wherein  he  might  be  sheltered  from  pursuit, 
came  to  the  house  of  Mary,  the  mother  of  John,  who  was  surnamed 
Mark,  where  many  were  gathered  together  and  praying.  And  when 
he  knocked  at  the  door  of  the  gate,  a  damsel  came  to  hearken,  whose 
name  was  Ithoda.  And  as  soon  as  she  knew  Peter’s  voice,  she 
opened  not  the  gate  for  joy,  but  running  in  she  told  that  Peter  stood 
before  the  gate.  But  they  said  to  her  :  Thou  art  mad.  But  she 
affirmed  that  it  was  so.  Then  said  they  :  It  is  his  angel  (1).  But 
Peter  continued  knocking.  And  when  they  had  opened,  they  saw 
him,  and  were  astonished.  But  he,  beckoning  to  them  with  his  hand 
to  hold  their  peace,  told  how  the  Lord  had  brought  him  out  of  pris¬ 
on,  and  he  said:  Tell  these  things  to  James  (2)  and  to  the  breth¬ 
ren.  And  going  out,  he  went  into  another  place  (3).” 


(1)  This  text  has  been  already  of  good  service  in  proving  the  Catholic  doctrine  that 
each  individual  has  Iris  guardian  angel.  Calvin,  seeing  plainly  that  it  was  conclusive 
against  him,  endeavored  to  evade  it  by  admitting  that  St.  Peter  had  a  guardian  angel 
while  in  prison,  but  no  more.  How  knew  he  this  ?  or  rather,  how  did  they  know  it  who, 
believing  it  impossible  that  Peter  could  be  at  the  gate,  said  that  it  must  be  his  angel  ? 
Will  Protestants  say  that  God  sent  another  angel  to  reveal  it  to  them  ?  What  senseless 
folly  !  Let  us  speak  always  according  to  faith,  and  we  shall  be  sure  to  have  reason  on 
our  side.  These  people,  then,  said  :  It  is  his  angel,  simply  because  the  first  Christians 
were  persuaded  that  each  has  his  guardian  angel. 

This  word  :  It  is  his  angel,  shows  us  further  that  these  early  Christians  believed  that 
the  angels  sometimes  assumed  the  appearance  of  those  over  whom  they  watched  :  such, 
too,  is  the  opinion  of  some  theologians.  These  last  found  their  assertion  on  the  fact  that 
many  of  the  saints,  during  their  mortal  lives,  were  seen  at  the  same  time  in  different 
places,  without  being  themselves  aware  of  the  reduplication  of  their  presence.  Hence  it 
has  been  reasonably  concluded  that  these  saints  were  not  made  present  in  body  or  in 
soul,  but  that  it  was  their  angel  appearing  under  their  likeness,  or  otherwise  that  God 
was  pleased  to  form  a  body  of  inanimate  air,  giving  to  it  the  features  and  the  voice  of 
the  person  so  represented.  This  is  a  matter,  however,  which  could  only  be  decided  by 
his  own  special  revelation. 

(2)  James  the  less,  bishop  of  Jerusalem,  he  who  is  called  in  Scripture  the  brother  of 
our  Lord.  It  is  still  debated  amongst  the  learned  whether  he  was  the  same  as  James 
the  son  of  Alpheus,  one  of  the  twelve  apostles,  or  whether  they  were  two  different  per¬ 
sons.  The  common  opinion,  and  that  which  is  adopted  by  the  Church,  is,  that  they  were 
but  one  and  the  same  individual. 

(3)  In  another  place  appears  to  signify  that  he  went  to  conceal  himself  in  another 
house.  Some  give  the  expression  a  widèr  meaning,  because  that  in  reality  St.  Peter 
hastened  to  quit  Jerusalem,  whence,  after  visiting  several  provinces,  he  repaired  to  Rome, 
leaving  Evodius  his  successor  in  the  episcopacy  of  Antioch  and  in  the  patriarchate  of  the 
East,  and  taking  with  him  his  primacy,  which  he  irrevocably  attached  to  the  Roman  see. 


ft 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XII. 


“  When  the  day  was  come,  there  was  no  small  stir  among  the  sol¬ 
diers,  what  was  become  of  Peter.  And  when  Herod  had  sought  for 
him,  and  found  him  not,  having  examined  the  keepers,  he  com¬ 
manded  they  should  be  put  to  death.  And  going  down  from  Judea 
to  Cesarea,  he  abode  there.” 

There  it  was  that  he  was  to  fill  up  the  measure  of  his  iniquity, 
and  receive  the  reward  of  his  crimes.  “  He  was  angry  with  the  Ty¬ 
rians  and  the  Sidonians,  but  they,  with  one  accord,  came  to  him, 
and  having  gained  Blastus,  who  was  the  king’s  chamberlain,  they 
desired  peace,  because  their  countries  were  nourished  by  him.*  And 
upon  a  day  appointed,  Herod,  being  arrayed  in  kingly  apparel,  sat 
in  the  judgment-seat,  and  made  an  oration  to  them.  And  the  peo¬ 
ple  made  acclamation,  saying  :  It  is  the  voice  of  a  god,  and  not  of  a 
man.  And  forthwith  an  angel  of  the  Lord  struck  him,  because  he 
had  not  given  the  honor  to  God,  and  being  eaten  up  by  worms,  he 
gave  up  the  ghost  (1).” 

Meantime,  the  blood  which  he  had  shed  fructified  and  enriched 
the  Church.  “The  word  of  the  Lord  increased  and  multiplied. 
And  Barnabas  and  Saul  returned  from  Jerusalem”  to  Antioch, 
“having  fulfilled  their  ministry,  taking  with  them  John,  who  was 
surnamed  Mark.” 


founded  by  him  towards  the  close  of  that  year,  which  was  the  tenth  after  the  Ascension 
of  Our  Lord. 

(1)  Humble  yourself,  0  man!  for  you  shall  soon  die,  and  your  flesh  shall  then  be 
devoured  by  worms  !  And  you,  princes  !  bow  down  even  to  the  earth  ;  lest,  allowing 
yourselves  to  be  intoxicated  by  flattery,  you  should  become  the  living  prey  of  worms. 
Such  things  have  occurred  in  other  instances  besides  that  of  the  unhappy  Herod. 

Any  mortal  who  takes  pleasure  in  hearing  himself  styled  more  than  human  is  as  guilty 
as  Herod,  or  perhaps  more  guilty  still. 


! 


i\ 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  HOLY  GHOST  DECREES  THAT  BARNABAS  AND  SAUL  SHALL  BE  CHOSEN  FOR 

THE  WORK  OF  PREACHING  TO  THE  GENTILES. - THE  MAGICIAN  BAR-JESU  IS  STRUCK 

BLIND  AT  THE  BIDDING  OF  PAUL. - CONVERSION  OF  SERGIUS  PAULUS. - ADDRESS 

OF  PAUL  TO  THE  SYNAGOGUE  OF  ANTIOCH  OF  PISIDIA. - BLASPHEMY  OF  THE 

JEWS. - PERSECUTION  EXCITED  BY  THEM. - CONVERSION  OF  THE  GENTILES. 

(a)  “  Now  there  were  in  the  Church  which  was  at  Antioch,  proph¬ 
ets  (1)  and  doctors,  among  whom  was  Barnabas,  and  Simon,  who 
was  called  Niger,  and  Lucius  of  Cyrene,  and  Manalien,  who  was  the 
foster-brother  of  Herod  the  tetrarch,  and  Saul.  And  as  they  were 
ministering  to  the  Lord  (2),  and  fasting,  the  Holy  Ghost  said  to 
them  :  Separate  me  Saul  and  Barnabas,  for  the  work  whereunto  I 
have  taken  them.  Then  they,  fasting  and  praying  (3),  and  impos¬ 
ing  their  hands  upon  them,  sent  them  away.” 

(a)  Chap.  xiii.  1. 

(1)  Prophets  who  spoke  by  inspiration,  and  foretold  what  was  to  come,  such  as  Aga- 
bus,  of  whom  mention  is  made  in  chap.  ii.  and  xxi.  ;  doctors  who  expounded  the  sacred 
Scripture,  according  as  it  was  read.  Both  the  office  and  the  name  are  preserved  in  the 
Greek  Church,  so  that  the  title  of  doctor  (or  teacher)  of  the  Gospel  is  given  to  him  whose 
duty  it  is  to  explain  the  Gospel  ;  doctor  of  the  apostle  to  him  who  expounds  the  epistles 
of  St.  Paul  ;  doctor  of  the  psalter  to  the  expounder  of  the  Psalms,  which  also  corresponds 
with  our  teachers  of  divinity,  or  theologians,  except  that,  as  M.  Fleury  remarks,  the 
actual  duty  of  the  theologian  is  confined  to  the  production  of  some  sermons  which  he  is 
not  even  obliged  to  compose  himself. 

(2)  The  Greek  version  has  the  liturgy,  of  which  the  literal  meaning  is,  the  public  office 
{action).  This  word,  in  its  general  signification,  means  divine  service.  By  the  Greeks  it 
is  more  especially  used  to  signify  sacrifice.  So  also  is  it  understood  in  this  text  by  many 
commentators. 

(3)  It  will  again  be  seen  in  the  following  chapter  (ver.  22),  that  the  ordination  was 
accompanied  by  fasting  and  prayer  ;  a  practice  which  commenced  with  the  very  exist¬ 
ence  of  the  Church,  and  which  has  been  perpetuated  even  to  the  present  time. 

But  was  this  really  an  ordination,  or  was  it  merely  an  imposition  of  hands,  purely  de¬ 
precatory  ?  This  is  a  question  on  which  commentators  have  not  yet  agreed.  The  prob¬ 
ability  is  that  it  was  an  ordination,  since  we  find  nothing  wanting  of  all  the  usual  forms 
which  precede  and  accompany  ordination  ;  fasting,  prayer,  even  sacrifice  itself,  nor  yet 
the  imposition  of  hands.  But  it  may  be  said  that  St.  Paul,  in  his  epistle  to  the  Gala¬ 
tians,  declares  that  he  received  nothing  from  men,  as  far  as  the  knowledge  of  religion 


[chap.  un. 


r  ç.  : 


“  So  they,  being  sent  by  the  Holy  Ghost,”  whose  guidance  they 
followed,  as  they  had  from  him  received  their  mission,  the  two  apos¬ 
tles  “  went  to  Seleucia,  and  from  thence  they  sailed  to  Cyprus.  And 
when  they  were  come  to  Salamina,  they  preached  the  word  of  God 
in  the  synagogues  of  the  Jews.  And  they  had  John  also  in  their 
ministry.  And  when  they  had  gone  through  the  whole  island  as 
far  as  Paphos,  they  found  a  certain  man  a  magician,  a  false  prophet, 
a  Jew,  whose  name  was  Bar-Jesu,  who  was  with  the  proconsul  Ser¬ 
gius  Paulus,  a  prudent  man  (1).  He,  sending  for  Barnabas  and 
Saul,  desired  to  hear  the  word  of  God.  But  Elymas,  the  magi¬ 
cian  (2)  (for  so  his  name  is  interpreted)  withstood  them,  seeking  to 
turn  away  the  proconsul  from  the  faith.  Then”  (and  here  it  is  that 
the  apostle  of  nations  appears  for  the  first  time  in  his  true  character) 
“  Saul,  otherwise  Paul  (3),  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  looking  upon 
him,  said  :  O  full  of  all  guile,  and  of  all  deceit,  child  of  the  devil, 
enemy  of  all  justice,  thou  ceasest  not  to  pervert  the  right  ways  of 


and  his  vocation  to  the  apostolate  were  concerned,  yet  we  know  that  he  received  baptism 
from  Ananias,  and  might  just  as  well  have  received  the  sacerdotal  and  episcopal  orders 
by  the  ordinary  ministration.  Thus  a  priest  who  is  raised  to  the  papacy  receives  nothing, 
as  supreme  pontiff,  from  the  bishop  who  administered  to  him  the  episcopal  consecration. 
From  him  he  received  his  episcopal  dignity;  from  the  clergy  of  Rome,  by  whom  he  was 
elected,  he  is  made  bishop  of  Rome,  but  from  God  alone  he  holds  his  office  as  Pope  of 
the  universal  Church,  because  of  the  order  established  by  God  that  the  successor  of  Peter 
in  the  see  of  Rome  should  succeed  to  his  primacy. 

(1)  This  prudence,  which  was  in  him  no  more  than  a  moral  quality,  could  not  merit 
the  gift  of  faith,  but  it  set  aside  the  obstacles  which  might  have  impeded  its  growth. 
It  is  by  the  grace  of  God  that  man  is  faithful,  as  it  is  by  his  own  folly  that  he  is  not. 

(2)  Elymas  does  not  signify  a  magician  either  in  Greek  or  in  Hebrew,  and  this  has 
puzzled  many  interpreters.  Still  we  must  conclude  that  the  word  has  had  such  a  mean¬ 
ing,  since  St.  Luke  expressly  says  so.  He  alluded,  it  would  seem,  to  some  particular 
language— now  no  longer  known.  It  might  have  been  the  ancient  language  of  the  Cy¬ 
prians  before  the  language  of  Greece  prevailed  in  Cyprus.  This  is  nearly  the  whole 
amount  of  what  has  been  said  on  the  subject. 

(3)  Henceforward  he  shall  only  be  called  Paul.  It  is  more  than  probable  that  it  was 
at  this  time  he  adopted  that  new  name,  and  for  this  reason,  that  the  Gentiles,  to  whom 
he  was  more  especially  sent,  might  be  less  unwilling  to  receive  him,  when  he  had  a  name 
to  which  their  ears  were  accustomed.  But  did  he  take  this  name  of  himself,  or  at  the 
request  of  the  proconsul  Sergius  Paulus,  or  was  it  that  the  Gentiles,  because  of  the 
resemblance  of  the  two  names,  unwittingly  changed  Saul  into  Paul  ?  All  these  suppo¬ 
sitions  are  possible,  but  the  only  thing  certain  is,  that  the  apostle  did  adopt  the  name, 
and  never  after  gave  himself  any  other. 


vj 


'IT 


II 


CHAP.  XIII.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


651 


the  Lord.  And  now  behold  the  hand  of  the  Lord  is  upon  thee,  and 
thou  shalt  be  blind,  not  seeing  the  sun  for  a  time.  And  immediately 
there  fell  a  mist  and  darkness  upon  him,  and,  going  about,  he  sought 
some  one  to  lead  him  by  the  hand.  Then  the  proconsul,  when  he 
had  seen  what  was  done,  believed,  admiring  the  doctrine  of  the 
Lord  (1).” 

“  Now  when  Paul  and  they  that  were  with  him  had  sailed  from 
Paphos,  they  came  to  Perge,  in  Pamphylia.  And  John,”  shrinking 
from  a  task  so  full  of  toil  and  danger,  had  not  the  courage  to  follow 
them.  He,  “  departing  from  them,  returned  to  Jerusalem.  But 
they,  passing  through  Perge,  came  to  Antioch  in  Pisidia  ;  and  enter¬ 
ing  into  the  synagogue  on  the  Sabbath-day,  they  sat  down.  And 
after  the  reading  of  the  law  and  the  prophets,  the  rulers  of  the  syn¬ 
agogue,”  according  to  the  usual  practice  with  regard  to  strangers, 
“sent  to  them,  saying:  Ye  men,  brethren,  if  you  have  any  word  of 
exhortation  to  make  to  the  people,  speak.  Then  Paul,  rising  up, 
and  with  his  hands  bespeaking  silence,  said:  Ye  men  of  Israel,  and 
you  that  fear  God  (2),  give  ear.  The  God  of  the  people  of  Israel 
chose  our  fathers,  and  exalted  the  people  (3),  when  they  were  so¬ 
journers  in  the  land  of  Egypt,  and  with  an  high  arm  brought  them 
out  from  thence.  And  for  the  space  of  forty  years  endured  their” 
unruly  “  manners  in  the  desert.  And  destroying  seven  nations  in 
the  land  of  Chanaan,  divided  their  land  among  them,  by  lot,  as  it 


(1)  This  word  expresses  at  once  the  doctrine  and  the  manner  in  which  St.  Paul  had 
proved  it.  Thus,  when  Jesus  Christ  drove  out  a  devil  by  the  power  of  his  word  :  “  they 
were  all  amazed,  insomuch  that  they  questioned  among  themselves,  saying  :  What  is  this 
new  doctrine?  (Mark,  i.  27).  For  with  power  he  commandeth  even  the  unclean  spirits, 
and  they  obey  him.”  The  evangelical  doctrine,  when  simply  proposed,  appears  at  a  first 
glance  sublime  in  its  mysteries  and  perfect  in  its  morality.  A  doubt  may  then  arise 
whether  it  be  from  God,  or  is  merely  a  beautiful  conception  of  the  human  mind.  The 
miracle  by  which  it  is  proved  must  at  once  establish  its  divinity,  and  then  the  mind,  freed 
from  the  embarrassment  of  doubt,  yields  itself  entirely  to  admiration.  Hence  it  was  said 
that  the  proconsul,  having  seen  the  miracle,  admired  the  doctrine. 

(2)  Besides  those  who  were  Jews,  or  Israelites  by  birth,  they  admitted  into  those 
assemblies  proselytes  and  Gentile  worshippers  of  the  true  God.  It  was  to  them  that 
reference  was  made  in  the  words  :  You  that  fear  God. 

(3)  He  exalted  that  people,  and  made  their  name  famous,  by  the  ten  plagues  where¬ 
with  he  struck  their  cruel  oppressors. 


tel 


652 


THE  HISTORY  OE  THE 


[CHAP.  XIII. 


were,  after  four  hundred  and  fifty  years  (1).  And  after  these  things 
he  gave  unto  them  judges,  until  Samuel  the  prophet.  And  after 
that  they  desired  a  king,  and  God  gave  them  Saul  the  son  of  Cis,  a 
man  of  the  tribe  of  Benjamin,  forty  years  (2).  And  when  he  had 
removed  him,  he  raised  them  up  David  to  be  king,  to  whom,  giving 
testimony,  he  said  :  I  have  found  David ,  the  son  of  Jesse ,  a  man  ac¬ 
cording  to  my  own  heart ,  who  shall  do  all  my  wills.  Of  this  man’s 
seed  God,  according  to  his  promise,  hath  raised  up  to  Israel  a  Sa¬ 
viour,  Jesus.  John  first  preaching  before  his  coming  the  baptism  of 
penance  to  all  the  people  of  Israel.  And  when  John  was  fulfilling 
his  course,  he  said  :  I  am  not  he  whom  you  think  me  to  be  :  but  be¬ 
hold  there  cometh  one  after  me,  whose  shoes  of  his  feet  I  am  not 
worthy  to  loose  (3).  Men,  brethren,  children  of  the  stock  of  Abra¬ 
ham,  and  whosoever  among  you  fear  God,  to  you  the  word  of  this 
salvation  is  sent.  For  they  that  inhabit  Jerusalem,  and  the  rulers 
thereof,  not  knowing  him,  nor  the  voices  of  the  prophets  which  are 
read  every  Sabbath,  judging  him  have  fulfilled  them.  And  finding 
no  cause  of  death  in  him,  they  desired  of  Pilate  that  they  might  kill 
him.  And  when  they  had  fulfilled  all  things  that  were  written  of 
him,  taking  him  down  from  the  tree,  they  laid  him  in  a  sepulchre. 
But  God  raised  him  up  from  the  dead  the  third  day  :  who  was  seen 
for  many  days  by  them  who  came  up  with  him  from  Galilee  to  Je¬ 
rusalem,  who  to  this  present  are  his  witnesses  to  the  people.  And 


(1)  Between  the  birth  of  Isaac  (which  may  be  considered  the  origin  of  the  chosen 
people),  and  the  division  by  lot  of  the  land  of  Chanaan,  there  is  commonly  reckoned  four 
hundred  and  fifty  years.  Nearly  all  the  commentators  agree  in  saying  that  this  was  the 
period  to  which  St.  Paul  here  alludes. 

(2)  These  forty  years  included  the  time  of  the  government  of  Samuel,  and  the  reign 
of  Saul. 

(3)  Many  years  subsequent  to  the  death  of  John  the  Baptist,  and  far  away  from  Ju¬ 
dea,  .where  he  had  lived  and  died,  St.  Paul  quotes  his  testimony  in  support  of  the  divinity 
of  Jesus  Christ.  This  shows  how  far  the  fame  of  the  holy  precursor  had  spread,  and 
how  highly  he  was  esteemed  by  the  Jews  all  over  the  world.  He  is  also  quoted  by  the 
apostle  St.  John,  in  his  Gospel,  which  was  written  more  than  fifty  years  after  the  pre¬ 
cursor’s  death  :  another  fact  which  proves  that  his  testimony  was  deeply  and  indelibly 
impressed  upon  the  minds  of  men.  Doubtless  all  this  tended  to  give  weight  and  value 
to  his  evidence,  but  it  was  also  supported  by  the  fulfilment  of  the  prophecies  in  him, 
since  it  had  been  foretold  that  the  Messiah  should  be  preceded  by  a  prophet  who  would 
announce  his  approach,  and  prepare  the  way  before  him. 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


we  declare  unto  you  that  the  promise  tvhicli  was  made  to  our  fa¬ 
thers,  this  same  God  hath  fulfilled  to  our  children,  raising  up  Jesus,  as 
in  the  second  Psalm  also  is  written  :  Thou  art  my  Son  ’  this-  day 
have  I  begotten  thee  (1).  And  to  show  that  he  raised  him  up  from 
the  dead  not  to  return  now  any  more  to  corruption,  he  said  thus  : 
I  will  give  you  the  holy  things  of  David  faithful.  And  therefore, 
in  another  place  also  he  saith  :  Thou  shalt  not  suffer  thy  Holy  One 
to  see  corruption .” 

It  was  not  David  in  person,  but  the  Messiah,  his  Lord  and  his  son, 
who  was  the  object  of  these  magnificent  promises.  “For  David, 
when  he  had  served  in  his  generation  according  to  the  will  of  God, 
slept  ;  and  was  laid  unto  his  fathers,  and  saw  corruption.  But  he 
whom  God  hath  raised  from  the  dead  saw  no  corruption.  Be  it 
known  therefore  to  you,  men,  brethren,  that  through  him  forgive¬ 
ness  of  sins  is  preached  to  you  ;  and  from  all  the  things  from  which 
you  could  not  be  justified  by  the  law  of  Moses.  In  him  every  one 
that  believeth  is  justified.” 


(l)  St.  Paul  (Heb.,  i.  5)  explains  this  text  by  the  eternal  generation  of  the  Word. 
This  is,  in  fact,  its  natural  and  literal  meaning.  Here  he  applies  it  to  the  resurrection  of 
Jesus  Christ,  which  application  is  accounted  for  in  various  ways  :  1st,  It  is  explained  as 
referring  to  the  manifestation  of  the  eternal  generation,  because  that,  in  raising  up  his  Son, 
God  seems  to  have  said  to  the  entire  universe  :  This  is  my  Son,  whom  I  have  begotten 
from  all  eternity  ;  you  will  recognize  him  by  this  prodigy.  2d,  Others  understand  it  as 
having  reference  to  the  resurrection  itself,  which  in  Scripture  is  often  called  regeneration. 
Hence  the  words:  This  day  have  I  begotten  thee ,  signify  I  have  regenerated  thee,  that  is 
to  say,  this  day  have  I  given  thee  a  new  birth.  3d,  Though  still  preserving  the  literal 
meaning  of  this  text,  which  is  assuredly  that  of  the  eternal  generation,  many  persons 
have  applied  it  both  to  the  incarnation  and  resurrection,  and  they  do  it  in  this  way.  By 
the  personal  union  of  the  Word  with  human  nature,  a  man  was  made  the  child  of  God, 
and  in  this  sense  God  might  say  to  that  man  :  Thou  art  my  son,  and  this  day  have  I 
begotten  thee.  That  man  was  no  longer  in  existence  after  the  death  of  Jesus  Christ 
(notwithstanding  that  his  two  distinctive  parts  were  each  in  existence,  and  that  the  Word 
still  remained  united  thereto),  so  that  there  was  no  longer  any  man  who  could  be  called 
the  begotten  son  of  God.  But  this  man  having  been  re-made,  if  one  may  so  express 
it,  by  the  reunion  of  his  parts,  there  was  again  in  existence  one  to  whom  God  might  say 
on  the  day  of  the  resurrection,  as  on  that  of  the  incarnation  :  Thou  art  my  son,  this  day 
have  I  begotten  thee.  St.  Paul  appears  to  have  connected  these  two  meanings  in  com¬ 
mencing  the  epistle  to  the  Romans,  where,  after  saying  that  the  Son  of  God  was  made  to 
him  of  the  seed  of  David,  according  to  the  flesh,  he  adds,  who  was  predestinated  the  Son 
of  God . .  .by  the  resurrection  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead  (Rom.,  i.  ver.  3,  4). 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap,  xm 


1 


<n 


S> 


To  these  inducements,  attractive  as  they  were,  the  apostle,  in  order 
to  suit  every  disposition,  adds  some  threats  of  an  alarming  nature. 
“Beware,  therefore,”  says  he,  “lest  that  c»me  upon  you  which  is 
spoken  in  the  prophets  :  Behold ,  ye  despisers ,  and  wonder  and  per 
ish  :  for  I  work  a  work  in  your  days ,  a  work  which  you  will  not 
believe  if  any  man  shall  tell  it  you? 

These  words  occur  in  the  prophecy  of  Habacuc.  The  work  of 
which  he  speaks  is  the  invasion  of  the  promised  land  by  the  Chal¬ 
deans,  and  the  ravages  therein  made  by  those  fierce  instruments  of 
divine  vengeance.  St.  Paul,  who  had  to  threaten  his  auditors  with 
scourges  still  more  dreadful,  contents  himself  with  intimating  the 
latter  by  recalling  the  former,  which  were  only  signs  and  figures  of 
those  to  come.  His  discourse  was  not  without  some  fruit.  “  As 
they  went  out,  they  desired  them  that  on  the  next  Sabbath  they 
would  speak  unto  them  these  words.  And  when  the  synagogue  was 
broken  up,  many  of  the  Jews,  and  of  the  strangers  who  served  God, 
followed  Paul  and  Barnabas  ;  who,  speaking  to  them,  persuaded 
them  to  continue  in  the  grace  of  God.” 

“  The  next  Sabbath-day  the  whole  city  almost  came  together  to 
hear  the  word  of  God.  And  the  Jews,  seeing  the  multitudes,  were 
filled  with  envy,  and  contradicted  those  things  which  were  said  by 
Paul,  blaspheming.  Then  Paul  and  Barnabas  said  boldly  :  To  you 
it  behooved  us  first  to  speak  the  word  of  God  (1)  ;  but  because  you 
reject  it,  and  judge  yourselves  unworthy  of  eternal  life,  behold  we 
turn  to  the  Gentiles.  For  so  the  Lord  hath  commanded  us  :  I  have 
set  thee  to  be  the  light  of  the  Gentiles  /  that  thou  mayst  be  for  salva¬ 
tion  unto  the  utmost  part  of  the  earth? 

“  And  the  Gentiles,  hearing  it,  were  glad,  and  glorified  the  word 


(l)  It  was  decreed  by  God  that  the  Gospel  should  first  be  announced  to  the  Jews. 
St.  Paul  acts  in  conformity  with  this  decree,  though  he  elsewhere  says  that  the  aposto- 
late  of  the  nations  was  especially  confided  to  him,  as  that  of  the  Jewish  people  was  to 
St.  Peter.  Neither  one  nor  the  other  was  without  exception,  since  St.  Paul  here  an¬ 
nounces  the  Gospel  to  the  Jews,  as  we  have  seen  St.  Peter  announce  it  to  the  Gentiles. 
Neither  mission  was  the  sole  duty  of  either  apostle,  but  only  the  principal  part  thereof. 

Those  who  would  fain  have  St.  Peter  inferior  to  St.  Paul  in  dignity,  because  of  these 
different  missions,  so  unequal  in  their  importance,  do  not  seem  to  remember  that  Jesus 
Christ  is  called  minister  of  the  circumcision,  or  yet  the  declaration  made  by  himself  that 
his  mission  was  only  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel. 


T 


^  Jr 


CHAP.  HU,] 

of  the  Lord  ;  and  as  many  as  were  ordained  (1)  to  life  everlasting, 
believed.  And  the  word  of  the  Lord  was  published  throughout  the 
whole  country” 

The  incredulous  Jews  could  not  bear  this,  and,  being  defeated  in 
argument,  they  strove  to  prevail  by  intrigue.  “  The  Jews  stirred 
up  religious  and  honorable  women  (2),  and  the  chief  men  of  the 
city,  and  raised  persecution  against  Paul  and  Barnabas,  and  cast 
them  out  of  their  coasts.  But  they,  shaking  off  the  dust  of  their 
feet  against  them,  came  to  Iconium.  And  the  disciples  were  filled 
with  joy  and  with  the  Holy  Ghost.” 


(1)  The  Greek  says  simply,  destined.  The  meaning  is,  however,  the  same.  Many  of 
the  commentators  think  that  it  does  not  at  all  refer  to  predestination,  properly  so  called. 
They  can  hardly  believe  that  St.  Luke  was  inspired  to  make  known  to  these  people  that 
they  were  all  predestined  ;  and,  moreover,  it  is  very  probable  that  many  others,  who  did 
not  at  first  believe,  did  subsequently  embrace  the  faith,  since  it  is  written  that  “  the  word 
of  the  Lord  was  published  throughout  the  whole  country.”  The  prœordinati  (ordained), 
therefore,  of  this  text,  is  understood  as  having  reference  to  the  disposition  to  faith,  which 
consists  chiefly  in  a  sincere  love  of  truth,  together  with  the  efficacious  desire  of  knowing  it 
Nor  does  grace  thereby  lose  any  of  its  prerogatives,  seeing  that  this  disposition  is  still  its 
work  ;  and  there  are  numerous  other  texts  which  prove  beyond  all  doubt  the  doctrine  of 
predestination. 

(2)  In  Latin,  hones tas.  This  word  may  be  understood  of  virtuous  conduct  as  well  as 
of  condition.  The  Greek  word  of  which  it  is  a  translation  is  also  susceptible  of  the  same 
interpretation.  The  two  apostles,  on  leaving  the  town,  shook  the  dust  off  their  feet 
against  these  women,  and  those  who  took  part  with  them.  Jesus  Christ  had  commanded 
his  disciples  to  do  so  (Matt.,  x.  14),  and  he  subjoined  this  fearful  threat  :  Amen,  I  say 
to  you,  it  shall  be  more  tolerable  for  the  land  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrha  in  the  day  of 
judgment  than  for  that  city.  Thus,  by  a  wicked  infatuation  in  regard  to  religion,  those 
women,  though  regular  in  their  conduct,  and  seemingly  devout,  are  condemned,  and 
treated  with  greater  rigor  than  the  most  abominable  of  mankind.  This  is  matter  of  fait  h. 


Ï 


irïïjïui, . 


(Si 


rv 


X 


>4! 


"% 


JEWS  AND  GENTILES  CONVERTED  IN  ICONIDM. - A  CRIPPLE  IS  CURED  IN  LYSTRA. — 

THE  TWO  APOSTLES  ARE  THERE  TAKEN  FOR  GODS.- — NEXT  DAY  PAUL  IS  STONED, 
AND  LEFT  FOR  DEAD. — HE  RETURNS  WITH  BARNABAS  TO  ANTIOCH. 


“  (a)  And  it  came  to  pass  in  Iconium,  tliat”  the  two  apostles 
“  entered  together  into  the  synagogue  of  the  Jews,  and  so  spoke, 
that  a  very  great  multitude  both  of  the  Jewrs  and  of  the  Greeks  did 
believe.  But  the  unbelieving  Jews  stirred  up  and  incensed  the 
minds  of  the  Gentiles  (1)  against  the  brethren.  A  long  time  there¬ 
fore  they  abode  there,  dealing  confidently  in  the  Lord,  who  gave 
testimony  to  the  word  of  his  grace,  granting  signs  and  wonders  to 
be  done  by  their  hands.  And  the  multitude  of  the  city  was  divided  ; 
and  some  of  them,  indeed,  held  with  the  Jews,  but  some  -with  the 
apostles.  And  when  there  was  an  assault  made  by  the  Gentiles  and 
the  Jews,  with  their  rulers,- to  use  them  contumeliously  and  to  stone 
them,  they  understanding  it,  fied  to  Lystra  and  Derbe,  cities  of  Ly- 
caonia,  and  to  the  whole  country  round  about,  and  were  there 
preaching  the  Gospel.” 

“  And  there  sat  a  certain  man  at  Lystra,  impotent  in  his  feet,  a 
cripple  from  his  mother’s  womb,  who  never  had  walked.  This  same 
heard  Paul  speaking,  who  looking  upon  him,  and  seeing  that  he  had 

(a)  Chap,  xiv.,  ver.  1. 


(1)  The  Jews,  who  were  the  first  persecutors  of  Christianity,  were  also  the  authors 
and  tl>e  instigators  of  the.  first  persecutions  which  it  encountered  from  the  Gentiles. 
Stained  as  they  were  with  the  blood  of  all  the  prophets,  from  Abel  down  to  Jesus 
Christ,  they  had  the  unhappy  art  of  rendering  themselves  guilty  of  the  blood  of  all  the 
martyrs,  from  the  Saviour  himself  till  the  end  of  the  persecutions.  What  a  fearful  mass 
of  iniquity  heaped  on  one  single  nation  ! 

In  what  way  could  they  excite  the  Gentiles  to  anger,  except  by  representing  to  them 
that  this  new  doctrine  tended  to  the  destruction  of  their  temples  and  idols  ?  Thus  it 
was  that  men,  who  were  the  most  opposed  to  idolatry,  became  its  abettors.  Nor  is  this 
surprising  when  we  come  to  consider  the  inveterate  hatred  with  which  false  religions 
regard  the  true.  So,  Protestants  in  general  would  rather  see  the  whole  world  Mahom¬ 
etan  than  Catholic. 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


657 


CHAP.  XIV.] 

faith  to  be  healed  (1),  said  with  a  loud  voice:  Stand  upright  on  thy 
feet.  And  he  leaped  up  and  walked.  And  when  the  multitudes 
had  seen  what  Paul  had  done,  they  lifted  up  their  voice  in  the  Ly- 
caonian  tongue,  saying:  The  gods  are  come  down  to  us  in  the  like¬ 
ness  of  men.  And  they  called  Barnabas,  Jupiter  ;  but  Paul,  Mer¬ 
cury;  because  he  was  chief  speaker.  The  priest  also  of  Jupiter, 
that  was  before  the  city,  bringing  oxen  and  garlands  before  the 
gate,  would  have  offered  sacrifice  with  the  people.  Which  when  the 
apostles  Paul  and  Barnabas  had  heard,  rending  their  clothes  (2), 
they  leaped  out  among  the  people,  crying  and  saying:  Ye  men,  why 
do  ye  these  things?  We  also  are  mortals,  men  like  unto  you, 
preaching  to  you  to  be  converted  from  these  vain  things  (3),  to  the 
living  God  who  made  the  heaven,  and  the  earth,  and  the  sea,  and 
all  things  that  are  in  them  ;  who,  in  times  past,  suffered  all  nations 
to  walk  in  their  own  ways  (4).  Nevertheless,  he  left  not  himself 


(1)  St.  Paul  saw  this  man’s  earnest  attention,  and  the  pleasure  with  which  he  heard 
him.  He  knew  by  inspiration  that  he  really  had  faith,  and  moreover,  a  firm  confidence 
that  the  apostle  had  received  from  God  power  to  heal  him. 

(2)  Simply  to  refuse  divine  honors  might  be,  in  ministers  of  the  Gospel,  no  more  than 
the  natural  effect  of  ordinary  virtue.  What  here  gives  proof  of  heroism  is  the  rending 
of  the  garments,  the  darting  into  the  midst  of  the  crowd,  and  those  cries  of  sorrow  and 
of  indignation,  meant  to  restrain  an  idolatrous  people.  Ordinary  virtue,  mere  human 
virtue,  could  never  have  produced  such  transports. 

If,  instead  of  offering  sacrifice  to  them,  the  people,  charmed  with  their  eloquence,  had 
cried  :  They  are  gods  who  speak,  and  not  men,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  flattery 
would  have  excited  their  indignation  just  as  strongly.  Would  mere  human  virtue  receive 
it  in  the  same  way  ? 

It  is  very  easy  for  a  man  to  believe  that  he  is  neither  Jupiter  nor  Mercury,  but  is  it  as 
easy  to  believe  that  people  are  mistaken  when  they  say  that  he  has  spoken  divinely? 

People  do  not  pause  to  reflect  whether  the  pleasure  they  take  in  hearing  such  eulo- 
giums  is  as  culpable  as  that  of  the  two  apostles  would  have  been  had  they  permitted 
sacrifice  to  be  offered  to  them.  Those,  however,  who  look  upon  this  complacency  as  a 
venial  fault,  would  do  well  to  remember  Herod,  eaten  alive  by  worms. 

(3)  That  is  to  say,  from  these  imaginary  divinities. 

(4)  God  allowed  them  to  follow  the  corruption  of  their  own  hearts,  and  to  form  for 
themselves  gods  as  vicious  as  they  were  themselves.  God  suffers  them  to  act  so,  inas¬ 
much  as  he  does  not  reveal  to  them  the  light  of  the  Gospel.  Still  they  were  not  quite  des¬ 
titute  of  light,  and  the  very  works  of  the  creation  were  quite  sufficient  to  make  the  Crea¬ 
tor  known  to  them.  Such  is  the  meaning  of  the  following  words,  to  which  St.  Paul 
adds  (Rom.,  i.),  that  they  were  sufficiently  enlightened  to  be  altogether  inexcusable. 
This  refutes  the  erroneous  opinion  that  being  entirely  destitute  of  light,  they  could  not 

42 


THE  IIISTOKY  OF  THE 


without  testimony,  doing  good  from  heaven,  giving  rains,  and  fruitful 
seasons,  filling  our  hearts  with  food  and  gladness.  And  speaking 
these  things,  they  scarce  restrained  the  people  from  sacrificing  to 
them.” 

The  fickleness  of  the  multitude  is  proverbial,  but  perhaps  it  never 
was  so  remarkably  exemplified  as  on  this  occasion.  Whilst  the 
apostles  were  straining  every  nerve  to  divert  the  people  from  their 
impious  purpose,  “  there  came  thither  certain  Jews  from  Antioch,” 
in  Pisidia,  “  and  Iconium  :  and  persuading  the  multitude”  of  what¬ 
ever  they  pleased,  “  stoning  Paul,”  they  “  drew  him  out  of  the  city, 
thinking  him  to  be  dead.  But  as  the  disciples  stood  round  about 
him,  he  rose  up  (1)  and  entered  into  the  city,  and  the  next  day  he 
departed  with  Barnabas  to  Derbe.” 

“  And  when  they  had  preached  the  Gospel  to  that  city,  and  had 
taught  many,”  these  intrepid  men  “  returned  again  to  Lystra  and  to 
Iconium,  and  to  Antioch”  in  Pisidia,  “  confirming  the  souls  of  the 
disciples,  and  exhorting  them  to  continue  in  the  faith.”  And  in 
order  that  the  neophytes  might  not  be  discouraged  at  sight  of  the 
persecution,  endured  by  the  apostles,  they  taught  them  that  funda¬ 
mental  maxim  of  the  new'  gospel  :  “  that”  it  is  “  through  many  tribu¬ 
lations  we  must  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  And  when  they 
had  ordained  to  them  priests  in  every  church,  and  had  prayed  with 
fasting,  they  commended  them  to  the  Lord,  in  whom  they  believed. 


-a 


do  otherwise  than  go  astray.  We  consider  this  doctrine  as  erroneous,  because  it  might 
tend  to  make  them  appear  excusable,  by  setting  aside  the  reason  for  which  the  apostle 
says  they  were  inexcusable. 

(1)  It  might  be  that  he  was  dead,  and  came  to  life  again  ;  at  least,  there  is  no  doubt 
that  he  was  miraculously  healed.  •  A  man  who  appeared  to  be  dead,  after  drowning  or 
suffocation,  might,  when  respiration  had  been  restored,  stand  upon  his  feet,  and  be  able 
to  travel  on  the  following  day  ;  but  a  man  who  had  been  stoned,  as  it  were,  to  death, 
must  necessarily  be  all  covered  with  wounds,  and  even  if  none  of  them  were  mortal,  it 
would  require  some  time  to  heal  them  so  that  the  patient  could  stand  up,  walk,  or  set 
out  on  a  journey. 

This  was  the  time  when,  according  to  the  most  accurate  chronology,  St.  Paul  was 
raised  to  the  third  heaven.  It  is  thought  that  this  might  have  occurred  during  the  time 
that  he  appeared  to  be  dead,  but  here  a  difficulty  presents  itself.  As  the  apostle  says 
that  he  knew  not  whether  he  was  raised  in  the  body,  or  out  of  the  body,  it  seems  as 
though  the  disciples  by  whom  he  was  surrounded  might  easily  have  enlightened  him  on 
this  point,  by  informing  him  whether  his  body  had,  or  had  not  disappeared. 


ir 


14  3  3  0  «  3« 


And  passing  through  Pisidia,  they  came  into  Pamphylia,  and  having 
spoken  the  word  of  the  Lord  in  Perge,  they  went  down  into  Atta- 
lia;  and  thence  they  sailed  to  Antioch,  from  whence  they  had  been 
delivered  to  the  grace  of  God,  unto  the  work  which  they  accom¬ 
plished.  And  when  they  were  come,  and  had  assembled  the  church, 
they  related  what  great  things  God  had  done  with  them  (1),  and 
how  he  had  opened  the  door  of  faith  to  the  Gentiles.  And  they 
abode  no  small  time  with  the  disciples.” 


Zl 


CHAPTER  XV. 

DISPUTE  ON  THE  SUBJECT  OF  CIRCUMCISION. - PAUL  AND  BARNABAS  COME  TO  CON¬ 
SULT  WITH  THE  OTHER  APOSTLES. - COUNCIL  OF  JERUSALEM. - SEPARATION  OF 

PAUL  AND  BARNABAS. 

“  ( a )  My  thoughts  are  not  your  thoughts,”  saith  the  Lord,  “  and 
heaven  is  not  more  exalted  above  the  earth  than  my  thoughts  are 
above  your  thoughts.”  This  is  what  men  will  not  understand  ;  and, 
rather  than  submit  their  own  thoughts  to  those  of  the  Lord,  they 
reject  his  altogether,  because  they  are  contrary  to  theirs,  and  hence 
so  many  unbelievers.  Others  there  are  who  seek  to  reconcile  and 
amalgamate  both  together,  and  it  is  this  unholy  adulteration  which 
has  given  rise  to  all  heresies,  and  all  errors.  The  converted  Jews, 
still  zealous  for  their  old  law,  began  by  seeking  to  blend  Judaism 
with  Christianity.  Then  came  the  philosophers,  who  tried  to  en¬ 
graft  upon  it  their  own  Platonic  conceits.  But  we  have  only  to  deal 
with  the  former.  (F)  “  Some  coming  down  from  Judea”  to  Antioch, 
“  taught  the  brethren  :  That  except  you  be  circumcised  after  the 
manner  of  Moses,  you  cannot  be  saved.  And  when  Paul  and  Bar- 


(a)  Isaias,  lv.  8. 


( b )  Acts,  xv.  1. 


(1)  That  is  to  say,  all  that  God  had  done  by  their  ministry.  St.  Paul  said,  in  the 
same  way  :  “  Yet  not  I,  but  the  grace  of  God,  with  me”  (1  Cor.,  xv.  10). 


m 


Rp%| 

«fl 


T 


nab  as  bad  no  small  contest  with  them,  they  determined  that  Paul 
and  Barnabas,  and  certain  others  of  the  other  side,  should  go  up  to 
the  apostles  and  priests  to  Jerusalem,  about  this  question.” 

St.  Paul  had,  however,  another  motive  for  undertaking  this  jour¬ 
ney,  as  he  informs  us  in  the  second  chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Galatians.  It  was  (a)  “  according  to  revelation,”  says  he,  “  that  I 
went  up  to  Jerusalem  with  Barnabas,  taking  Titus  also  with  me.  And 
I  conferred  with”  the  people  of  that  church,  on  “  the  Gospel  which 
I  preached  among  the  Gentiles,  but  apart  with  them  who  seemed 
to  be  something  :  lest  perhaps  I  should  run,  or  had  run  in  vain.” 

In  another  place  he  names  those  to  whom  he  here  merely  alludes. 
They  were  James,  Cephas,  and  John,  who  were,  as  it  were,  the  pil¬ 
lars  of  the  Church.  He,  however,  learned  nothing  from  them,  as 
he  himself  also  tells  us  in  the  same  epistle  ;  Jesus  Christ  had  given 
him  all  necessary  instruction,  but  as  this  instruction  was  given  by 
revelation,  it  was  requisite  to  teach  the  world  by  his  example  that 
all  revelation  must  be  confronted  with  the  doctrine  of  the  Church, 
and  receive  its  certainty  from  her  approbation.  If  this  rule  had 
always  been  observed,  there  would  never  have  been  either  visiona¬ 
ries  or  fanatics. 

But  to  return  to  the  deputation,  which  was  the  ostensible  occa¬ 
sion  of  this  journey,  the  two  apostles  “being  brought  on  their  way 
by”  several  brethren  of  “  the  church”  of  Antioch,  “  passed  through 
Phenicia  and  Samaria,  relating  the  conversion  of  the  Gentiles  ;  and 
they  caused  great  joy  to  all  the  brethren.  And  when  they  were 
come  to  Jerusalem,  they  were  received  by  the  Church,  and  by  the 
apostles  and  ancients,  declaring  how  great  things  God  had  done 
with  them.  But,”  said  they  (1),  “there  arose  some  of  the  sect  of 
the  Pharisees  that  believed,  saying:  They  must  be  circumcised,  and 
be  commanded  to  observe  the  law  of  Moses.” 

(a)  Gal.,  ii.  2. 

(1)  Said  they  is  added,  as  though  what  follows  had  been  related  both  by  Paul  and 
Barnabas,  and  it  appears  very  natural  that  such  should  have  been  the  case.  The  text, 
in  another  place,  would  induce  the  belief  that  it  was  the  Jews,  wedded  to  their  own 
laws,  who  b:ing  present  at  this  recital  of  the  two  apostles,  proposed  their  difficulty. 
Neither  explanation  has  any  thing  to  do  with  the  main  subject,  and  each  has  been  enter¬ 
tained  by  good  commentators. 


ACTS  OF  TIEE  APOSTLES. 


661 


CHAP.  XV.] 

The  question  was  proposed,  and  it  became  necessary  to  decide  one 
way  or  the  other.  “The  apostles  and  ancients  assembled,”  there 
fore,  “  to  consider  of  this  matter.  And  when  there  had  been  much 
disputing,  Peter,  rising  up,  said  to  them  :  Men,  brethren,  you  know 
that  in  former  days  God  made  choice  among  us,  that  by  my  mouth 
the  Gentiles  (1)  should  hear  the  word  of  the  Gospel,  and  believe. 
And  God,  who  knoweth  the  hearts,  gave  testimony  (2),  giving  unto 
them  the  Holy  Ghost  as  well  as  to  us,  and  put  no  difference  between 
us  and  them,  purifying  their  hearts  by  faith.  Now,  therefore,  why 
tempt  you  God  (3),  to  put  a  yoke  upon  the  necks  of  the  disciples, 
which  neither  our  fathers  nor  we  have  been  able  to  bear  (4)  ?  But 
by  the  grace  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,”  and  not  by  the  works  of  the 
law,  “  we  believe  to  be  saved,  in  like  manner  as  they  also  (5).” 

“  And  all  the  multitude  held  their  peace  ;  and  they  heard  Barna¬ 
bas  and  Paul  telling,”  in  order  to  show  that  the  doctrine  just  pro- 


(1)  Cornelius,  and  his  household,  as  we  have  seen  in  chap.  x. 

(2)  The  testimony  here  referred  to  did  not  immediately  relate  to  the  truths  announced 
hy  Peter,  but  rather  to  the  purification  ;  or,  in  other  words,  the  sanctification  of  the  Gen¬ 
tiles.  The  Holy  Ghost,  hy  descending  visibly  upon  them,  testified  that  they  really  were 
saints,  uncircumcised  though  they  were.  Hence  it  followed  that  neither  the  whole,  nor 
any  part  of  Judaism  was  necessary  to  justification,  nor  to  salvation,  which  is  the  fruit 
thereof. 

(3)  To  tempt  God  is  to  require  or  expect  from  him  useless  or  superfluous  miracles. 
It  is  in  the  same  sense  that  Jesus  Christ  himself  makes  use  of  this  word  (Matt.,  iv.). 
They  to  whom  St.  Peter  spoke  were  exactly  in  the  same  position,  for  God  having  suffi¬ 
ciently  manifested  his  will  by  the  visible  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost  upon  the  uncircum¬ 
cised,  to  demand  yet  other  proofs  was  to  ask  of  God  a  new  miracle,  which  the  first  had 
rendered  superfluous. 

(4)  This  impossibility  signifies  no  more  than  a  great  difficulty.  God  himself  testifies 
that  many  have  borne  this  yoke  ;  that  is  to  say,  that  they  have  kept  the  whole  law. 
Of  this  number  were  Zachary  and  Elizabeth,  of  whom  it  is  written  that  they  were  both 
just  before  God  ;  “  walking  in  all  the  commandments  and  justifications  of  the  Lord  with¬ 
out  blame”  (Luke,  i.  6). 

(5)  In  like  manner  as  they  also.  St.  Augustine  understands  this  as,  our  fathers  who 
could  only  be  saved  by  the  grace  of  Jesus  Christ  ;  and  he  makes  use  of  this  text  against 
Pelagius  to  prove  that  without  this  grace  those  who  are  here  called  our  fathers  could 
not  be  saved,  either  under  the  law  of  nature,  or  the  written  law.  This  dogma  is  clearly 
defined,  and  pertains  to  faith  ;  but  the  proof  is  only  conclusive  against  those  who  under¬ 
stand  this,  in  like  manner  as  they  also  as  referring  to  our  fathers,  rather  than  to  the 
Gentiles,  as  most  of  the  commentators  do.  Perhaps  Pelagius  took  it  in  the  former 
sense. 


662  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  [CHAP.  XV. 

posed  by  Peter  was  the  favored  of  heaven,  “  what  great  signs  and 
wonders  God  had  wrought  among  the  Gentiles  by  them.1 2 3 4 5’ 

“And  after  they  had  held  their  peace,  James  answered,  saying: 
Men,  brethren,  hear  me.  Simon  hath  related  how  God  first  visited 
to  take  of  the  Gentiles  a  people  to  his  name.  And  to  this  agree  the 
words  of  the  prophets,  as  it  is  written  :  After  these  things  I  will,  re¬ 
turn ,  and  will  rebuild  the  tabernacle  of  David  (1)  which  is  fallen 
down ,  and  the  ruins  thereof  I  will  rebuild ,  and  I  will  set  it  up,  that 
the  residue  of  men  may  seek  after  the  Lord ,  and  all  nations  upon 
whom  my  name  is  invoked  (2).,  saith  the  Lord  who  doth  these  things. 
To  the  Lord  was  his  own  work  known  from  the  beginning.” 

Peter  had  decided  ;  the  miracles  related  by  Paul  and  Barnabas 
served  to  confirm  his  decision,  to  which  James  had  subjoined  the 
evidence  of  the  prophecies  :  it  remained  only  to  draw  the  conclusion, 
and  this  was  also  done  by  James,  who  made  a  proposal,  which  was 
unanimously  adopted.  He  therefore  continues  as  follows  : 

“For  which  cause  (3)  I  judge  that  they,  who  from  among  the 
Gentiles  are  converted  to  God,  are  not  to  be  disquieted,  but  that  we 
write  unto  them  to  refrain  themselves  from  the  pollutions  of  idols  (4), 
and  from  fornication  (5),  and  from  things  strangled,  and  from  blood.” 


(1)  By  the  tabernacle  of  David  we  understand  the  Jewish  nation,  incredulous  and 
condemned,  and  in  consequence  thereof  dispersed  and  destroyed.  From  its  scattered 
fragments,  the  converted  Jews,  together  with  the  Gentiles,  God  shall  form  a  new  tab' 
ernacle  of  David  ;  that  is  to  say,  a  new  “  people  of  God,”  engrafted  on  the  stock  of  David, 
whereof  the  Messiah,  the  son  of  David,  shall  be  the  everlasting  king. 

(2)  This  prophecy  is  from  Amos,  ix.  12.  There  is  a  slight  difference  between  the 
words  of  the  prophet  and  the  quotation  given  by  the  apostle  ;  the  difference,  however, 
is  not  so  great  as  to  affect  the  meaning. 

(3)  For  which  cause.  The  prophecy  refers  only  to  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles,  while 
the  apostle  infers  from  it  that  the  Gentiles  so  called  shall  not  be  subjected  to  the  yoke 
of  the  Mosaic  law.  The  connection  between  the  principle  and  the  effect  is  not  at  first 
discernible,  but  a  very  little  reflection  will  serve  to  make  it  manifest.  All  nations  shall 
be  called  :  therefore  circumcision  shall  be  abolished,  since  it  was  only  instituted  in  order 
to  distinguish  God’s  chosen  people  from  all  others.  Now,  by  the  vocation  of  the  Gen¬ 
tiles,  the  people  of  God  was  to  be  formed  from  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  ;  all  distinc¬ 
tions  were,  therefore,  superfluous,  and,  amongst  others,  circumcision,  the  abolition  of 
which  implied  that  of  the  whole  Jewish  law. 

(4)  Meats  defiled  by  having  been  offered  to  the  idols. 

(5)  The  Gentiles  did  not  consider  fornication  a  crime,  and  it  is  to  be  feared  that  many 
amongst  them  retained  this  fatal  notion  even  after  they  became  Christians. 


CHAP.  XV, 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


He  then  anticipates  the  question  which  might  possibly  be  asked  : 
Why  not  give  a  similar  prohibition  to  the  converted  Jews  ?  It  is 
because  they  are  already  sufficiently  instructed  on  all  these  points  ; 
“  for,”  he  adds,  “  Moses  of  old  time  hath  in  every  city  them  that 
preach  him  in  the  synagogues,  where  he  is  read  every  Sabbath. 
Then  it  pleased  the  apostles  and  ancients  with  the  whole  Church  (1) 
to  choose  men  of  their  own  company,  and  to  send  them  to  Antioch 
with  Paul  and  Barnabas  (2),  namely ,  Judas,  who  was  surnamed  Bar- 
sabas,  and  Silas,  chief  men  among  the  brethren,  writing  by  their 
hands  :  The  apostles  and  ancients  (3)  brethren  (4)  to  the  brethren 
of  the  Gentiles  that  are  at  Antioch,  and  in  Syria  and  Cilicia,  greet¬ 
ing  (5).  Forasmuch  as  we  have  heard  that  some,  going  out  from 
us,  have  troubled  you  with  words,  subverting  your  souls,  to  whom 
we  gave  no  commandment,  it  hath  seemed  good  to  us,  being  assem- 

(1)  The  whole  Church  might  have  a  voice  in  the  choice  of  deputies,  but  not  in  the 
decision. 

(2)  The  dispute  had  commenced  with  Paul  and  Barnabas.  Their  opponents  might, 
consequently,  have  regarded  them  as  parties  concerned,  and  therefore  not  to  be  relied 
on  in  this  affair.  Assistants  were  accordingly  given  them  who,  not  having  been  present 
when  the  question  was  first  mooted,  could  not  be  suspected  of  favoring  either  party. 

(3)  It  is  still  the  same  Greek  word  which  the  Vulgate  translates  at  one  time  by  an¬ 
cients,  and  at  another  by  priests,  wherefore  it  is  to  be  inferred  that  these  two  words  are 
synonymous. 

It  is  well  known  that  in  those  early  days  the  name  of  priest  and  that  of  bishop  were 
given  indiscriminately  to  both.  It  is  very  probable  that  the  vast  superiority  of  the  apos¬ 
tolic  order  over  all  the  inferior  grades  made  the  latter  appear  almost  equal.  When  once 
the  apostles  were  removed,  bishops  assumed  their  rightful  position  as  the  chiefs  of  the 
Church,  and  priests  were  known  as  such.  Names  were  no  longer  used  in  common,  and 
each  order  was  distinguished  by  its  own  appellation. 

(4)  There  are  some  who  translate  the  ancients  and  the  brethren.  The  brethren,  thus 
distinguished  from  the  ancients,  can  only  mean  the  laity,  who,  therefore,  appear  to  con¬ 
cur  with  the  apostles,  and  the  ancients  or  priests,  in  issuing  a  decree  which  is  at  the 
same  time  dogmatical  and  legislative.  The  necessaiy  consequence  would  be  the  intro¬ 
duction  of  the  democratic  principle  into  ecclesiastical  government,  wherefore  we  must 
say  with  the  Vulgate,  the  apostles  and  ancients  brethren  ( seniores  fratres).  It  is  true  that 
the  ordinary  Greek  text  says,  the  ancients  and  the  brethren  ;  but  there  are  some  very 
ancient  Greek  copies  wherein  we  read,  as  in  the  Vulgate,  the  ancients,  brethren.  It  has 
been  long  since  ascertained  that  the  more  ancient  the  Greek  manuscripts  are,  they  are 
the  more  conformable  to  the  Vulgate. 

(5)  It  is  thought  that  this  letter  was  drawn  up  by  St.  James.  Besides  that  its  con¬ 
tents  had  been  furnished  by  him,  it  is  remarked  that  he  is  the  only  one  of  the  apostles 
»vho,  in  his  canonical  epistle,  makes  use  of  the  word  greeting,  as  here  found. 


664 


THE  IIISTOKY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XV. 


bled  together,  to  choose  out  men,  and  to  send  them  unto  you  with 
our  well-beloved  Barnabas  and  Paul,”  two  “  men  that  have  given 
their  lives  for  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  We  have  sent, 
therefore,  Judas  and  Silas,  who  themselves  also  will  by  word  of 
mouth  tell  you  the  same  things”  which  we  have  written.  “For  it 
hath  seemed  good  to  the  Holy  Ghost  and  to  us(l),  to  lay  no 
further  burden  upon  you  than  these  necessary  things  :  That  you  ab¬ 
stain  from  things  sacrificed  to  idols,  and  from  blood,  and  from  things 
strangled,  and  from  fornication  (2).  From  which  things  keeping 
yourselves,  you  shall  do  well.  Fare  ye  well.” 

“They,  therefore,  being  dismissed,  went  down  to  Antioch;  and 
gathering  together  the  multitude,  delivered  the  epistle,  which  when 
they  had  read,  they  rejoiced  for  the  consolation.  Judas  and  Silas, 
being  prophets  also  themselves,  with  many  words  comforted  the 


(1)  And  to  us.  The  addition  of  these  words  signifies  that  the  apostles  were  not  only 
the  organs  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  but  that  they  judged  with  him  and  as  he  did  :  in  a  word, 
that  the  Holy  Ghost  presided  over  ,  the  assembly,  and  that  the  apostles  were  as  his  as¬ 
sistants.  Such  is  the  dignity  to  which  God  elevates  his  ministers,  and  such  is  the  power 
which  he  gives  unto  them. 

When  it  seemed  good  unto  them,  the  inference  must  he  that  it  also  seemed  good  to 
the  Holy  Ghost,  because  of  the  promises  made  to  the  Church,  which  was  represented 
by  their  assembly.  So  it  is  with  every  council  wherein  the  Church  is  represented. 

(2)  Of  these  four  prohibitions,  there  is  only  one  which  still  subsists,  and  shall  always 
subsist,  viz.,  that  which  interdicts  fornication.  The  law  whereby  it  is  prohibited  is  divine, 
and  even  natural,  according  to  the  opinion  of  St.  Thomas,  and  most  of  the  theologians. 
The  general  reason  for  giving  the  three  others  was  a  wise  condescension  to  the  weakness 
of  the  Jews,  many  of  whom  could  never  have  brought  themselves  to  enter  with  the  Gen¬ 
tiles  into  the  unity  of  the  same  church,  if  they  saw  them  make  use  of  meats  which  their 
ancient  law  forbade,  and  which  long  habit  had  accustomed  them  to  consider  as  abomina¬ 
ble.  But  there  was  yet  another  reason  for  avoiding  meats  which  had  been  offered  to 
idols,  for  to  eat  of  the  victim  ( quasi  idolothytum,  1  Cor.,  viii.  7)  as  such,  was  to  have 
a  share  in  the  sacrifice.  It  is  true  that  the  meat  might  be  eaten  without  any  such  bad 
intention,  but  there  was  reason  to  fear  that  first  impressions,  which  are  never  entirely 
effaced,  might  revive  in  many  of  the  Gentiles,  so  that  by  eating  of  those  meats  they  might 
still  fancy  that  they  performed  an  act  of  religion. 

These  laws  ceased  to  bind  when  the  reasons  on  which  they  were  grounded  ceased  to 
exist.  They  were  observed  by  the  Latin  Church  for  some  centuries,  and  by  the  Greek 
Church  they  are  still  religiously  kept. 

It  is  by  tradition  we  know  that  they  were  not  to  be  of  perpetual  obligation.  If  those 
who  reject  the  authority  of  tradition  apply  the  light  of  reason  to  this  matter,  they  must 
necessarily  think  themselves  obliged  to  observe  these  laws. 


brethren,  and  confirmed  them.  And  after  they  had  spent  some 
time  there,  they  were  let  go  with  peace  by  the  brethren  unto  them 
that  had  sent  them.  But  it  seemed  good  unto  Silas  to  remain  there, 
and  Judas  alone  departed  to  Jerusalem.” 

“  Paul  and  Barnabas  continued  at  Antioch,  teaching  and  preach¬ 
ing  with  many  others  the  word  of  the  Lord.  And  after  some  days, 
Paul  said  to  Barnabas  :  Let  us  return,  and  visit  our  brethren  in  all 
the  cities  wherein  we  have  preached  the  word  of  the  Lord,  to  see 
how  they  do.  And  Barnabas  would  have  taken  with  them  John 
also  that  was  surnamed  Mark  :  but  Paul  desired  that  he  (as  having 
departed  from  them  out  of  Pamphylia,  and  not  gone  with  them  to 
the  work”  of  the  Lord)  “  might  not  be  received.  And  there  arose  a 
dissension  (1),  so  that  they  departed  one  from  another,  and  Barna¬ 
bas,  indeed,  taking  Mark,  sailed  to  Cyprus.  But  Paul,  choosing 
Silas,  departed,  being  delivered  by  the  brethren  to  the  grace  of  God. 
And  he  went  through  Syria  and  Cilicia,  confirming  the  churches  : 
commanding  them  to  keep  the  precepts  of  the  apostles  and  the 
ancients.” 


(1)  The  saints  will  always  whatsoever  God  wills,  but  they  have  not  always  a  cer¬ 
tain  knowledge  of  what  his  will  is.  In  that  case  they  are  not  to  be  blamed  for  adhering 
to  their  own  opinions,  because  each  sincerely  believes  that  such  is  the  will  of  God. 

The  guardian  angel  of  Persia  resisted  for  twenty  years  the  angel  who  spoke  to  Daniel 
(Dan.,  x.).  Hence  there  is  a  difference  of  opinion  even  amongst  the  angels,  yet  in  them 
it  never  gave  rise  to  disunion  of  hearts.  We  may  believe  that  such  was  the  case  with 
the  two  apostles.  The  latter  being  both  persuaded  that  what  they  respectively  thought 
was  according  to  God  and  to  reason,  were  quite  right  not  to  yield  through  complaisance 
for  a  colleague.  God,  who  revealed  to  them  so  many  things,  left  them  in  ignorance  as 
to  which  was  right,  or  which  wrong.  He  knew  that  this  very  uncertainty  would  be  the 
cause  of  their  separation,  which  was,  at  that  time,  in  conformity  with  his  will,  to  the  end 
that  the  seed  of  the  word  might  be  scattered  in  several  places  at  the  same  time.  Judg¬ 
ing  by  the  event,  both  were  right.  The  leniency  of  Barnabas  saved  Mark  from  being 
excluded  from  the  ministiy,  while  the  strictness  of  Paul  excited  him  to  so  great  an  in¬ 
crease  of  fervor,  that  he  was  again  associated  with  the  apostle  of  nations,  whose  appro¬ 
bation  he  merited  and  obtained.  Finally,  he  attained  to  so  high  a  degree  of  sanctity, 
that  it  is  said  of  him,  as  of  St.  Peter,  that  his  shadow  alone  cured  the  sick.  See  the 
Roman  Martyrology,  Sept.  27th. 


■/S#  * 


\v 


iTT 


«00004 


666 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


l~CHAP.  XVI. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

TIMOTHY  CIRCUMCISED. - PAUL  FORBIDDEN  BY  THE  HOLY  GHOST  TO  PREACH  IN  ASIA  OR 

IN  BITHYNIA. - HE  IS  CALLED  INTO  MACEDONIA. - A  SORCERESS  DISPOSSESSED. — • 

PAUL  AND  SILAS  ARE  SCOURGED,  IMPRISONED,  AND  EXPELLED  THE  COUNTRY. 

Judaism  had  ceased  to  bind,  as  we  have  had  more  than  once  oc¬ 
casion  to  remark  ;  but  it  was  not,  as  yet,  proscribed.  Its  ordinances 
might  either  be  observed  or  omitted  at  pleasure.  The  apostles  did 
this,  but  they  did  it  not  on  the  impulse  of  their  own  tastes  or  fan¬ 
cies  :  whether  they  followed  the  Mosaic  law,  or  saw  fit  to  dispense 
therewith,  they  were  guided  by  a  law  superior  to  all  others,  viz., 
that  of  charity.  With  the  Jews,  therefore,  they  observed  the  prac¬ 
tices  of  Judaism,  while,  according  to  circumstances,  they  conformed 
to  the  customs  of  the  Gentiles  (in  things  not  forbidden  by  the  Chris¬ 
tian  code)  in  order  to  gain  them  to  Jesus  Christ.  An  instance  of 
the  former  compliance  we  are  about  to  see  in  the  most  zealous  de¬ 
fender  of  evangelical  liberty  :  Paul,  who  was  then  visiting  the 
churches  founded  by  him,  (a)  “  came  to  Derbe  and  Lystra.  And 
behold  there  was  a  certain  disciple,  named  Timothy,  the  son  of  a 
Jewish  woman  that  believed,  but  his  father  was  a  Gentile.  To  this 
man  the  brethren  that  were  in  Lystra  and  Iconium  gave  a  good  tes¬ 
timony.  Him  Paul  would  have  to  go  along  with  him  :  and  taking 
him  he  circumcised  him,  because  of  the  Jews  who  were  in  those 
places  ;  for  they  all  knew  that  his  father  was  a  Gentile.” 

He,  therefore,  did  this  through  condescension  to  his  weaker  breth¬ 
ren.  Timothy,  who  submitted  to  this  painful  operation  in  order  to 
fit  himself  for  laboring  amongst  the  Jews,  showed  thereby  that  his 
zeal  was  equal  to  any  trial,  and  that  he  was  really  worthy  of  the 
ministry  to  which  he  was  called.  They  departed  without  delay,  and 
“  as  they  passed  through  the  cities,  they  delivered  unto  them  the 
decrees  for  to  keep,  that  were  decreed  by  the  apostles  and  ancients 
who  were  at  Jerusalem.  And  the  churches  were  confirmed  in 
faith  and  delivered  from  the  fear  of  being  brought  under  the  Mo¬ 
saic  law,  they  became  every  day  more  numerous. 


(a)  Acts,  xvi.  1. 


4  A: 

K 


CHAP.  XVI.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


“  And  wlien  they  had  passed  through  Phrygia  and  the  country  of 
Galatia,  they  were  forbidden  by  the  Holy  Ghost  to  preach  the  word 
in  Asia  (1).  And  when  they  were  come  into  Mysia,  they  attempted 
to  go  into  Bithynia,  and  the  Spirit  of  Jesus  (2)  suffered  them  not. 
And  when  they  had  passed  through  Mysia,  they  went  down  to  Tro- 
as  ;  and  a  vision  was  shewed  to  Paul  in  the  night,  which  was  a  man 
of  Macedonia  standing  and  beseeching  him,  and  saying  :  Pass  over 
into  Macedonia,  and  help  us.  And  as  soon  as  he  had  seen  the  vision, 
immediately  we  (3)  sought  to  go  into  Macedonia,  being  assured  that 
God  had  called  us  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  them.  And  sailing  from 
Troas,  we  came  with  a  straight  course-  to  Samothracia,  and  the  day 
following  to  Neapolis  ;  and  from  thence  to  Philippi,  which  is  the 
chief  city  of  part  of  Macedonia,  a  colony.  And  we  wrere  in  this  city 
some  days  conferring”  with  the  people  of  that  place. 

“  And  upon  the  Sabbath-day  we  went  forth  without  the  gate  by 
a  river-side,  where  it  seemed  that  there  was  prayer  (4)  :  and  sitting 
down  we  spoke  to  the  women  that  were  assembled.  And  a  certain 
woman  named  Lydia,  a  seller  of  purple  of  the  city  of  Thyatira,  one 
that  worshipped  God  (5),  did  hear  ;  whose  heart  the  Lord  opened 


(1)  People  have  asked  what  could  be  the  reason  for  -this  prohibition.  Some  have 
answered  that  it  was  because  those  nations  were  reprobate,  but  the  answer  is  a  bad  one. 
Catholic  theology  recognizes  none  as  reprobates,  properly  speaking,  until  after  death. 
Let  us,  therefore,  say  with  St.  Chrysostom,  and  other  commentators,  that  this  interdict 
was  only  temporary,  God  seeing  fit  to  postpone  the  conversion  of  those  nations  till  a 
more  convenient  time  :  or  else  that  it  was  personal  to  St.  Paul,  because  God  reserved 
the  apostolate  of  Bithynia  for  St.  Peter,  and  that  of  Asia  for  St.  John,  notwithstanding 
that  St.  Paul  might  have  preached  there  at  another  time  ;  for  what  is  here  called  Asia 
was  only  one  particular  country,  of  which  Ephesus  was  the  capital.  Let  this  matter  be 
explained  as  it  may,  the  prohibition  did  not  prevent  St.  Paul  from  writing,  under  the  in¬ 
spiration  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  that  God  will  have  all  men  to  be  saved,  and  to  come  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth  (1  Tim.,  ii.  4). 

(2)  The  same  who  has  just  been  named  as  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  is  no  less  the  Spirit 
of  the  Son  than  of  the  Father.  This  text  serves  to  prove  that  he  proceeds  from  the  Son 
as  well  as  from  the  Father. 

(3)  We.  St.  Luke  here  begins  to  speak  in  the  first  person,  which  leads  us  to  think 
that  it  was  only  then  he  joined  St.  Paul,  and  became  the  companion  of  his  travels. 

(4)  The  Greek  word  appears  to  signify  an  oratory.  The  Jews  had  them  near  their 
cities,  especially  those  which  had  no  synagogues. 

(5)  Since  it  is  written  of  Lydia,  even  before  her  conversion  to  Christianity,  that  she 
served  God,  it  is  natural  to  conclude  that  she  was  a  Jewess,  or  at  least  a  proselyte. 


Ab?  * 


§&***. 


w — f-i/ïipiflfi'  -,75^ — ^ — p 


WT« 


G 68  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  [CHAP.  XVI. 

to  attend  to  those  things  which  were  said  by  Paul(l).  And  when 
she  was  baptized,  and  her  household,  she  besought  us,  saying:  If 
you  have  judged  me  to  be  faithful  to  the  Lord,  come  into  my  house 
and  abide  there.  And  she  constrained  us”  to  lodge  there. 

“  And  it  came  to  pass  as  we  went  to  prayer,  a  certain  girl,  having 
a  pythonical  spirit  (2),  met  us,  who  brought  to  her  masters  much 
gain  by  divining.  This  same,  following  Paul  and  us,  cried  out,  say¬ 
ing  :  These  men  are  the  servants  of  the  most  high  God,  who  preach 
unto  you  the  way  of  salvation  (3).  And  this  she  did  many  days. 
But  Paul,  being  grieved,  turned  and  said  to  the  spirit  :  I  command 
thee  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  to  go  out  from  her.  And  he  (4) 
went  out  the  same  hour.” 

This  miracle  might  have  converted  any  well-disposed  person,  but 
it  enraged  those  whose  interest  it  was  to  keep  the  girl  in  the  pos¬ 
session  of  the  evil  spirit.  “  The  masters  of  the  girl,  seeing  that  the 
hope  of  their  gain  was  gone,  apprehending  Paul  and  Silas,  brought 


(1)  The  apostle  has  said  well  :  That  if  grace  open  not  the  ear  of  the  heart,  he  is  not 
heard.  This  grace  is  usually  the  fruit  of  prayer.  Let  preachers  ask  it  for  their  hearers, 
and  they  for  themselves,  then  shall  the  seed  of  the  Word  bear  fruit  an  hundred-fold. 

(2)  This  spirit  was  a  devil,  so  called  from  the  name  of  Apollo  Pythian,  who  had  a 
famous  shrine  at  Delphos,  where  he  gave  oracles  through  the  priestesses  of  the  temple. 
These  were  called  Pythonesses,  which  name  is  also  given  in  Scripture  to  the  witch  whom 
Saul  consulted. 

(3)  It  seems  as  though  this  testimony  might  have  assisted  the  preaching  of  the  Gos¬ 
pel,  yet  Paul  stopped  it  short.  We  cannot  understand  all  the  reasons  which  induced 
him  to  do  so,  but  we  know  of  two,  which  were  in  themselves  more  than  sufficient.  The 
first  is  the  example  of  Jesus  Christ  when  he  imposed  silence  on  the  demons  who  an¬ 
nounced  his  divinity  ;  the  other  is,  that  St.  Paul  was  well  acquainted  with  the  wiles  of 
Satan,  who  never  speaks  the  truth  but  when  he  can  make  it  subservient  to  error,  or  con¬ 
ducive  to  the  success  of  his  own  wicked  purposes.  We  must  except  those  cases  (which 
are  very  rare)  wherein  he  was  compelled  by  the  power  of  God  to  speak. 

(4)  Genera],  or  universal  propositions,  are  always  subject  to  correction.  Yan  Dale, 
an  Anabaptist  physician,  aud  M.  de  Fontenelle,  who  abridged  his  work,  have  pretended 
that  all  the  oracles  were,  without  exception,  the  tricks  and  impostures  of  the  pagan 
priests,  without  any  intervention  from  the  devils.  There  is  no  doubt  that  much  of  the 
effect  was  produced  by  stratagem  ;  but  it  must  be  acknowledged  that  it  was  the  devil 
who  spoke  through  the  mouth  of  this  girl,  since  the  Scripture  expressly  says  so.  This 
fact  leads  us  to  suppose  that  tl  ere  were  many  others  of  a  similar  kind,  but  even  this 
one  instance  is  quite  sufficient  to  overturn  the  new  thesis  referred  to  ;  for,  to  borrow  the 
words  of  M.  de  Fontenelle  :  This  is  one  of  those  cases  wherein  the  very  slightest  exception 
destroys  the  general  proposition. 


K 


them  into  the  market-place  to  the  rulers.  And  presenting  them  to 
the  magistrates,  they  said:  These  men  disturb  our  city,  being  Jews  . 
and  preach  a  fashion  which.  it  is  not  lawful  for  us  to  receive,  nor  ob 
serve,  being  Homans.  And  the  people  ran  together,”  excited 
‘‘  against  them  ;  and  the  magistrates,  rending  off  their  clothes,  com¬ 
manded  them  to  be  beaten  with  rods  (1).  And  when  they  had  laid 
many  stripes  upon  them,  they  cast  them  into  prison,  charging  the 
jailer  to  keep  them  diligently.  Who  having  received  such  a  charge, 
thrust  them  into  the  inner  prison,  and  made  their  feet  fast  in  the 
stocks  (2).” 

“  And  at  midnight  (3)  Paul  and  Silas  praying  (4),  praised  God. 
And  they  that  were  in  prison  heard  them.  And  suddenly  there 
was  a  great  earthquake,  so  that  the  foundations  of  the  prison  were 
shaken.  And  immediately  all  the  doors  were  opened,  and  the  bands 


(1)  St.  Luke  mentions  only  this  one  flagellation  of  St.  Paul,  but  he  suffered  many 
others.  Thrice,  says  he,  was  I  beaten  with  rods.  Of  the  Jews  five  times  did  I  receive 
forty  stripes,  save  one  (2  Cor.,  xi.).  The  Jews  were  forbidden  by  their  law  to  give  more 
than  forty  stripes,  and,  for  fear  of  exceeding  that  number,  they  never  gave  more  than 
thirty-nine.  They  made  use  of  leather  thongs  for  the  purpose,  whereas  the  Romans  em¬ 
ployed  rods;  but  unlike  the  Jews,  the  latter  people  had  no  fixed  number  of  lashes  pre¬ 
scribed  by  law. 

(2)  Stocks.  Called  by  the  French  ceps,  a  name  which  comes  from  the  Latin  word 
cippus.  They  are  hollow  pieces  of  wood,  into  which  the  feet  of  the  prisoners  are  thrust 
and  there  made  fast.  It  is  said  that  they  are  sometimes  used  as  instruments  of  torture. 

(3)  It  was  a  common  practice  amongst  the  primitive  Christians  to  arise  in  the  night 
to  sing  the  praises  of  God.  If  even  the  lay  brethren  did  this,  we  may  well  believe  that 
the  apostles  were  not  unmindful  of  a  practice  so  good  and  pious.  The  latter  had  indeed 
learned  it  of  their  divine  Master,  of  whom  we  read  in  several  parts  of  the  Gospel  that 
he  spent  the  night  in  prayer.  This  custom,  however,  dates  higher  still,  for  David  says 
of  himself:  I  arose  in  the  night  to  sing  thy  praise  (Ps.  cxviii.,  ver.  62).  It  has  been 
perpetuated  to  our  own  times  by  the  ministers  of  religion,  and  by  pious  persons  of  both 
sexes,  who  are  accustomed  to  rise  during  the  night  to  sing  matins.  It  must  be  owned 
that  within  the  last  century  it  has  fallen  so  much  into  disuse  amongst  us,  that  there  is 
reason  to  fear  that  it  may  be  entirely  abolished.  I  say  amongst  us,  and  not  in  the 
whole  Church,  because  whatever  comes  from  God  and  his  Spirit,  shall  subsist  within 
her  pale  till  the  end  of  time  ;  the  works  of  grace  having  no  less  stability  than  those  of 
nature,  which  are  to  last  till  the  final  consummation  of  all  things,  in  so  far,  at  least,  that 
no  one  kind  shall  ever  be  entirely  destroyed. 

(4)  Though  outraged,  scourged,  covered  with  wounds,  imprisoned,  and  in  chains,  still 
they  are  as  exact  in  the  practice  of  their  devotions  as  though  they  were  in  their  lodgings, 
free  and  tranquil — what  a  miracle  of  fidelity  !  They  sing,  in  that  condition,  hymns  and 
canticles  of  praise — what  a  miracle  of  fortitude  1 


1C 


4s 


(370 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  XY1. 


of  all  were  loosed.  And  the  keeper  of  the  prison  awaking  out  of 
his  sleep,  and  seeing  the  doors  of  the  prison  open,  drawing  his 
sword,  would  have  killed  himself  (1),  supposing  that  the  prisoners 
had  fled.” 

“  Paul,”  in  the  darkness  of  night,  and  the  obscurity  of  his  dun¬ 
geon,  could  not  see  what  was  going  forward,  but  being  divinely  in¬ 
formed  of  the  jailer’s  design,  he  “cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying: 
Do  thyself  no  harm,  for  we  are  all  here.  Then  calling  for  a  light, 
he  went  in,  and  trembling,  fell  down  at  the  feet  of  Paul  and  Silas. 
And  bringing  them  out,  he  said  :  Masters,  what  must  I  do  that  I 
may  be  saved  ?  But  they  said  :  Believe  in  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  thou 
shalt  be  saved,  and  thy  house.  And  they  preached  the  word  of  the 
Lord  to  him  and  to  all  that  were  in  his  house.  And  he,  taking  them 
the  same  hour  of  the  night,  washed  their  stripes  ;  and  himself  was 
baptized,  and.  all  his  house  immediately  (2).  And  when  he  had 
brought  them  into  his  own  house,  he  laid  the  table  for  them,  and 
rejoiced  with  all  his  house,  believing  God.” 

Whether  it  was  that  the  jailer  had  privately  apprised  the  magis¬ 
trates  of  what  had  passed  during  the  night,  or  that  the  latter  began 
to  repent  of  the  cruelty  wherewith  they  had  treated  these  strangers, 
without  having  any  certainty  of  their  guilt,  “  When  the  day  was 
come,  the  magistrates  sent  the  sergeants  (3),  saying  :  Let  those  men 
go.  And  the  keeper  of  the  prison  told  these  words  to  Paul  :  The 
magistrates  have  sent  to  let  you  go  :  now,  therefore,  depart  and  go 
in  peace.  But  Paul  said  to  them  :  They  have  beaten  us  publicly, 
uncondemned,  men  that  are  Romans,  and  have  cast  us  into  prison, 
and  now  do  they  thrust  us  out  privately  ?  Not  so  ;  but  let  them 


(1)  He  would  kill  himself,  in  order  to  escape  being  put  to  death.  We  see  by  this  in¬ 
stance,  together  with  certain  others  in  this  history,  that  those  who  had  charge  of  prison¬ 
ers  were  bound  to  give  them  up  again  under  pain  of  death. 

(2)  Were  they  then  sufficiently  instructed?  Certainly  they  were,  because  the  Holy 
Ghost,  who  accommodates  his  operations  to  the  circumstances  of  tirrie,  place,  and  per¬ 
sons,  had  taught  them  as  much  in  one  hour  as  they  might  have  learned  in  a  month,  if 
they  had  had  so  long  a  time  to  prepare  themselves. 

(3)  These  were  a  kind  of  hussars  who  walked  before  the  magistrates,  bearing  axes, 
wrapped  up  in  bundles  of  rods,  which  they  untied,  either  to  scourge  or  to  behead  those 
who  were  sentenced  to  undergo  either  punishment,  and  sometimes  both  together. 


come  (1),  and  let  us  out  themselves.  And  the  sergeants  told  these 
words  to  the  magistrates,  and  they  were,  afraid  (2),  hearing  that  they 
were  Romans.  And  coming,  they  besought  them  ;  and  bringing 
them  out,  they  desired  them  to  depart  out  of  the  city  (3).  And 
they  went  out  of  the  prison,  and  entered  into  the  house  of  Lydia  : 
and  having  seen  the  brethren,  they  comforted  them  (4),  and  depart¬ 
ed”  from  Philippi.  The  few  faithful  people  whom  they  left  there 
were,  as  it  were,  blessed  seed,  which  produced  fruits  the  most  abun¬ 
dant.  Of  this  we  have  a  proof  in  the  epistle  which  the  apostle  wrote 
to  the  Philippians,  when  he  was  a  prisoner  at  Rome,  for  the  first 
time. 


(1)  It  was  neither  pride  nor  resentment  that  made  St.  Paul  demand  this  satisfaction  ; 
it  was  merely  the  effect  of  his  zeal,  because  he  considered  that  his  own  personal  disgrace, 
if  not  removed,  might  in  that  country  be  a  stain  upon  the  Gospel  itself.  Besides,  a  man 
is  not  only  permitted,  but  actually  obliged,  to  defend  his  own  honor,  according  to  the 
saying  of  the  Wise  Man:  Try  to  have  a  good  reputation  (Eccle.,  xli.  lô).  Nevertheless, 
it  is  so  hard  to  exclude  all  human  passion  from  such  a  defence,  that  a  Christian,  not  hav¬ 
ing  the  advantages  possessed  by  St.  Paul,  should  never  undertake  it  without  consulting 
an  enlightened  director,  who  will  be  an  impartial  judge  in  the  case. 

(2)  He  would,  therefore,  have  escaped  the  flagellation,  had  he,  at  first,  declared  him¬ 
self  a  Roman  citizen.  It  was  thus  that  he  escaped  when  the  tribune  Lysias  would  have 
had  him  scourged,  as  will  be  seen  (chap.  xxii.).  We  are  not  to  seek  for  any  other  mo¬ 
tive,  on  either  occasion,  than  the  impulse  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  who  inspired  him  at  one 
time  to  submit  to  the  punishment,  and  again  to  avoid  it. 

(3)  Some  Greek  copies  add  that  they  said  to  them  :  Depart  from  this  city,  lest  they 
again  rise  up  against  you,  and  cannot  be  quelled.  This  looks  very  much  like  a  commen¬ 
tary  which  has  found  its  way  into  the  text.  Whatever  it  may  be,  it  gives  a  very  prob¬ 
able  reason  for  urging  them  to  quit  the  city. 

(4)  The  afflicted  are  here  the  consolers,  while  they  who  have  suffered  nothing  stand 
in  need  of  consolation.  The  unction  of  grace  in  the  former,  and  in  the  latter  a  tender 
feeling  of  compassion,  are  the  causes  of  these  opposite  effects.  The  former,  especially, 
was  a  phenomenon  which  had  never  yet  been  seen,  and  which  was  just  as  great  a  prod¬ 
igy  in  those  days  as  the  wondrous  cures  and  resurrections  effected  by  the  apostles. 


à  v 


\\ 


m 


fvqjj 


Paul  and  Silas  (for  it  does  not  appear  that  the  apostle  had  then 
any  other  companions,  and  from  the  manner  in  which  St.  Luke 
speaks,  it  is  sufficiently  evident  that  he  was  not  of  the  party),  Paul, 
then,  and  Silas,  “  (a)  when  they  had  passed  through  Amphipolis  and 
Apollonia,  they  came  to  Thessalonica,  where  there  was  a  synagogue 
of  the  Jews.  And  Paul,  according  to  his  custom,  went  in  unto  them  ; 
and  for  three  Sabbath-days  he  reasoned  with  them  out  of  the  Scrip¬ 
tures,  declaring  and  insinuating  that  the  Christ  was  to  suffer  (1) 
and  to  rise  again  from  the  dead  ;  and  that  this  is  Jesus  Christ,”  said 
he,  “  whom  I  preach  to  you.  And  some  of  them  believed,  and  were 
associated  to  Paul  and  Silas,  and  of  those  that  served  God  (2),  and 
of  the  Gentiles  a  great  multitude,  and  of  noble  women  not  a  few.” 

“But  the  Jews,  moved  with  envy,  and  taking  unto  them  some 
wicked  men  of  the  vulgar  sort,  and  making  a  tumult,  set  the  city  in 
an  uproar:  and  besetting  Jason’s  house,  sought  to  bring  them  out 
unto  the  people.  And  not  finding  them,  they  drew  Jason  and  cer¬ 
tain  brethren  to  the  rulers  of  the  city,  crying  :  They  that  set  the 
city  in  an  uproar  are  come  hither  also,  whom  Jason  hath  received  ; 
and  these  all  do  contrary  to  the  decrees  of  Cæsar,  saying  that  there 


(a)  Acts,  xvii.  1. 


(1)  It  is  so  clearly  proved  in  Scripture  that  Christ  was  to  suffer,  that  some  of  the 
Jews,  who  could  not  deny  the  fact,  have  been  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  imagining  two 
Christs,  or  two  Messiahs — the  one  suffering  and  humble,  the  other  glorious  and  trium¬ 
phant.  The  latter  is  he  whom  they  still  expect.  “  The  former  is  already  come,”  say 
they,  “  and  is  concealed  in  Rome,  amongst  the  poor,  with  whom  he  eats  the  bread  of 
charity.” 

(2)  The  Greek  has  it,  a  great  number  of  Gentiles,  serving  God,  that  is  to  say,  Gentile 
proselytes.  They  are  here  separated,  after  the  Vulgate  ;  and  if  they  are  made  two  dis¬ 
tinct  classes,  then  those  that  served  God  are  the  proselytes,  and  the  Gentiles  are  those 
who  were  still  idolaters  till  they  were  converted  by  the  preaching  of  St.  Paul. 


i 


Ÿ/L 


chap,  xvii.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


673 


is  another  king,  Jesus.  And  they  stirred  up  the  people  ;  and  the 
rulers  of  the  city  hearing  these  things,  and  having  taken  satisfaction 
of  Jason,  and  of  the  rest  (1),  they  let  them  go.  But  the  brethren 
immediately  sent  away  Paul  and  Silas  by  night  unto  Berea  :  who 
when  they  were  come  thither  went  into  the  synagogue  of  the  Jews. 
Now  these  were  more  noble  than  those  in  Thessalonica,  who  receiv¬ 
ed  the  word  with  all  eagerness,  daily  searching  the  Scriptures  (2), 
whether  these  things  were  so,”  even  as  they  told  them.  “  And  many 
indeed  of  them  believed,  and  of  honorable  women  that  were  Gen¬ 
tiles,  and  of  men  not  a  few.  And  when  the  Jews  of  Thessalonica 
had  knowledge  that  the  word  of  God  was  also  preached  by  Paul  at 
Berea,  they  came  thither  also,  stirring  up  and  troubling  the  multi¬ 
tude.  And  then  immediately  the  brethren  sent  away  Paul,  to  go 
unto  the  sea  ;  but  Silas  and  Timothy  remained  there,”  the  latter,  it 
would  seem,  having  followed  them  thither.  “  And  they  that  con¬ 
ducted  Paul,  brought  him  as  far  as  Athens,  and  receiving  a  com- 


(1)  It  was  the  magistrates  whom  Jason  satisfied,  and  not  either  the  Jews  or  those 
whom  they  had  stirred  up,  all  of  whom  were  people  who  were  incapable  of  reasoning. 
Many  commentators  are  of  opinion  that  in  this  satisfaction  given  by  Jason,  he  took  upon 
him  to  answer  for  Paul  and  Silas.  That,  however,  seems  very  improbable,  for  if  Jason 
had  given  any  such  security,  it  is  not  at  all  likely  that  St.  Paul  would  have  made  his 
escape,  as  he  did  on  the  following  night,  leaving  his  host  in  such  a  cruel  predicament. 
It  is  much  more  probable  that  Jason  satisfied  the  magistrates  by  force  of  reasoning,  his 
arguments  being  seconded,  perhaps,  by  an  assurance  that  Paul  and  Silas  should  imme¬ 
diately  quit  the  city. 

(2)  A  Jew  who  undertakes  to  test  by  Scripture  the  truth  of  the  Christian  religion, 
has  a  right  to  seek  out  those  texts  which  he  is  told  establish  its  divine  origin,  and  to  see 
for  himself  whether  their  meaning  is  such  as  it  was  represented  to  him.  Such  was  the 
case  with  the  Jews  of  Berea,  in  regard  to  St.  Paul.  But  it  does  not  follow,  as  Protest¬ 
ants  say  (in  abuse  of  this  example),  that  these  Jewish  converts  were  at  liberty  to  discuss 
every  article  of  faith  by  Scripture,  and  to  form  a  creed  for  themselves  on  their  own  pri¬ 
vate  interpretation.  The  difference  is  very  easily  seen.  The  Jew,  before  his  conversion, 
is  in  quest  of  the  true  religion,  and  he  has  a  right  to  examine  whether  that  which  is  pro¬ 
posed  to  him  has  the  distinctive  marks  thereof.  After  his  conversion,  he  has  found  and 
embraced  it,  and  it  only  remains  for  him  to  believe  what  it  teaches,  and  to  do  what  it 
ordains.  Otherwise  he  should  contradict  himself,  since,  after  having  been  convinced  of 
its  truth,  he  should  still  doubt  whether  it  was  not  false. 

It  is,  nevertheless,  permitted  to  seek  in  the  Scriptures  the  proof  of  dogmas  decided  by 
the  Church,  so  as  to  ascertain  the  foundations  on  which  her  decisions  rest,  to  penetrate 
farther  into  their  meaning,  in  order  to  explain  them  to  the  people,  and  to  refute  those 
who  oppose  them,  but  never  with  a  view  to  reform  or  amend  them. 

43 


674  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  [CHAP.  XVII. 

mandment  from  him  to  Silas  and  Timothy,  that  they  should  come 
to  him  with  all  speed,  they  departed.” 

“  Now  whilst  Paul  waited  for  them  at  Athens,  his  spirit  was  stirred 
within  him,  seeing  the  city  wholly  given  to  idolatry  (1).  He  dis¬ 
puted,  therefore,  in  the  synagogue  with  the  Jews,  and  with  them 
that  served  God,  and  in  die  market-place,  every  day  with  them  that 
were  there.  And  certain  uhilosophers  of  the  Epicureans  and  of  the 
Stoics  disputed  with  him,  -md  some  said  :  What  is  it  that  this  word- 
sower  would  say  (2)  ?  But  others  :  He  seemeth  to  be  a  setter  forth 
of  new  gods  ;  because  he  preached  to  them  Jesus  and  the  resurrec¬ 
tion.  And  taking  him,  they  brought  him  to  Areopagus  (3),  saying  : 
May  we  know  what  this  new  doctrine  is  which  thou  speakest  of? 
For  thou  bringest  in  certain  new  things  to  our  ears.  We  would 
know,  therefore,  what  these  things  mean.  (Now  all  the  Athenians, 
and  the  strangers  that  were  there,  employed  themselves  in  nothing 
else  but  either  in  telling  or  in  hearing  some  new  thing.)” 

“  But  Paul,  standing  in  the  midst  of  Areopagus,  said  :  Ye  men  of 


(1)  Athens  was  the  most  intellectual  city  in  the  world,  but  it  was,  at  the  same  time, 
the  most  idolatrous  ;  that  is  to  say,  the  most  senseless,  in  regard  to  religion.  Religion 
is  in  no  way  the  offspring  of  the  human  mind,  which  can  never  meddle  with  it  without 
marring  its  divine  beauty,  and  the  more  intellect  the  innovator  has,  he  is  the  more  prone 
to  extravagance,  seeing  that  the  greater  the  genius,  it  is  the  more  tinctured  with  human 
reason. 

(2)  The  Latin  word,  like  the  Greek,  literally  signifies  a  word-sower.  They  themselves 
were  nothing  else,  so  that  this  name  was  more  applicable  to  them  than  to  any  other  per¬ 
sons  :  these  philosophers  were,  in  reality,  the  most  useless  of  all  men.  If  the  whole  race 
had  perished,  the  State  would  have  sustained  less  loss  than  in  being  deprived  of  one 
good  laborer. 

(3)  Areopagus,  a  Greek  word  which  might  be  translated  by  the  hill  of  Mars,  and 
which  was  one  of  the  divisions  of  the  city.  The  senate  of  Athens  sat  there,  either  in  the 
temple  of  Mars,  or  some  neighboring  edifice  ;  for  which  reason  the  senate  itself  received 
the  name  of  Areopagus.  It  is  not  decided  whether  St.  Paul  was  brought  before  the 
tribunal,  or  simply  into  that  district,  so  as  to  be  heard  by  a  greater  number  of  people, 
seeing  that  it  was  at  all  times  the  most  crowded  portion  of  the  city. 

This  then  was  the  first  of  those  three  grand  theatres  whereon  God  had  decreed  that 
St.  Paul  should  have  the  glory  of  confessing  his  name  :  the  Areopagus  in  Athens,  the 
grand  council  of  the  Jews  in  Jerusalem,  and  the  presence  of  Cæsar  in  Rome.  On  these 
three  occasions  he  thus  had  to  contend  against  all  the  refinement  and  subtlety  of  intel¬ 
lect,  the  unbridled  fury  of  evil  passions,  and  the  formidable  array  of  human  power  at  its 
utmost  height.  What  confidence  he  must  have  had,  and  how  well  might  he  say,  as  ha 
has  done:  I  can  do  all  things  in  Him  who  strengtheneth  me  (Phil.,  iv.  13). 


CHAP.  XVII.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


675 


Athens,  I  perceive  that  in  all  things  you  are  too  superstitious.  For, 
passing  by  and  seeing  your  idols,  I  found  an  altar  also  on  which  was 
written  :  To  the  Unknown  God  (1).  What  therefore  you  wor¬ 
ship  without  knowing  it,  that  I  preach  to  you.  God  who  made  the 
world  and  all  things  therein,  he  being  Lord  of  heaven  and  earth, 
dwelleth  not  in  temples  made  with  hands  (2)  ;  neither  is  he  served 
with  men’s  hands,  as  though  he  needed  any  thing,  seeing  it  is  he 
who  giveth  to  all  life,  and  breath,  and  all  things.  And  hath  made 
of  one,  all  mankind,  to  dwell  upon  the  whole  face  of  the  earth,  de¬ 
termining  appointed  times,  and  the  limits  of  their  habitation,  that 
they  should  seek  God,  if  happily  they  may  feel  (3)  after  him  and  find 
him  ;  although  he  be  not  far  away  from  every  one  of  us  :  for  in  him 
we  live,  and  move,  and  be  ;  as  some  also  of  your  own  poets  said  :  For 
we  are  also  Ms  offspring  (4).  Being,  therefore,  the  offspring  of 
God  (5),  we  must  not  suppose  the  divinity  to  be  like  unto  gold  or 
silver,  or  stone,  the  graving  of  art  and  device  of  man  (6).  And  God 


(1)  St.  Jerome  says  that  this  altar  was  dedicated  to  the  unknown  gods,  in  the  plural 
It  is  true  that  there  was  one  at  Athens  with  that  inscription,  but  from  the  way  in  which 
St.  Paul  speaks  we  cannot  doubt  but  there  was  also  one  to  the  unknown  God,  in  the 
singular.  Lucian,  or  whoever  the  author  of  the  Philopatris  may  be,  speaks  of  having 
seen  it.  What  idea  the  Athenians  had  of  this  God,  and  for  what  purpose  they  raised 
an  altar  to  him,  can  now  be  only  conjectured.  Whatever  they  may  have  thought  of  it, 
if  we  take  the  inscription  just  as  it  stands,  we  must  admit  that  St.  Paul  was  perfectly 
correct  in  his  application  of  it  to  the  true  God.  That  name  belongs  to  him  alone  ;  and 
of  all  those  to  whom  the  Athenians  gave  it,  he  was  the  only  one  whom  they  knew  not. 

This  exordium  of  the  apostle  is  very  ingenious  ;  while  its  real  object  was  to  destroy 
all  the  gods  of  the  Athenians,  its  apparent  purpose  was  to  make  them  acquainted  with 
one  more,  whom  they  knew  not  before. 

(2)  God  resides  in  a  special  manner  in  the  temples  which  are  consecrated  to  him,  but 
he  is  not  confined  thereto.  This  is  what  St.  Paul  means,  and  his  remark  is  intended  for 
the  instruction  of  the  pagans,  who  knew  of  no  other  presence  of  their  gods  than  that  by 
which  they  were  really  present  in  the  places  which  they  occupied. 

(3)  Although  God  is  invisible,  he  may  be  known  by  reasoning  and  reflection,  which 
are,  as  it  were,  the  groping  (or  feeling)  of  the  soul,  just  as  a  blind  man  may  find  the 
various  articles  of  furniture  in  his  room  by  groping. 

(4)  This  quotation  is  from  Aratus,  a  Greek  poet  and  astronomer.  lie  has  left  a  poem 
on  phenomenons,  which  Cicero  translated  into  Latin  verse. 

(5)  The  offspring  of  God,  that  is  to  say,  his  works,  for  it  is  not  of  his  own  substance 
that  God  forms  bodies  or  souls. 

(6)  The  workman  is  always  superior  to  his  work.  Therefore  if  man,  considered  with 
regard  to  his  spirit,  which  is  his  noblest  part,  cannot  be  represented  by  figures  of  stone 


Jr  i 


H 


5* 


indeed  Laving  winked  at  tlie  times  of  this  ignorance,  now  declareth 
unto  men  tliat  all  should  everywhere  do  penance,  because  he  hath 
appointed  a  day  wherein  he  will  judge  the  world  in  equity,  by  the 
man  whom  he  hath  appointed  ;  giving  faith  to  all,  by  raising  him 
up  from  the  dead.” 

“  And  when  they  had  heard  of  the  resurrection  of  the  dead,  some 
indeed,  mocked;  but  others  said:  We  will  hear  thee  again  (1)  con¬ 
cerning  this  matter.  So  Paul  went  out  from  among  them  (2).  But 
certain  men  adhering  to  him,  did  believe  ;  among  whom  was  also 
Dionysius  the  Areopagite  (3),  and  a  woman  named  Damaris,  and 
others  with  them.” 


or  metal,  how  much  less  God,  who,  being  the  creator  of  spirits,  must  be  of  all  other 
spirits  the  purest,  and,  if  one  may  say  so,  the  most  spiritual.  This  is  the  drift  of  St. 
Paul’s  arg'ument. 

Nevertheless  God  may  be  represented  under  the  different  figures  in  which  Scripture 
describes  him  as  having  appeared  to  men.  Still  it  must  not  be  imagined  that  these 
figures  resemble  him,  as  the  pagans  believed  their  idols  to  be  the  images  of  their  gods. 

Catholics  have  never  imagined  that  the  Holy  Ghost  resembled  a  dove,  though  they 
represent  him  under  that  form. 

(1)  There  was  no  other  opportunity  for  them  ;  and  how  many  souls  have  perished  for 
neglecting  to  profit  by  the  first  opportunity  given  them! 

(2)  Some  interpreters  think  that  this  was  a  formal  denunciation,  like  that  of  Socrates, 
and  that  St.  Paul’s  life  was  at  stake.  This  is  not  at  all  probable,  for  such  a  denuncia¬ 
tion,  hurled  against  a  tribunal  so  solemn,  would  have  ended  either  in  a  condemnation  or 
acquittal,  and  not  by  laughter  and  an  appointment  to  meet  again. 

(3)  It  is  now  admitted  that  St.  Denis,  bishop  and  apostle  of  Paris,  was  not  the  Are¬ 
opagite.  The  only  thing  known  of  the  latter  is  that  he  was  the  first  bishop  of  Athens, 
and  that  he  suffered  mart)  ‘dom,  some  say  under  Adrian,  others  (with  more  probability), 
under  Domitian. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

PAUL  PREACHES  THE  GOSPEL  IN  CORINTH  AND  AFTERWARDS  IN  EPHESUS. - APOLLO. 

Athens  had  received  the  seed,  and  the  apostle  had  gathered  the 
first-fruits  thereof.  It  was  time  to  extend  it  to  another  country, 
wherein  it  was  to  produce  an  abundant  harvest,  even  under  his  own 
eyes.  ( a )  “  After  these  things,  departing  from  Athens,  he  came  to 
Corinth.  And  finding  a  certain  Jew,  named  Aquila,  born  in  Pon- 
tus,  lately  come  from  Italy,  with  Priscilla  his  wife”  (they  had  left 
Italy,  “  because  that  Claudius  had  commanded  all  Jews  to  depart 
from  Rome)  (1),  he  came  to  them.  And  because  he  was  of  the 
same  trade,  he  remained  with  them,  and  wrought  (2)  :  (now  they 
were  tent-makers  by  trade.)” 

(a)  Acts,  xviii.  1. 


(1)  Suetonius  says  that  the  Jews  were  expelled  from  Rome  because  of  the  disturb¬ 
ance  they  had  raised  there,  impulsore  Chresto,  at  the  instigation  of  Chrest.  Here,  in  two 
words,  we  find  as  many  blunders  :  one  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  whom  he  calls 
Chrest,  and  the  other  in  the  time  of  his  death,  which  happened  many  years  previous  to 
these  troubles  which  he  attributes  to  his  instigation.  We  find  here,  however,  the  time 
cause  of  this  expulsion  :  it  was  nothing  else  than  the  rising  up  of  the  unbelieving  Jews 
against  their  brethren  who  had  embraced  the  faith  of  Christ,  whereupon  Claudius  ban¬ 
ished  them  all,  without  pausing  to  examine  which  was  right  or  which  wrong.  It  ap¬ 
pears,  notwithstanding,  that  their  banishment  was  not  of  long  duration,  for  when  St.  Paul 
first  went  to  Rome,  he  found  Jews  established  there;  and  we  learn  from  his  epistle  to 
the  Romans,  which  was  written  previous  to  that  first  visit,  that  Aquila  and  his  wife  had 
returned  to  Rome,  since  he  sends  his  greeting  to  them. 

(2)  He  had  learned  this  trade,  in  conformity  with  the  custom  of  the  Pharisees,  who 
were  obliged  by  their  own  regulations  to  learn  and  practice  some  mechanical  art  :  a  very 
laudable  custom,  whether  their  purpose  was  to  secure  a  livelihood,  or  merely  to  avoid 
idleness.  Paul  wrought,  says  St.  Chrysostom,  speaking  of  this  subject,  and  he  preached. 
Well  may  we  be  ashamed — we  who  neither  preach  nor  do  any  thing  else. 

He  labored  to  the  end  that  he  might  not  be  a  burden  to  the  faithful,  though  he  was 
entitled  to  have  his  support  from  them.  Many  there  are  who  fatten  on  the  wealth  of 
the  Church  without  doing  aught  to  serve  her.  What  a  contrast  is  here  ! 

We  have  already  remarked  that  not  one  of  the  distinctive  virtues  of  Christianity  shall 
ever  entirely  disappear.  St.  Paul,  therefore,  shall  always  have  imitators  in  his  noble  dis¬ 
interestedness  ;  and  religion  has  still  and  always  ministers  who  are  generous  enough  to 
serve  her,  not  merely  without  any  hope  of  gain,  but  at  their  own  expense. 


/'S 


678 


THE  IIISTOKT  OF  TIIE 


[CHAP.  XVIII. 


“  And  he  reasoned  in  the  synagogue  every  Sabbath,  bringing  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  he  persuaded  the  Jews  and  the 
Greeks.  And  when  Silas  and  Timothy  were  come  from  Macedonia, 
Paul  was  earnest  in  preaching,  testifying  to  the  Jews  that  Jesus  is 
the  Christ.  But  they  gainsaying  and  blaspheming,  he  shook  his 
garments  (1),  and  said  to  them:  Your  blood  be  upon  your  own 
heads  (2)  :  I  am  clean  ;  from  henceforth  I  will  go  unto  the  Gentiles.” 

Though  thus  obliged  to  give  them  up,  yet  a  lingering  remnant  of 
hope  induced  him  to  remain  near  them.  “  Departing  thence,  he  en¬ 
tered  into  the  house  of  a  certain  man  named  Titus  Justus,  one  that 
worshipped  God,  whose  house  was  adjoining  to  the  synagogue.” 

The  obstinate  incredulity  of  the  people  could  not  hinder  him  from 
gathering  the  most  precious  spoils.  “  Crispus,  the  ruler  of  the  syna¬ 
gogue,  believed  in  the  Lord  with  all  his  house  :  and  many  of  the 
Corinthians  hearing,  believed,  and  were  baptized:”  the  greater 
number  by  the  hands  of  Paul’s  associates,  (a)  “  I  have  baptized 
none  of  you,”  wrote  he  to  the  Corinthians,  “  but  Crispus  and  Caius  : 

_ and  I  baptized  also  the  house  of  Stephanus  : ....  I  know  not 

whether  I  baptized  any  other.”  He  then  proceeds  to  give  the  rea¬ 
son  :  “  For  Christ  sent  me  not  to  baptize  (3),  but  to  preach  the 
Gospel.” 

We  have  no  detailed  account  of  what  St.  Paul  suffered  in  Corinth  ; 
but  we  know  from  his  own  testimony  that  he  had  to  suffer  a  great 


i 


¥ 


(a)  1  Cor.,  i.  14. 


(1)  A  sign  both  of  detestation  and  of  imprecation,  of  which  we  find  many  examples 
in  Scripture.  Its  meaning  is  expressed  by  those  words  of  Nehemiah  :  I  shook  my  lap 
(my  clothes),  and  said  :  So  may  God  shake  every  man  that  shall  not  accomplish  this 
word,  out  of  his  house,  and  out  of  his  labors  ;  thus  may  he  be  shaken  out,  and  become 
empty.  And  all  the  multitude  said  :  Amen  (2  Esdras,  v.  13). 

(2)  That  is  to  say,  let  your  destruction  be  attributed  only  to  yourselves.  St.  Paul 
was  innocent  of  it,  since  be  had  done  his  utmost  to  save  them.  If  he  had  not,  he  would 
have  been  guilty  of  it,  and  God  would  have  required  of  him  an  account  of  their  blood, 
according  to  the  words  of  Ezechiel,  quoted  by  the  apostle  in  this  place,  and  also  in 
chap.  xx. 

(3)  It  would  be  very  desirable  if  such  a  distribution  of  labor  could  be  made  in  our 
days,  so  that  in  our  apostolical  expeditions,  those  who  preached  might  not  have  to  hear 
confessions.  Both  duties  would  then  be  better  performed,  and  the  priests  would  not  be 
overtasked,  as  they  now  too  often  are. 


CTfnW 
ililll!!!  : 


a  o  a  a  a  «  a  • 


■A 


AW'k 


Af/l 


7 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


679 


CHAP.  XVHI.] 

deal,  («)  “  I  was  with  you,”  he  again  wrote  to  the  Corinthians,  “  in 
weakness,  and  in  fear,  and  in  much  trembling.”  The  Lord  permitted 
this  to  be  so,  lest  he  might  begin  to  confide  in  himself,  and  to  the 
end  that  his  confidence  in  him  should  be  firm  and  unwavering.  It 
was  to  strengthen  it  still  more  that  “  the  Lord  said  to  Paul  in  the 
night  by  a  vision  :  Do  not  fear  but  speak,  and  hold  not  thy  peace, 
because  I  am  with  thee  ;  and  no  man  shall  set  upon  thee  to  hurt 
thee  ;  for  I  have  much  people  in  this  city.  And  he  stayed  there  a 
year  and  six  months,  teaching  among  them  the  word  of  God.” 

The  effect  followed  close  upon  the  promise,  and  the  event  verified 
the  prophecy.  “  When  Gallio  (1)  wTas  proconsul  of  Achaia,  the  Jews 
with  one  accord  rose  up  against  Paul,  and  brought  him  to  the  judg¬ 
ment-seat,  saying:  This  man  persuadeth  men  to  worship  God  con¬ 
trary  to  the  lawr.  And  when  Paul  was  beginning  to  open  his  mouth, 
Gallio  said  to  the  Jews  :  If  it  were  some  matter  of  injustice,  or  an 
heinous  deed,  O  you  Jews,  I  should  with  reason  bear  with  you.  But 
if  they  be  questions  of  words  (2)  and  names,  and  of  your  law,  look 
you  to  it  :  I  will  not  be  judge  of  such  things.  And  he  drove  them 
from  the  judgment-seat.”  It  is  more  than  probable  that  St.  Paul 
immediately  withdrew.  Being  unable,  therefore,  to  vent  their  fury 
on  him,  they  “  all  (3)  laying  hold  on  Sosthenes,  the  ruler  of  the  syn- 

( a )  1  Cor.,  ii.  3. 


(1)  Titus  Annæus  Gallio,  brother  of  Seneca  the  philosopher.  He  had  been  adopted 
by  one  Gallio,  whose  name  he  assumed,  according  to  the  usual  custom.  Through  the 
influence  of  his  brother  he  obtained  the  proconsulate  of  Achaia.  He  was  afterwards  in¬ 
volved  in  his  brother’s  disgrace,  and  died  by  his  own  hand.  His  success  in  this  matter 
was  the  real  cause  of  his  misfortune.  Tire  fortunes  of  men  are  but  too  often  subject  to 
such  reverses. 

(2)  It  is  not  easy  to  say  what  he  meant  by  these  words  and  names  ;  perhaps  he 
scarcely  knew  himself.  Still,  it  might  be  that  he  had  heard  that  the  question  was, 
whether  the  names  of  Christ  and  of  Messiah  did  or  did  not  apply  to  Jesus  Christ.  A 
pagan  might  well  consider  that  a  mere  question  of  names. 

(3)  The  ordinary  Greek  says  that  it  was  the  Greeks  who  beat  Sosthenes.  The  word 
Greeks,  however,  appears  to  have  been  added  to  the  text,  for  it  is  not  found  either  in  the 
Vulgate  or  in  the  more  ancient  Greek  manuscripts.  It  is  more  probable,  therefore,  that 
Sosthenes  was  beaten  by  the  Jews  on  account  of  his  declared  attachment  to  St.  Paul. 
It  is  the  opinion  of  the  Church  that  he  made  a  merit  of  the  blows  he  then  received,  by 
which  he  consecrated  the  first-fruits  of  his  faith.  See  the  Roman  Martyrology,  Nov.  28. 


(MV  (t-H 

\l:È 


ll/r 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XVIII. 


agogue  (1),  beat  him  before  the  judgment-seat  :  and  Gallio  eared 
for  none  of  those  things  (2).”  - 

“  Paul,”  notwithstanding  this  storm,  “  stayed  yet  many  days,” 
when  “taking  his  leave  of  the  brethren,”  he  “sailed  thence  into 
Syria  (and  with  him  Priscilla  and  Aquila),  having  shorn  his  head  in 
Cenchra  :  for  he  had  a  vow  (3).  And  he  came  to  Ephesus,  and 
left”  his  companions  “  there.  But  he  himself,  entering  into  the  syn¬ 
agogue,  disputed  with  the  Jews.  And  when  they,”  being  better  dis¬ 
posed  than  the  others,  “  desired  him  that  he  would  tarry  a  longer 
time,  he  consented  not.  But  taking  his  leave,  and  saying:  I  will 
return  to  you  again,  God  willing,  he  departed  from  Ephesus.  And 
going  down  to  Cesarea,  he  went  up  to  Jerusalem ,  and  saluted  the 
Church,  and  so  came  down  to  Antioch.  And  after  he  had  spent 
some  time  there,  he  departed,  and  went  through  the  country  of  Ga¬ 
latia  and  Phrygia,  in  order,  confirming  all  the  disciples  (4).” 


(1)  Crispus  is  also  called  ruler  of  the  synagogue.  It  follows  that  the  synagogue  must 
have  had  more  than  one  ruler,  or  that  otherwise  there  must  have  been  more  than  one 
synagogue  in  Corinth.  If  the  latter  were  the  case,  each  of  them  would  more  likely  be 
called  ruler  of  a  synagogue  than  of  the  synagogue. 

(2)  Gallio  has  been  commended  for  his  clemency,  because  he  refused  to  hear  the  ac¬ 
cusers  of  St.  Paul  ;  for  his  discretion,  because  he  would  not  venture  to  decide  on  a  dif¬ 
ference  of  religion  ;  and,  perhaps,  for  his  prudence,  in  declining  to  meddle  with  a  matter 
of  which  he  knew  nothing.  His  indifference,  however,  at  sight  of  the  outrage  offered  to 
Sosthenes  shows  very  plainly  the  true  motive  of  his  conduct  :  he  had  a  supreme  con¬ 
tempt  for  the  Jews  and  all  that  concerned  them. 

(3)  Regarding  the  text  only,  it  is  doubtful  whether  it  was  Aquila  or  St.  Paul  who  had 
his  head  shorn.  All  the  commentators  agree  in  understanding  it  of  St.  Paul,  and  we 
have  taken  the  same  view.  This  vow  was  that  of  the  Nazarenes,  and  consisted  in  allow¬ 
ing  the  hair  to  grow,  and  to  abstain  from  wine  and  all  other  intoxicating  liquors  as  long 
as  the  vow  lasted.  If  it  happened  that,  before  the  time  was  expired,  the  person  con¬ 
tracted  any  legal  impurity,  the  time  already  past  counted  for  nothing,  but  the  fulfilment 
of  the  vow  had  again  to  be  commenced.  At  the  conclusion,  sacrifice  was  offered,  ac¬ 
cording  to  the  ordinance  in  the  Book  of  Numbers  (chap.  vi.).  It  was  through  conde¬ 
scension  to  the  Jews  that  St.  Paul  practised  this  Jewish  devotion,  which  was  not  at  all 
obligatory.  He  made  this  vow,  then,  at  Cenchra,  which  was  the  eastern  port  of  Corinth, 
when  on  the  point  of  landing  ;  if,  perchance,  he  had  done  it  sooner,  he  might  have  con¬ 
tracted  some  legal  impurity  which  would  have  obliged  him  to  make  it  over  again  ;  for 
we  know  not  precisely  of  what  nature  this  defilement  was. 

(4)  Pastoral  visits,  which  are  the  indispensable  means  of  correcting  evil  and  preserv¬ 
ing  that  which  is  good.  Their  principal  object  is  to  examine  into  the  conduct  of  the 
ministers  of  the  second  order,  which  can  only  be  done  by  visiting  the  places  where  they 


CITAP.  XVIII.] 


! 


v. 


“  Now  a  certain  Jew,  named  Apollo,  born  at  Alexandria,  an  elo¬ 
quent  man,  came  to  Ephesus,  one  mighty  in  the  Scriptures  (1).  This 
man  was  instructed  in  the  way  of  the  Lord  :  and  being  fervent  in 
spirit,  spoke,  and  taught  diligently  the  things  that  are  of  Jesus, 
knowing  only  the  baptism  of  John  (2).  This  man,  therefore,  began 
to  speak  boldly  in  the  synagogue  ;  whom  when  Priscilla  and  Aquila 
had  heard,  they  took  him  to  them,  and  expounded  to  him  the  way 
of  the  Lord  more  diligently  (3).  And  whereas  he  was  desirous  to 
go  to  Achaia,  the  brethren  exhorting  wrote  to  the  disciples  to  receive 
him.  Who,  when  he  was  come,  helped  them  much  who  had  be¬ 
lieved,  for  with  much  vigor  he  convinced  the  Jews  openly,  showing 
by  the  Scriptures  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ. 

He  thus  (a)  watered  what  Paul  had  planted,  and  God  so  blessed 
his  labors  that  amongst  the  faithful  of  Corinth  each  one  said  : 
( b )  “  I  indeed  am  of  Paul  ;  and  I  am  of  Apollo  ;  and  I  of  Cephas.” 


(a)  1  Cor.,  iii.  6. 


(6)  1  Cor.,  i.  12. 


reside,  so  as  to  admonish  them  if  they  are  found  neglecting  their  duty  ;  or,  on  the  othei 
hand,  if  they  do  fulfil  their  duty,  and  meet  with  opposition,  it  is  necessary  to  support 
them  with  all  the  weight  of  episcopal  authority. 

(1)  Mighty,  that  is  to  say,  not  only  well  versed  in  the  Scriptures,  but  also  knowing- 
how  to  use  them  efficaciously.  The  word  skilful  or  versed  in  the  Scriptures,  though  given 
here  by  most  translators,  expresses  no  more  than  half  the  meaning. 

(2)  We  shall  soon  see  that  there  were  many  others  in  the  same  error,  or  rather  in  the 
same  ignorance.  These  had  received  in  Judea  the  baptism  of  John,  or  it  might  be  that 
some  of  the  disciples  of  John  had  come  to  Ephesus  to  confer  with  them  ;  this  is  a  matter 
of  which  nothing  is  known,  nor  is  it  one  of  any  great  importance. 

(3)  Apollo,  though  so  well  versed  in  Scripture,  learns  a  fundamental  truth  from  two 
lay  persons,  an  humble  artisan  and  his  wife.  These  latter,  who  were  simple  and  illit¬ 
erate,  had  learned  it  from  St.  Paul,  without  any  other  trouble  than  that  of  listening  with 
attention  and  docility.  Study,  without  the  instruction  of  pastors,  is  not  enough,  even  for 
the  learned  ;  whereas  the  teaching  of  pastors  is  quite  sufficient,  without  any  study,  to 
enlighten  and  instruct  even  the  most  simple.  Thus  the  latter  are  conducted,  without  an 
effort,  to  the  knowledge  of  all  saving  truths,  while  the  former  are  secured  against  the 
inflation  of  learning,  and  the  wanderings  of  their  own  wayward  fancies.  An  admirable 
means,  proper  for  all  men,  as  it  is  necessary  for  all.  How  can  men  be  so  blind  to  this 
truth  as  .to  leave  faith  to  the  discussion  of  the  laity,  that  is  to  say,  to  all  the  blunders  of 
ignorance,  and  to  all  the  vagaries  of  the  imagination  ? 

Nevertheless  Apollo’s  erudition  was  not  useless  to  him.  When  once  fully  instructed, 
he  was  qualified  thereby  to  become  a  doctor  of  the  Church,  which  Priscilla  or  Aquila 
could  never  be. 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


St.  Paul  justly  condemns  these  distinctions,  because  that  by  attaching 
themselves  too  much  to  their  respective  teachers  or  masters,  they 
were  in  danger  of  forgetting  Jesus  Christ,  the  Master  of  masters,  and 
the  chief  pastor  of  all.  Still  we  learn  by  this  text  the  high  esteem 
in  which  Apollo  was  held,  since  he  was,  in  some  degree,  placed  on 
a  par  with  the  prince  of  the  apostles. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE  BAPTISM  OF  JOHN  INSUFFICIENT. - MIRACLES  OPERATED  BY  THE  MERE  TOUCH¬ 
ING  OF  THE  GARMENTS  OF  ST.  PAUL. - JEWISH  EXORCISTS  BEATEN  AND  ABUSED 

BY  THE  DEVILS. - BOOKS  BURNED. - SEDITION  EXCITED  BY  THE  SILVERSMITH  DE¬ 

METRIUS. 

God  did  will  what  his  apostle  had  promised  only  on  condition 
that  he  should.  “  And  it  came  to  pass  while  Apollo  was  at  Corinth, 
that  Paul,”  faithful  both  to  God  and  man,  (a)  “having  passed  through 
the  upper  coasts  (1)”  of  Asia,  “  came  to  Ephesus,  and  found  certain 
disciples.  And  he  said  to  them  :  Have  you  received  the  Holy  Ghost 
since  ye  believed  ?  But  they  said  to  him  :  We  have  not  so  much 
as  heard  whether  there  be  a  Holy  Ghost.  And  he  said  :  In  what  (2), 
then,  were  you  baptized  ?  Who  said  :  In  John’s  baptism  (3).  Then 

(a)  Acts,  xix.  1. 


(1)  These  provinces  are  Galatia  and  Phrygia,  already  spoken  of  in  the  23d  verse  of  the 
preceding  chapter.  They  are  situated  to  the  north  of  Ephesus,  which  was,  as  it  were, 
the  capital  of  Asia  Minor  :  it  is  with  reference  to  this  situation  that  they  are  here  called 
the  upper  coasts. 

(2)  Does  this  question,  then,  mean  that  they  could  not  have  received  true,  that  is  to 
say,  Christian  baptism,  without  having  heard  that  there  was  a  Holy  Ghost  ?  St.  Paul 
had  them  afterwards  baptized,  and  it  is  said  on  that  occasion  that  they  were  baptized  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus.  In  this  baptism,  then,  which  is  said  in  the  Acts  to  have 
been  given  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  consequently  all  the 
three  divine  persons,  were  expressly  named.  We  had  before  promised  to  give  this  proof, 
and  it  appears  to  us  unanswerable. 

(3)  Protestants  have  pretended  that  the  baptism  of  John  had  the  same  virtue  as  that 


■  s 


gf 

f  ci. 

V-Tfv 


CIIAl».  XIX.] 

Paul  said  :  John  baptized  tlie  people  with  the  baptism  of  penance, 
saying  that  they  should  believe  in  him  who  was  to  come  after 
him  (1),  that  is  to  say,  in  Jesus.  Having  heard  these  things,  they 
were  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  when  Paul  had 
imposed  his  hands  on  them,  the  Holy  Ghost  came  upon  them,  and 
they  spoke  with  tongues  and  prophesied.  And  all  the  men  were 
about  twelve.  And  entering  into  the  synagogue,  he  spoke  boldly 
for  the  space  of  three  months,  disputing”  with  the  Jews,  “  and  ex¬ 
horting”  them  “concerning  the  kingdom  of  God.”  These  Jews,  as 
we  have  already  remarked,  were  better  disposed  than  those  of  other 
countries  ;  and  it  appears  that  the  greater  number  of  them  heard 
him  favorably.  Nevertheless,  “  when  some  were  hardened  and  be¬ 
lieved  not,  speaking  evil  of  the  way  of  the  Lord  before  the  multi¬ 
tude,  departing  from  them  (2),  he  separated  the  disciples,  disputing 
daily  in  the  school  of  one  Tyrannus.  And  this  continued  for  the 
space  of  two  years,  so  that  all  they  who  dwelt  in  Asia  heard  the 
word  of  the  Lord,  both  Jews  and  Gentiles.” 

“  And  God  wrought  by  the  hand  of  Paul  more  than  common  mir¬ 
acles  ;  so  that  even  there  were  brought  from  his  body  to  the  sick 
handkerchiefs  (3)  and  aprons,  and  the  diseases  departed  from  them, 


of  Jesus  Christ,  and  that  it  was  also  administered  in  the  name  of  the  three  divine  per¬ 
sons  ;  we  cannot  imagine  whence  they  derive  such  a  notion.  If  these  two  baptisms  had 
been  exactly  alike  in  form  and  in  efficacy,  would  Apollo,  knowing  only  the  baptism  of 
John,  have  required  further  instruction  ?  And  those  Ephesians,  of  whom  mention  is 
here  made,  would  they  have  answered  that  they  had  never  even  heard  that  there  was  a 
Holy  Ghost,  if  they  had  heard  him  named  in  the  formula  of  their  baptism  ?  It  is  this 
error  which  has  called  forth  that  canon  of  the  Council  of  Trent  (Sess.  7)  :  If  any  one 
say  that  the  baptism  of  John  had  the  same  virtue  as  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  let  him  be  an¬ 
athema. 

(1)  We  learn  from  these  words  of  St.  Paul  that  St.  John  required  of  those  whom  he 
baptized,  explicit  faith  in  the  near  approach  of  the  promised  Messiah,  from  whom  they 
were  to  expect  that  remission  of  their  sins  for  which  his  baptism  was  but  a  remote  pre¬ 
paration.  It  was  for  this  reason,  doubtless,  that  the  title  by  which  John  usually  men¬ 
tioned  him  was  the  Lamb  who  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world. 

(2)  This  was  not  a  flight,  but  only  a  prudent  retreat  in  order  to  save  the  unbelievers 
from  fresh  blasphemy,  and  the  neophytes  from  temptation.  This  caution  was  scarcely 
to  be  expected  from  a  man  of  Paul’s  ardent  temperament,  and  we  must  conclude  that 
through  signal  grace  he  had  obtained  this  great  victory  over  himself. 

(3)  In  Latin,  sudaria,  which  could  only  be  translated  literally  by  the  word  shrouds 
(suaires),  and  this,  amongst  us,  is  only  applied  to  the  garment  wherein  a  dead  body  is 


A 


A 


684 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XIX. 


and  the  wicked  spirits  went  out  of”  the  bodies  of  the  possessed. 
“  Now  some  also  of  the  Jewish  exorcists  (1)  who  went  about,  attempt¬ 
ed  to  invoke,  over  them  that  had  evil  spirits,  the  name  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  saying:  I  conjure  you  by  Jesus,  whom  Paul  preacheth.  And 
there  were  certain  men,  seven  sons  of  See  va  (2),  a  Jew,  a  chief  priest, 
that  did  this.  But  the  wicked  spirit,  answering,  said  to  them  :  Je¬ 
sus  I  know,  and  Paul  I  know  ;  but  who  are  you  ?  And  the  man  in 
whom  the  wicked  spirit  was,  leaping  upon  them  (3),  and  mastering 
them  both,  prevailed  against  them,  so  that  they  fled  out  of  that 
house  naked  and  wounded.  And  this  became  known  to  all  the 
Jews  and  the  Gentiles  that  dwelt  at  Ephesus  ;  and  fear  fell  on  them 
all,  and  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus  was  magnified.  And  many  of 
them  that  believed,  came  confessing  (4)  and  declaring  their  deeds. 


wrapped  up.  Amongst  the  ancients  the  word  sudarium  signified  what  was  used  to  wipe 
off  sweat.  Semicinctia  has  been  translated  by  aprons,  and  it  is  very  probable  that  St. 
Paul  wore  them  when  employed  in  making  tents.  But  what  is  more  important  is  the 
fact  that  relics  here  wrought  incontestable  miracles.  What  can  Protestants  say  to  this  ? 

(1)  We  have  already  observed  that  there  were  amongst  the  Jews  exorcists,  who  suc¬ 
cessfully  employed  against  the  demons  certain  forms  of  conjuration  which  had  come 
down  from  Solomon. 

(2)  So  called,  either  because  he  was  the  head  of  one  of  the  twenty-four  sacerdotal 
families,  or  because  he  was  the  chief  of  the  sacerdotal  order  in  Ephesus. 

(3)  When  John  said  to  Jesus:  “Master,  we  saw  one  casting  out  devils  in  thy  name, 
who  followeth  not  us,  and  we  forbade  him;  Jesus  said  :  Do  not  forbid  him  (Mark,  ix. 
3*7,  38).  This  was  tantamount  to  an  approval  of  what  the  man  had  done,  and  yet  we 
cannot  doubt  but  that  on  this  occasion  he  disapproved  of  an  action  precisely  similar, 
since  he  allowed  the  devils  to  give  them  such  hard  treatment.  Yes  ;  but,  in  the  first 
place,  circumstances  might  alter  the  case  so  materially  that  what,  in  one  instance,  might 
be  favorable  to  the  establishment  of  the  faith,  might,  in  the  other,  have  a  contrary  effect  ; 
secondly,  a  difference  of  intention  might  cause  an  essential  difference  in  the  act.  The 
man  whom  Jesus  would  not  hinder,  might  act  from  the  germ  of  faith  that  was  in  him, 
and  with  the  sole  purpose  of  relieving  those  whom  he  exorcised.  The  sons  of  Sceva 
migljt,  on  the  other  hand,  regard  the  invocation  of  the  name  of  Jesus  as  a  sort  of  secret 
and  receipt  ;  they  might  seek  only  the  glory  of  succeeding  in  their  exorcisms,  and  ap¬ 
parently  the  profit  to  be  gained  by  that  success.  In  this  case  they  well  deserved  the 
treatment  which  they  got. 

(4)  The  Latin  and  Greek  properly  signify  that  they  announced  their  sins,  that  is  to 
say,  that  they  made  a  public  confession  of  them.  They  did  this  through  fervor,  and  to 
humble  themselves  the  more  ;  for  public  confession  was  never  of  precept.  Hence  the 
Council  of  Trent  makes  use  of  this  text  only  to  prove  the  necessity  of  sacramental  con¬ 
fession. 


(  'UAP.  XIX. J 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


685 


And  many  of  them  who  had  followed  curious  arts  (1),  brought  to¬ 
gether  their  books,  and  burnt  them  (2)  before  all  ;  and  counting  the 
price  of  them,  they  found  the  money  to  be  fifty  thousand  pieces  of 
silver  (3).  So  mightily  grew  the  word  of  God  and  was  confirmed.” 

“  And  when  these  things  were  ended,  Paul  purposed  in  the  spirit, 
when  he  had  passed  through  Macedonia  and  Achaia,  to  go  to  Jeru¬ 
salem,  saying  :  After  I  have  been  there  I  must  see  Pome  also.  And 
sending”  beforehand  “  into  Macedonia  two  of  them  that  ministered 
to  him,  Timothy  and  Erastus,  he  himself  remained  for  a  time  in 
Asia.” 

“  Now  at  that  time  there  arose  no  small  disturbance  about  the 
way  of  the  Lord,  for  a  certain  man  named  Demetrius,  a  silversmith, 
wrho  made  silver  temples  (4)  for  Diana,  brought  no  small  gain  to 
the  craftsmen,  whom  he  calling  together,  with  the  workmen  of  like 
occupation,  said:  Sirs,  you  know  that  our  gain  is  by  this  trade. 
You  see  and  hear  that  this  Paul  by  persuasion  hath  drawn  away  a 


(1)  Magic,  the  most  abominable  of  all  sciences.  The  ancients  merely  gave  it  the 
name  of  the  curious  science,  because  of  the  natural  inclination  of  all  men  to  gloss  over 
their  crimes  by  giving  them  names  which  seem  to  lessen  their  turpitude.  So  it  is  that, 
when  speaking  of  a  man  who  is  addicted  to  all  manner  of  debauchery,  we  say  that  he  is 
dissipated.  Nevertheless  custom  reconciles  us  to  the  use  of  these  modifying  expressions, 
so  that  they  are  employed  by  all,  even  by  those  who  do  not  attach  to  the  words  the 
meaning  which  they  seem  to  carry  with  them. 

(2)  They  burned  them  in  order  to  extinguish  one  fire  hy  the  other,  says  a  Christian 
poet,  when  treating  of  this  subject.  The  fire  of  hell  either  was  not  extinct,  or  would 
soon  be  rekindled  for  them,  if  this  flame  had  not  consumed  that  which  had  ministered 
to  their  crimes.  There  is  no  security,  and,  for  the  most  part,  no  sincerity  in  penance, 
if  it  be  not  as  a  devouring  fire,  destroying  all  the  incentives  to  voluptuousness,  bad 
books,  immodest  pictures,  &c.  For  what  purpose  would  they  be  retained,  if  not  to  look 
at  them  ? 

(3)  We  find  in  the  Greek,  fifty  thousand  pieces  of  silver.  There  is  no  possibility  of 
knowing  the  exact  value  of  this  sum.  It  was,  however,  very  considerable,  and  we  may 
thence  conclude  that  there  must  have  been  a  vast  number  of  such  books.  This  will  not 
be  surprising  when  it  is  known  that  magic  was  so  common  in  Ephesus,  that  it  had  be¬ 
come  an  art  and  a  profession.  We  are  led  to  believe,  notwithstanding,  that  there  were 
not  so  many  of  these  books  as  one  might  suppose,  seeing  that  before  the  invention  of 
printing,  books  were  a  much  more  expensive  commodity  than  they  now  are. 

(4)  This  is  the  meaning  of  the  Greek  word.  It  appears  that  these  representations 
were  in  relievo.  If  they  had  been,  as  some  think,  solid  plates,  and  struck  in  the  same 
way  that  medals  are,  then  they,  requiring  but  a  wedge  and  the  stroke  of  a  hammer,  could 
not  possibly  have  employed  such  a  vast  number  of  men  as  is  here  spoken  of. 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


086 


[chap.  XIX. 


great  multitude,  not  only  of  Ephesus,  but  glmost  of  all  Asia,  saying . 
They  are  not  gods  which  are  made  by  hands.” 

This  concerned  only  the  silversmiths,  and  could  not,  therefore, 
give  rise  to  a  general  tumult.  Knowing  this,  Demetrius  judged  it 
expedient  to  call  the  religion  of  the  people  into  question,  and  with 
that  intention,  he  added  :  “  So  that  not  only  this  our  craft,”  lucrative 
as  it  is,  “  is  in  danger  to  be  set  at  naught,  but  also  the  temple  (1)  of 
great  Diana  shall  be  reputed  for  nothing,  and  her  majesty  begin  to 
be  destroyed,  whom  all  Asia  and  the  world  worshippeth.” 

“  Having  heard  these  things  they  were  full  of  anger,  and  cried 
out,  saying  :  Great  is  Diana  of  the  Ephesians.  And  the  whole  city 
was  filled  with  confusion,  and  having  caught  Gaius,  and  Aristarchus, 
men  of  Macedonia,  Paul’s  companions,  they  rushed  with  one  accord 
into  the  theatre  (2).”  It  was,  doubtless,  in  order  to  divert  attention 
from  them,  and  to  draw  upon  himself  the  full  fury  of  the  storm,  that 
“  Paul  would  have  entered  in  unto  the  people,”  but  “  the  disciples 
suffered  him  not.  And  some  also  of  the  rulers  of  Asia,  who  were 
his  friends,  sent  unto  him,  desiring  that  he  would  not  venture  him¬ 
self  into  the  theatre  ;”  and  he  would  not  go  against  their  wishes. 

“Now  some  cried  one  thing,  some  another.  For  the  assembly 
was  confused,  and  the  greater  part  knew  not  for  what  cause  they 
were  come  together.”  The  Jews,  fearing  that  this  tempest  might 
burst  upon  themselves,  were  near  ruining  all  by  the  very  means 
which  they  had  devised  to  screen  themselves.  “  And  they  drew 
forth”  one  of  their  own  number,  a  man  named  Alexander,  “  out  of 
the  multitude,  thrusting  him  forward.  And  Alexander,  beckoning 
with  his  hand  for  silence,  would  have  given  the  people  satisfaction.” 
Apparently,  his  purpose  was  to  distinguish  the  cause  of  the  Jews 
from  that  of  Paul  and  the  Christians.  “  But  as  soon  as  they  per- 


(  1  )  It  is  well  known  that  the  temple  of  Ephesus  was  one  of  the  seven  wonders  of  the 
world.  Pliny  calls  it  the  masterpiece  of  Grecian  magnificence,  and  he  gives  us  its 
dimensions.  This  temple  was  425  feet  in  length,  and  220  in  breadth  ;  its  roof  was  sup¬ 
ported  by  127  columns,  each  of  which  was  60  feet  in  height.  He  proceeds  to  say  that 
an  enumeration  of  its  beauties  would  fill  several  volumes.  It  was  pillaged  and  burned 
by  the  Greeks  in  the  reign  of  Gallian. 

(2)  The  place  where  the  theatre  was,  and  where  plays  were  performed.  It  was  also 
the  place  where  the  people  held  their  assemblies. 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


687 


CHAP.  XIX.] 

ceived  him  to  be  a  Jew”  (and,  consequently,  the  declared  enemy  of 
Diana  and  all  the  heathen  deities),  “  all  with  one  voice,  for  the  space 
of  about  two  hours,  cried  out  :  Great  is  Diana  of  the  Ephesians.” 

Had  even  one  of  those  voices  added  :  Let  us  exterminate  all  her 
foes ,  it  would  have  sufficed  to  fill  the  city  with  fire  and  carnage. 
This  result  was  very  likely  to  happen,  and  the  danger  was  already 
imminent,  when  a  man  who  was  a  favorite  with  the  people,  took  it 
upon  himself,  if  he  were  not  rather  employed  by  the  magistrates,  to 
calm  the  minds  of  the  people,  and  restore  order.  This  man  was 
“  the  town-clerk,”  who  “  when  he  had  appeased  the  multitude,  said  : 
Ye  men  of  Ephesus,  what  man  is  there  that  knoweth  not  that  the 
city  of  the  Ephesians  is”  especially  “  a  worshipper  of  the  great  Diana, 
and  of  Jupiter’s  offspring  ?  Forasmuch,  therefore,  as  these  things 
cannot  be  gainsaid,  you  ought  to  be  quiet,  and  to  do  nothing  rashly. 
For  you  have  brought  hither  these  men”  (meaning  Gaius  and  Aris¬ 
tarchus)  “who  are  neither  guilty  of  sacrilege  nor  of  blasphemy  (1) 
against  your  goddess.  But  if  Demetrius  and  the  craftsmen  tliat  are 
with  him,  have  a  matter  against  any  man,  the  courts  of  justice  are 
open,  and  there  are  proconsuls  ;  let  them  accuse  one  another.  And 
if  you  inquire  after  any  other  matter,  it  may  be  decided  in  a  lawful 
assembly.  For  we  are  even  in  danger  to  be  called  in  question  for 
this  day’s  uproar  :  there  being  no  man  guilty  (of  whom  we  may  give 
an  account)  of  this”  tumultuous  “  concourse.” 

Thus,  having  commenced  by  flattering  and  humoring  the  people, 
he  goes  on  to  show  them  what  they  should  do,  and  winds  up  his  ad¬ 
dress  by  hinting  at  what  might  be  the  result  of  their  tumult.  See¬ 
ing  that  he  had  gained  his  point,  “  when  he  had  said  these  things, 
he  dismissed  the  assembly,”  the  people  all  retiring  to  their  homes 
calmly  and  in  silence. 


(1)  St.  Chrysostom  says  that  in  order  to  quiet  the  people,  he  told  an  official  falsehood. 
Nevertheless,  it  is  possible  that  St.  Paul  and  his  companions  might  content  themselves 
with  saying,  as  Demetrius  repeated  after  St.  Paul  :  They  are  not  gods  which  are  made 
hy  hands.  Then,  if  they  insisted  on  Diana,  he  undoubtedly  added  that  she  was  no  more 
than  the  others,  but  inveighed  no  farther  against  her.  It  is  at  all  times  prudent,  when 
one  is  obliged  to  declare  the  truth,  to  propose  it  in  a  manner  that  will  not  be  too  revolt¬ 
ing  to  prejudiced  minds;  we  see  by  the  discourse  of  St.  Paul  in  the  Areopagus  that  he 
could,  when  necessary,  avail  himself  of  these  discreet  ambiguities. 


688 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XX. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

ST.  PAUL  IN  TROAS. - A  YOUNG  MAN  WHO  HAD  BEEN  KILLED  BY  A  FALL  RE¬ 
STORED  TO  LIFE. - -IN  MILETUS,  ST.  PAUL  DELIVERS  AN  ADDRESS  AND  EXHOR¬ 

TATION  TO  THE  PASTORS  OF  THE  CHURCHES. 

(a)  “  Paul,”  after  what  had  happened,  could  no  longer  remain  in 
Ephesus  with  safety,  and  without  exposing  the  Church  there  to  dan¬ 
ger.  Moreover,  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord,  who  regulated  all  his  move¬ 
ments,  and  fixed  the  time  of  his  sojournings,  called  him  then  to  other 
countries.  Therefore,  “  after  the  tumult  was  ceased,  calling  to  him 
the  disciples,  and  exhorting  them,”  he  “  took  his  leave,  and  set  for¬ 
ward  to  go  into  Macedonia.  And  when  he  had  gone  over  those 
parts,  and  had  exhorted  them  with  many  words,  he  came  into 
Greece  (1).  Where  when  he  had  spent  three  months,  the  Jews  laid 
wait  for  him,  as  he  was  about  to  sail  into  Syria  ;  so  he  took  a  resolu¬ 
tion  to  return  through  Macedonia.  And  there  accompanied  him  So- 
pater,  the  son  of  Pyrrhus,  of  Berea  ;  and  of  the  Thessalonians,  Aris¬ 
tarchus  and  Secundus  ;  and  Gaius  of  Herbe,  and  Timothy  :  and  of  Asia, 
Tychicus  and  Trophimus  (2).  These  going  before,  stayed  for  us  (3) 

(«)  Acts,  xx.  1. 


(1)  Into  Achaia,  which  was  Greece,  properly  so  called,  although  in  a  more  enlarged 
sense.  Macedonia  was  also  a  part  of  the  country  called  Greece. 

(2)  All,  or  nearly  all,  these  whose  names  we  have  just  read,  are  recognized  as  saints 
by  the  Church,  as  may  be  seen  by  the  Roman  Martyrology. 

The  city  of  Arles  honors  Trophimus  as  its  apostle.  The  holy  pope  St.  Zosimus  says 
of  him  that  his  preaching  was,  as  it  were,  the  source  from  whence  the  waters  of  faith 
overspread  Gaul,  and  this  testimony  has  been  inserted  in  the  Roman  Martyrology.  It 
proves  that  St.  Zosimus  regarded  Trophimus  as  the  first  apostle  of  the  Gauls,  which 
throws  back  his  apostolate  to  the  earliest  days  of  Christianity.  We  may  abide  by  this, 
and  leave  the  learned  to  dispute  whether  the  Trophimus  of  Arles  was  the  companion  of 
St.  Paul,  or  another  of  the  same  name  sent  into  Gaul  about  two  centuries  later.  Pos¬ 
session  alone  is  a  sufficient  title  for  maintaining  the  ancient  traditions,  when  the  reasons 
brought  forward  against  them  are  not  so  evident  as  to  prove  them  false. 

(3)  St.  Luke  here  commences  again  to  say  us,  which  signifies  that  he  had  once  more 
become  the  companion  of  St.  Paul’s  travels,  which  he  had  not  been  from  the  time  the 
apostle  left  Philippi  for  Macedonia,  a  period  of  about  five  years.  What  he  did  during 
that  time  we  know  not  :  it  might  be  that  he  employed  it  in  collecting  materials  for  his 
Gospel,  speaking  of  which  he  tells  us  that  he  had  carefully  consulted  those  who  from  the 
beginning  were  eye-ivitnesses  of  the  things  which  he  had  to  relate  ;  that  is  to  say,  those  of 


'  ê 
à  M 


% 


Ss. 


CHAP.  XX.] 

at  Troas  (1).  But  we  sailed  from  Philippi  after  the  days  of  the 
azymes  (2),  and  came  to  them  to  Troas  in  five  days,  where  we 
abode  seven  days.” 

“  And  on  the  first  day  of  the  week  (3),  when  we  were  assembled 
to  break  bread,  Paul  discoursed  with  them,  being  to  depart  on  the 
morrow  :  and  he  continued  his  discourse  until  midnight.  And  there 
were  a  great  number  of  lamps  in  the  upper  chamber  where  we  were 
assembled.  And  a  certain  young  man  named  Eutychus,  sitting  on 
the  window,  being  oppressed  with  a  deep  sleep  (as  Paul  was  long 
preaching),  by  occasion  of  his  sleep  fell  from  the  third  loft  down, 
and  wTas  taken  up  dead.  To  whom  when  Paul  had  gone  down,  he 
laid  himself  upon  him  ;  and  embracing  him,  said  :  Be  not  troubled, 
for  his  soul  is  in  him.  Then  going  up,  and  breaking  bread,  and 
tasting  (4),  and  having  talked  a  long  time  to  them  until  daylight,  so 
he  departed.  And  they  brought  the  youth  alive,  and  were  not  a 
little  comforted.” 

“  But  we,  going  aboard  the  ship,  sailed  to  Assos,  being  there  to 
take  in  Paul  ;  for  so  he  had  appointed,  himself  purposing  to  travel 
by  land.  And  when  he  had  met  with  us  at  Assos  (5),  we  took  him 
in  and  came  to  Mitylene.  And  sailing  thence,  the  day  following  we 
came  over  against  Chios  ;  and  the  next  day  we  arrived  at  Samos  : 


the  apostles  who  had  lived  with  the  Lord,  and  especially  the  Blessed  Virgin,  of  whom 
he  is  thought  to  have  learned  certain  particulars  which  she  only  could  communicate  ; 
these  are  what  relate  to  the  incarnation,  birth,  and  infancy  of  our  Lord. 

(1)  Troas  is  the  name  of  that  country  of  which  ancient  Troy  was  the  capital.  From 
the  manner  in  which  Troas  is  mentioned  in  Scripture  there  can  be  no  doubt  but  there 
was  also  a  city  of  that  name,  situated  on  the  sea-coast  nearly  half  a  league  from  the 
ruins  of  Troy. 

(2)  The  Jews  could  not  sacrifice  the  paschal  lamb  except  in  Jerusalem;  but  they 
everywhere  kept  the  solemnity  of  the  Azymes,  or  unleavened  bread,  as  they  do  even  now. 

(3)  The  first  day  of  the  week  had  already  taken  the  place  of  the  Sabbath,  and  was  for 
Christians  the  day  of  the  Lord  ;  still  it  had  not,  as  yet,  received  the  name  of  Sabbath, 
but  it  soon  after  did,  since  we  find  it  thus  named  in  the  Apocalypse  (i.  10). 

(4)  That  is  to  say,  that  after  the  eating  of  the  Eucharistic  bread,  St.  Paul  took  some 
refreshment,  according  to  the  custom  of  those  early  times,  when  the  faithful,  after  hav¬ 
ing  communicated,  partook  together  of  a  frugal  repast,  which  was  called  agapas,  a  Greek 
word  signifying  charity. 

(5)  Assos,  a  maritime  city  of  Troas.  Mitylene,  a  considerable  town  of  the  island  of 
Lesbos,  whence  that  Island  derived  the  name  of  Metelinus,  which  it  still  retains.  Chios 
and  Samos,  two  of  the  islands  of  the  Greek  Archipelago. 

44 


i 


\4k/ 


[ciIAP.  XX. 

and  the  day  following  we  came  to  Miletus.  For  Paul  had  deter¬ 
mined  to  sail  by  Ephesus,  lest  he  should  be  stayed  any  time  in  Asia. 
For  he  hasted,  if  it  were  possible  for  him,  to  keep  the  day  of  Pen¬ 
tecost  (1)  at  Jerusalem.  And  sending  from  Miletus  to  Ephesus,  he 
called  the  ancients  (2)  of  the  Church.  And  when  they  were  come 
to  him,  and  were  together,  he  said  to  them  :  You  know  (3)  from  the 
first  day  that  I  came  into  Asia,  in  what  manner  I  have  been  with 
you  for  all  the  time”  that  I  remained  there  ;  “  serving  the  Lord 
vvith  all  humility,  and  with  tears,  and  temptations,  which  befel  me 
by  the  conspiracies  of, the  Jews.”  You  likewise  know  that  “  I  have 
kept  back  nothing  that  was  profitable  to  you,  but  have  preached  it 
to  you,  and  taught  you  publicly,  and  from  house  to  house.  Testify¬ 
ing  both  to  Jews  and  Gentiles”  the  necessity  of  “  penance  towards 
God,  and  faith  in  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  And  now  behold,  being 
bound  (4)  in  the  spirit,  I  go  to  Jerusalem,  not  knowing  (5)  the 


(1)  St.  Paul  went  to  Jerusalem  to  celebrate  the  Christian,  and  not  the  Jewish  Pente¬ 
cost.  Such  is  the  opinion  of  St.  Epiphanius,  and,  after  him,  many  ecclesiastical  writers. 
If  it  be  objected,  that  the  Christian  Pentecost  could  be  celebrated  in  any  place,  we 
can  reply  that  the  Christians  must  naturally  feel  much  greater  devotion  when  celebrating 
it  in  the  very  room  wherein  the  Holy  Ghost  had  descended  upon  the  first  disciples. 

(2)  Bishops  and  priests,  for  it  appears  that  those  of  the  neighboring  cities  were  also 
summoned  thither  on  this  occasion.  It  was  impossible  that  the  entire  body  of  the  faith¬ 
ful  could  transport  themselves  from  one  city  to  another,  when  their  presence  was  not 
even  necessary.  The  apostle  labored  effectually  for  their  sanctification,  when  he  labored 
to  effect  that  of  their  pastors. 

(3)  This  discourse  of  St.  Paul  is,  for  the  most  part,  a  eulogium  on  his  own  conduct  in 
Ephesus.  The  saints  see  so  clearly  that  whatever  good  they  do  comes  from  God,  that 
they  can  never  be  tempted  to  appropriate  to  themselves  the  glory  thereof.  Secure  from 
this  danger,  the  apostle  listens  only  to  his  charity,  which  urges  him  to  do  what  will  be 
most  efficacious  in  procuring  for  the  Church  worthy  ministers  :  setting  before  them  ex¬ 
ample,  at  all  times  better  than  precept.  That  example  is  his  own,  because  his  conscience 
bears  testimony  that  he  has  nothing  to  reproach  himself  with,  and  also  because,  being 
their  first  apostle,  and  hitherto  their  only  pastor,  he  had  no  other  example  to  place  be¬ 
fore  them. 

(4)  Some  understand  this  as  having  reference  to  the  chains  wherewith  he  was  to  be 
bound  in  Jerusalem,  which  were  already  present  to  him  by  anticipation.  Others  think 
that  bound  in  the  spirit  signifies  that  St.  Paul  was  impelled  towards  J  erusalem  by  the 
Spirit  of  God,  as  by  an  impetuous  wind  which  so  urged  him  on  that  he  could  neither 
stop  nor  turn  aside.  In  this  sense,  bound  in  the  Spirit  would  signify  forced  by  the  Spirit. 

(5)  He  knew  it  not  in  detail,  nor  yet  whether  persecution  was  to  go  so  far  as  putting 
him  to  death. 


1 


Pi 

if  Cl, 

Srm 

h 


tilings  wliicli  shall  befall  me  there  ;  save  that  the  Holy  Ghost  in 
every  city  (1)  witnesseth  to  me,  saying:  that  bands  and  afflictions 
wait  for  me  at  Jerusalem.  But  I  fear  none  of  these  things,  neither 
do  I  count  my  life  more  precious  than  myself  (2),  so  that  I  may 
consummate  my  course,  and  the  ministry  of  the  word  which  I  re¬ 
ceived  from  the  Lord  Jesus,  to  testify  the  Gospel  of  the  grace  of 
God.  And  now  behold  I  know  that  all  you  among  whom  I  have 
gone  (3)  preaching  the  kingdom  of  God,  shall  see  my  face  no 
more  (4).  Wherefore  I  take  you  to  witness  this  day  that  I  am  clear 
from  the  blood  of  all  men.  For  I  have  not  spared  to  declare  unto 
you  all  the  counsel  of  God.” 

Then  addressing  himself  to  the  bishops,  and  probably  to  them 
alone,  to  whom  the  Council  of  Trent  (5)  also  applies  the  following 
words,  exclusive  of  all  other  ministers,  he  continues  thus  : 

“  Take  heed  to  yourselves  (6)  and  to  the  whole  flock  wherein  the 
Holy  Ghost  hath  placed  you  bishops,  to  rule  the  Church  of  God, 


(1)  We  have  already  seen  that  the  gift  of  prophecy  was  common  in  those  primitive 
times,  and  that  wherever  there  were  Christians,  prophets  were  also  found. 

(2)  What  could  he  mean  by  himself,  as  distinguished  from  his  life,  and  which  he 
seems  to  consider  of  greater  importance,  if  it  he  not  his  immortal  soul,  which,  by  the  loss 
of  temporal  life,  was  to  enter  upon  the  possession  of  a  life  of  eternal  happiness  ? 

(3)  You  among  whom  I  have  gone.  These  are  the  words  from  which  the  inference 
has  been  drawn  that  besides  the  pastors  of  the  church  of  Ephesus,  St.  Paul  summoned 
to  Miletus  those  of  the  adjoining  cities. 

(4)  Yet  St.  Paul,  writing  some  years  after  to  the  Philippians,  tells  them  that  he  hopes 
to  see  them  soon,  and  there  are  certain  passages  in  his  epistles  which  give  us  to  under¬ 
stand  that  he  did  return  again  to  the  East.  This  lias  caused  some  commentators  to 
think  that  he  merely  spoke  from  conjecture  when  he  told  the  Ephesians  that  they  should 
see  him  no  more  ;  but  he  speaks  too  positively  for  us  to  believe  that  he  only  expressed 
a  supposition.  I  know,  says  he  ;  which  leaves  little  room  for  doubt  but  that  the  thing 
had  been  revealed  to  him  ;  and  it  is  admitted  by  all  that  he  might  easily  have  returned 
to  Philippi  without  touching  at  Ephesus. 

(5)  Sess.  vi.,  cap.  1,  of  Reform. 

(6)  If  a  man  know  not  how  to  rule  his  own  house,  says  the  apostle  in  another  place, 
how  shall  he  take  care  of  the  Church  of  God?  (l  Tim.,  iii.  5).  Still  less  can  he  do  it  who 
knows  not  how  to  govern  himself.  This  advice  is  applicable  to  every  time,  and  to  all 
pastors  ;  but  here  he  recommends  to  them  redoubled  vigilance  and  attention.  He  warns 
them  of  persecutions  and  temptations  near  at  hand.  It  is  also  certain  that  the  flock  were 
not  to  be  exclusively  cared  for,  but  the  pastors  were  likewise  to  mind  themselves.  Pas¬ 
tors  though  they  be,  they  are  still  men,  subject,  like  other  men,  to  doubt  and  infirmity  ; 
the  difference  is  only  in  degree. 


fi&A. 


I  o  a  cï  x  a  ■ 


/A 


692 


THE  HISTORY"  OE  THE 


[CHAP.  XX. 

which  he  hath  purchased  with  his  own  blood  (1).”  This  vigilance 
will  now  be  more  than  ever  necessary  ;  for  (2)  “  I  know  that  after 
my  departure  ravening  wolves  (3)  will  enter  in  among  you,  not 
sparing  the  flock.  And  of  your  own  selves  shall  arise  men  speaking 
perverse  things,  to  draw  away  disciples  after  them.  Therefore 
watch,”  after  my  example,  “  keeping  in  memory  that  for  three  years 
I  ceased  not  with  tears  to  admonish  every  one  of  you,  night  and 
day.  And  now  I  commend  you  to  God,  and  to  the  word  of  his 
grace  (4)  to  that  God  “  who  is  able  to  build  up”  what  is  now 
commenced,  “  and  to  give”  you  part  in  “  an  inheritance  among  all 
the  sanctified.” 

It  seems  as  if  nothing  were  wanting  to  complete  this  picture  of  a 
good  pastor.  We  here  find  all  the  features  which  characterize  true 
zeal  :  universal,  for  it  had  embraced  all  in  general,  and  each  in  par¬ 
ticular;  constant,  since  it  had  never  relaxed  during  all  that  long 
period  of  time  which  St.  Paul  had  passed  in  those  provinces  ;  firm 
and  immovable,  for  it  had  withstood  all  the  efforts  of  persecution  ; 
indefatigable,  for  it  impelled  him  to  labor  night  and  day  ;  tender, 
for  his  admonitions  were  rather  prayers,  which  he  accompanied  with 
his  tears.  Is  there  any  thing  impracticable  for  zeal  such  as  this  ? 
Nevertheless,  it  might  have  lost  its  efiicacy  had  one  quality  been 
wanting,  that  is,  disinterestedness.  Avarice,  whether  it  be  really 
apparent,  or  only  suspected,  degrades  a  pastor  to  a  contemptible  de¬ 
gree  ;  but  perfect  disinterestedness  gives  him  a  strength  and  a  power 
to  which  men  offer  the  less  opposition,  inasmuch  as  they  are  them¬ 
selves  the  more  interested.  This  noble  virtue  shone  pre-eminently 


(1)  In  the  Greek  it  is  by  his  own  blood  (in  the  French  it  is  par  son  sang,  by  his  blood). 
If  Jesus  Christ  be  not  God,  who,  then,  is  the  God  who  has  purchased  the  Church  by 
his  own  blood ? 

(2)  This  for  is  not  in  the  Latin,  but  it  is  in  the  Greek.  It  serves  to  connect  the  con¬ 
text  with  what  goes  before,  and  appears  to  determine  the  meaning  as  we  have  taken  it. 

(3)  These  ravening  wolves  are  the  avowed  persecutors  ;  those  who  speak  perverse 
things  are  the  heretics.  These,  taken  together,  are  the  two  great  trials  which  the  Church 
has  to  undergo  ;  they  are  coeval  with  her  own  existence,  and  shall  end  only  with  herself. 

(4)  That  is  to  say,  the  word  of  the  Gospel,  which  the  apostle,  as  it  were,  personifies  ; 
referring  them  to  that  word  as  to  a  master  that  will  direct  them  in  all  tilings,  and  sustain 
them  by  the  grace  which  accompanies  its  instructions.  Some  think  that  the  word  of  his 
grace  meant  simply  his  grace,  according  to  a  common  Hebrew  idiom. 


CHAP.  XX.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


698 


in  St.  Paul,  above  all  the  other  apostles.  We  may,  therefore,  judge 
with  what  confidence  and  what  authority  he  could  add  what  follows  : 

“I  have  not  coveted  any  man’s  silver,  gold,  or  apparel,  as  you 
yourselves  know  ;  for  such  things  as  were  needful  for  me  and  them 
that  are  with  me,  these  hands  have  furnished  (1).  I  have  showed 
you  all  things  (2),  how  that  so  laboring,  you  ought  to  support  the 
weak,  and  to  remember  the  word  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  how  he  said  : 
It  is  a  more  blessed  thing  to  give ,  rather  than  to  receive  (3).” 

“  And  when  he  had  said  these  things,  kneeling  down  he  prayed 
with  them  all.  And  there  was  much  weeping  among  them  all  ;  and 
falling  on  the  neck  of  Paul,  they  kissed  him,  being  grieved  most  of 
all  for  the  word  which  he  had  said,  that  they  should  see  his  face  no 
more.  And  they  brought  him  on  his  way  to  the  ship.” 


(1)  Either  the  trade  at  which  St.  Paul  worked  was  very  lucrative,  since  it  served  to 
maintain  so  many  persons,  or  else  the  fare  of  those  apostolic  men  was  very  frugal.  The 
last  conjecture  is,  undoubtedly,  the  most  probable. 

(2)  St.  Paul  wished  that  all  should  see  him  work,  so  that  it  might  be  well  understood 
that  he  lived  by  the  labor  of  his  own  hands.  Otherwise  it  might  have  been  suspected 
that  he  was  supported  by  the  secret  contributions  of  the  faithful,  and  in  this  the  apostle 
would  have  been  no  ways  reprehensible  ;  but  then  the  weak  might  have  been  scandalized, 
imagining  that  he  was  more  or  less  actuated  by  these  interested  motives  in  prosecuting 
the  work  of  his  mission  ;  hence  the  purity  of  his  motives  and  intentions  might  have  been 
called  in  question,  and  a  doubt  thrown  on  that  perfect  disinterestedness  which  he  wished 
to  make  clearly  manifest.  It  is  in  this  sense  he  says,  that  in  laboring,  he  complied  with 
the  weak. 

(3)  This  word  has  been  superadded  to  the  Gospel  text.  St.  Paul  must  have  learned 
it  from  some  of  those  who  had  heard  it  from  the  sacred  lips  of  Jesus  Christ  ;  for  it  is 
not  found  in  any  of  the  four  Gospels.  It  has  been  said  that  the  meaning  is  found  there, 
and  that  it  is  in  this  way  St.  Paul  quotes  it,  clothing  it  in  his  own  words  ;  such,  how¬ 
ever,  is  not  the  case,  for  a  very  little  reflection  on  the  manner  in  which  St.  Paul  expresses 
it,  will  suffice  to  show  that  he  quotes  the  very  words  of  our  divine  Redeemer. 


W'Â 


i'j 


PROPHECY  OF  AG  ABUS. - ST.  PAUL  IN  JERUSALEM. - HE  IS  ARRESTED  BY  THE 

JEWS. - THE  TRIBUNE  LYSIUS  WITHDRAWS  HIM  FROM  THEIR  CUSTODY. 

(a) 1 2 3 4  5  And  when  it  came  to  pass  that  being  parted  from  them  we 
set  sail,  we  came  with  a  straight  course  to  Coos  (1),  and  the  day  fol¬ 
lowing  to  Rhodes,  and  from  thence  to  Patara.  And  when  we  had 
found  a  ship  sailing  over  to  Phenicia,  we  went  aboard  and  set  forth. 
And  when  we  had  discovered  Cyprus,  leaving  it  on  the  left  hand, 
we  sailed  into  Syria,  and  came  to  Tyre  :  for  there  the  ship  was  to 
unlade  her  burden.  And  finding  disciples,  we  tarried  there  seven 
days  ;  who  said  to  Paul  through  the  Spirit  (2)  that  he  should  not 
go  up  to  Jerusalem.  And  the  days  being  expired,  departing  we 
went  forward,  they  all  bringing  us  on  our  way,  with  their  wives  and 
children,  till  we  were  out  of  the  city  ;  and  we  kneeled  down  on  the 
shore,  and  we  prayed.  And  when  we  had  bid  one  another  farewell, 
we  took  ship  ;  and  they  returned  home.  But  we,  having  finished 
the  voyage  by  sea,  from  Tyre  came  down  to  Ptolemais  (3)  ;  and 
saluting  the  brethren,  we  abode  one  day  with  them.  And  the 
next  day,  departing  we  came  to  Cesarea.  And  entering  into  the 
house  of  Philip  the  evangelist,  who  was  one  of  the  seven  (4),  we 

(a)  Acts,  xxi.  1. 


(1)  Coos,  now  Stanchio,  a  considerable  island  in  the  Archipelago,  being  one  of  those 
which  were  formerly  called  the  Cyclades.  It  was  the  birth-place  of  Hippocrates,  the 
prince  of  physicians  ;  and  also  of  Apelles,  the  greatest  painter  of  antiquity.  Rhodes  is 
so  well  known  that  it  requires  no  comment.  Patara ,  now  Patera,  a  maritime  town  of  an¬ 
cient  Lycia  ;  it  was  the  birth-place  of  St.  Nicholas. 

(2)  The  Holy  Ghost  revealed  to  them  the  persecutions  which  Paul  was  to  undergo. 
While  predicting  them,  they  admonished  him  not  to  expose  himself  to  such  danger  ;  this 
they  did  of  their  own  accord,  for  the  Holy  Ghost  willed  that  he  should  expose  himself 
on  that  occasion  ;  but  he  allowed  them  to  speak  so,  because  their  intention  was  good, 
and  because  it  made  St.  Paul  still  more  meritorious,  by  rejecting  their  friendly  warning. 

(3)  Since  called  St.  John  d’Acre,  a  city  celebrated  in  the  time  of  the  Crusades  for  the 
numerous  sieges  which  it  underwent. 

(4)  One  of  the  seven  deacons,  the  same  who  is  spoken  of  in  the  sixth  and  eighth  chap¬ 

ters. 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


695 


CHAP.  XXI.] 

abode  with  him.  And  he  had  four  daughters,  virgins,  who  did 
prophesy  (1).” 

“And  as  we  tarried  there  for  some  days,  there  came  from  Judea 
a  certain  prophet,  named  Agabus  (2),  who  when  he  was  come  to  us, 
took  Paul’s  girdle,  and  binding  his  own  feet  and  hands  (3),  he  said  : 
Thus  saitli  the  Holy  Ghost:  The  man  whose  girdle  this  is,  the  Jews 
shall  bind  in  this  manner  in  Jerusalem,  and  shall  deliver  him  into 
the  hands  of  the  Gentiles.  Which  when  we  had  heard,  both  we 
and  they  that  were  of  that  place,  desired  him  (4)  that  he  would  not 
go  up  to  Jerusalem.  Then  Paul  answered  and  said  :  What  do  you 
mean,  weeping  and  afflicting  my  heart  (5)  ?  For  I  am  ready,  not 
only  to  be  bound,  but  to  die  also  in  Jerusalem,  for  the  name  of  the 
Lord  Jesus.  And  when  we  could  not  persuade  him,  we  ceased,  say¬ 
ing:  The  wi]l  of  the  Lord  be  done.  And  after  those  days,  being 
prepared,  we  went  up  to  Jerusalem.  And  there  went  also  with  us 
some  of  the  disciples  from  Cesarea,  bringing  with  them  one  Mnason, 
a  Cyprian,  an  old  disciple,  with  whom  we  should  lodge.” 


(1)  This  was  the  accomplishment  of  that  prophecy  of  Joel,  quoted  by  St.  Peter: 
Your  sons  and  your  daughters  shall  prophesy.  These  young  women  were  virgins,  and, 
therefore,  the  more  fit  to  receive  celestial  inspiration.  The  Church  recognizes  them  as 
saints,  and  St.  Jerome,  writing  against  Jovinian,  remarks  with  reference  to  them,  that 
the  profession  of  virginity  was  coeval  with  Christianity  itself. 

(2)  The  same  who  had  foretold  the  famine  which  happened  in  the  reign  of  Claudius, 
as  related  in  chap.  ii. 

(3)  It  was  not  unusual  for  the  prophets  to  accompany  their  words  by  some  exterior 
action  which  rendered  their  predictions  more  sensible.  These  actions  were  no  less  in¬ 
spired  than  were  the  words  themselves,  as  we  see  by  the  examples  of  Isaias,  of  Jere¬ 
miah,  of  Ezechiel,  &c. 

(4)  St.  Paul  had  consented  that  the  brethren  should  convey  him  out  of  Damascus  by 
lowering  him  in  a  basket  from  the  walls  of  the  city  ;  he  had  also  yielded  to  tire  advice 
of  his  friends,  when  they  urged  him  not  to  venture  into  the  theatre  at  Ephesus  :  but  now 
neither  prayers  nor  tears  can  move  him  from  his  purpose  of  going  to  brave  all  the  fury 
of  the  Jews.  It  was  the  will  of  God  that  he  should  elude  persecution  on  the  two  pre¬ 
ceding  occasions,  and  that  he  should  now  meet  it  face  to  face.  These  opposite  decrees 
of  God,  being  known  to  him,  caused  him  to  act  with  such  apparent  inconsistency.  This 
remark  is  from  St.  Chrysostom. 

(5)  He  was  insensible  to  the  sufferings  which  he  was  to  undergo,  but  not  to  the  afflic¬ 
tion  which  they  gave  to  his  brethren.  If  it  is  amiable  to  have  such  exquisite  sensibility, 
how  noble  it  is  to  be  able  to  subdue  it  !  His  love  for  Jesus  was  greater  than  that  where¬ 
with  he  loved  his  brethren,  though  them  he  loved  more  than  himself. 


696 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  XXL 


“  And  when  we  were  come  to  Jerusalem,  the  brethren  received 
us  gladly.  And  the  day  following,  Paul  went  in  with  us  unto 
James  (1)  ;  and  all  the  ancients  were  assembled  (2).  Whom  when 
we  had  saluted,  he  related  particularly  what  things  God  had  wrought 
among  the  Gentiles  by  his  ministry  :  but  they  hearing  it,  glorified 
God.” 

Nevertheless  as  it  was  necessary  to  put  a  stop  to  a  species  of  scan¬ 
dal  which,  though  it  had  no  other  foundation  than  some  idle  rumors, 
might  still  have  some  effect  in  retarding  the  progress'  of  the  Gospel, 
they  added  the  following:  “Thou  seest,  brother,  how  many  thou¬ 
sands  (3)  there  are  among  the  Jews  that  have  believed  ;  and  they 
are  all  zealots  for  the  law.  Now  they  have  heard  of  thee  that  thou 
teacliest  those  Jews  who  are  among  the  Gentiles,  to  depart  from 
Moses  ;  saying  that  they  ought  not  to  circumcise  their  children,  nor 
walk  according  to  the  custom.  What  is  it,  therefore,”  that  must  be 
done?  “The  multitude  must  needs  come  together,  for  they  will 
hear  that  thou  art  come.  Do  therefore  this  that  we  say  to  thee. 
We  have  four  men  who  have  a  vow  on  them  (4)  ;  take  these  and 


(1)  James  the  Less,  he  who  is  called  the  brother  of  our  Lord.  All  the  other  apostles 
were  dispersed.  He  was  the  only  one  who  remained  in  Jerusalem,  of  which  he  had 
been  appointed  bishop;  thus  the  first  bishop  was  also  the  first  who  remained  stationary 
in  charge  of  his  mission.  St.  Paul  paid  this  tribute  of  honor  to  his  dignity  and  sanctity. 
It  was  about  five  years  after  this  that  St.  James  the  Less  was  precipitated,  and  after¬ 
wards  killed  by  the  Jews,  in  hatred  of  Christianity.  After  the  perpetration  of  that 
crime,  Jerusalem  had  no  more  apostles. 

(2)  The  clergy  of  Jerusalem.  The  Greek  word  signifies  both  ancients  and  priests. 

(3)  In  Greek,  how  many  myriads.  A  myriad  was  equal  to  ten  thousand,  which 
shows  that  the  Christian  Jews  were  very  numerous  in  Jerusalem.  When  St.  Paul  says, 
speaking  of  the  Jews  :  “  If  some  amongst  them  have  been  unfaithful,”  this  expression, 
taken  literally,  would  lead  us  to  believe  that  the  unbelievers  were  the  minority  :  but  not 
so,  for  the  great  mass  of  the  people  remained  in  incredulity  :  still  this  mode  of  speaking 
gives  us  to  understand  that  a  very  considerable  number  had  embraced  the  faith. 

(4)  The  vow  of  the  Nazarenes,  of  which  we  have  already  spoken.  This  vow  was  one 
of  pure  devotion,  but  that  devotion  was  instituted  by  God  himself,  as  we  see  by  the  sixth 
chapter  of  the  Book  of  Numbers.  By  making  and  fulfilling  this  vow,  St.  Paul,  there¬ 
fore,  displayed  a  greater  attachment  to  Judaism  than  if  he  had  merely  done  what  was 
strictly  commanded  ;  so,  amongst  us,  to  make  a  vow  of  observing  the  counsels  indicates 
a  more  devoted  Christian  than  merely  to  obey  the  precepts.  It  was  another  proof  of 
zeal  for  the  practices  of  Judaism  to  defray,  as  St.  Paul  did,  the  expenses  of  those  who 
performed  this  devotion  with  him.  This  was  by  no  means  unusual  amongst  the  Jews, 


CHAP.  XXI.j 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


697 


sanctify  thyself  with  them;  and  bestow  on  them  that  they  may 
shave  their  heads  ;  and  all  will  know  that  the  things  which  they 
have  heard  of  thee  are  false  :  but  that  thou  thyself  also  walkest, 
keeping  the  law.  But  as  touching  the  Gentiles  that  believe,  we 
have  written,  decreeing  that  they  should  only  refrain  themselves 
from  that  which  has  been  offered  to  idols,  and  from  blood,  and  from 
things  strangled,  and  from  fornication,”  without  exacting  any  more 
from  them. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  St.  Paul’s  dispositions  with  regard  to 
the  law  :  he  looked  upon  it  as  abolished,  but  yet  not  condemned. 
Consequently,  it  was  to  him  a  matter  of  indifference  whether  he  ob¬ 
served  it  or  not,  unless  where  the  interest  of  his  neighbor  was  at 
stake.  His  conduct,  in  this  respect,  had  ever  been  in  accordance 
with  his  sentiments,  and  so  it  was  on  this  occasion,  when  he  showed 
at  the  same  time  his  respect  for  the  advice  of  his  brethren,  and  his 
condescension  towards  the  weak  and  imperfect. 

He  “  took,”  therefore,  “  the  men”  who  had  made  the  vow,  “  and 
the  next  day,  being  purified  with  them,  entered  into  the  temple, 
giving  notice  of  the  accomplishment  of  the  days  of  purification, 
until  an  oblation  should  be  offered  for  every  one  of  them.  But 
when  the  seven  days  were  drawing  to  an  end,  those  Jews  that  were 
of  Asia,  when  they  saw  him  in  the  temple,  stirred  up  all  the  people, 
and  laid  hands  upon  him,  crying  out  :  Men  of  Israel,  help  :  this  is 
the  man  that  teacheth  all  men  everywhere  against  the  people,  and 
the  law,  and  this  place  ;  and  moreover  hath  brought  in  Gentiles  into 
the  temple,  and  hath  violated  this  holy  place.  (For  they  had  seen 
Trophimus  the  Ephesian  in  the  city  with  him,  whom  they  supposed 
that  Paul  had  brought  into  the  temple.)  And  the  whole  city  Avas 
in  an  uproar  ;  and  the  people  ran  together.  And  taking  Paul,  they 
drew  him  out  of  the  temple,  and  immediately  the  doors  were  shut.” 

These  scrupulous  observers  of  the  law  were  afraid  lest  the  temple 
should  be  desecrated  by  the  effusion  of  human  blood.  Hence  their 
haste  in  taking  him  out,  and  then  closing  up  the  temple,  lest  he 
might  escape  from  their  hands,  and  re-enter  the  holy  place.  Having 


and  we  see  it  now-a-days  imitated  by  those  who  make  pilgrimages  for  others  at  tbeii 
own  expense 


â' 

4  «t 

*y>> 


P’V 


arranged  with  this  scruple,  “  they  went  about  to  kill  him,”  and  “  it 
was  told  the  tribune  of  the  band,  that  all  Jerusalem  was  in  confu¬ 
sion.  Who  forthwith  taking  with  him  soldiers  and  centurions,  ran 
down  to  them.  And  when  they  saw  the  tribune  and  the  soldiers, 
they  left  off  beating  Paul.  Then  the  tribune  coming  near,  took 
him,  and  commanded  him  to  be  bound  with  two  chains  (1);  and 
demanded  who  he  was,  and  what  he  had  done.  And  some  cried 
one  thing,  some  another,  among  the  multitude.  And  when  he  could 
not  know  the  certainty  for  the  tumult,  he  commanded  him  to  be 
carried  into  the  castle  (2).  And  when  he  was  come  to  the  stairs,  it 
fell  out  that  he  was  carried  by  the  soldiers,  because  of  the  violence 
of  the  people.  For  the  multitude  of  the  people  followed  after,  cry¬ 
ing:  Away  with  him.” 

“  And  as  Paul  was  about  to  be  brought  into  the  castle,  he  saith 
to  the  tribune”  in  the  Greek  tongue,  “  May  I  speak  something  to 
thee  ?  Who  said  :  Canst  thou  speak  Greek  ?  Art  thou  not  that 
Egyptian  (3),”  he  added,  “  who  before  these  days  didst  raise  a  tumult, 
and  didst  lead  forth  into  the  desert  four  thousand  men  that  were 
murderers  ?  But  Paul  said  to  him  :  I  am  a  Jew  of  Tarsus  in  Cilicia, 
a  citizen  of  no  mean  city.  And  I  beseech  thee  suffer  me  to  speak  to 

(1)  According  to  the  prophecy  of  Agabus,  whereby  we  learn  that  St.  Paul  had  his 
hands  tied  with  one  of  these  chains,  and  his  feet  with  the  other.  It  was,  doubtless,  be¬ 
cause  of  the  chain  on  his  feet  that  the  soldiers  were  obliged  to  carry  St.  Paul  up  the 
steps  of  the  castle,  as  otherwise  he  could  not  ascend  fast  enough  to  escape  the  multitude 
pressing  on  behind. 

(2)  The  castle  of  Antonia,  according  to  all  the  interpreters.  It  was  adjacent  to  the 
temple,  and  from  the  highest  of  its  towers  there  was  a  view  of  what  passed  therein.  It 
was  much  embellished  and  fortified  anew  by  Herod  the  Great.  He  gave  it  the  name  of 
Antonia,  in  honor  of  Mark  Antony,  who  was  then  his  patron.  The  Romans,  when  they 
had  subjugated  Judea,  established  a  garrison  in  the  fortress,  which  served  to  accommo¬ 
date  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem,  and  strangers  who  came  in  to  assist  at  the  grand 
solemnities. 

(3)  Josephus,  and  after  him,  Eusebius,  speaks  of  this  Egyptian  who  came  out  from 
Egypt  with  four  thousand  men,  but  whose  band  was  increased,  as  they  say,  to  thirty 
thousand.  He  was  a  false  prophet  and  a  magician,  who  had  made  his  followers  believe 
that  with  a  single  word  he  could  throw  down  the  walls  of  Jerusalem.  Felix  sent  troops 
against  him,  when  a  number  of  his  people  were  slain,  and  the  rest  taken  prisoners.  He 
himself  disappeared  during  the  contest,  and  it  was  never  known  what  became  of  him. 
Of  course,  the  victors  would  have  been  well  pleased  to  capture  him  ;  and  the  tribune, 
judging  by  the  fury  of  tire  people,  very  naturally  conjectured  that  St.  Paul  might  be 
this  impostor,  so  justly  and  so  universally  detested. 


CHAP.  XXII.] 


ACTS  «P  THE  APOSTLES. 


699 


the  people.  And  when  he  had  given  him  leave,  Paul,  standing  on 
the  stairs,  beckoned  with  his  hand  to  the  people.  And  a  great 
silence  being  made,  he  spoke  unto  them  in  the  Hebrew  tongue, 
saying 

I  _ _ _ 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

DISCOURSE  OF  ST.  PAUL  TO  THE  JEWS. - THE  TRIBUNE  CONDEMNS  HIM  TO  THE  LASH. - 

HE  DECLARES  HIMSELF  A  ROMAN  CITIZEN. 

(a)  “  Men,  brethren,  and  fathers,”  said  this  intrepid  man,  unawed 
by  the  stormy  scene  before  him,  “  hear  ye  the  account  which  I  now 
give  unto  you.  (And  when  they  heard  that  he  spoke  unto  them  in 
the  Hebrew  tongue,  they  kept  the  more  silence.)  And  he  saith  : 
I,”  who  speak  to  you,  “  am  a  Jew  ;  born  at  Tarsus,  in  Cilicia,  but 
brought  up  in  this  city  at  the  feet  (1)  of  Gamaliel  (2),  taught  ac¬ 
cording  to  the  truth  of  the  law  of  the  fathers,  zealous  for  the  law, 
as  also  all  you  are  this  day.  Who  persecuted  this  way  unto  death, 
binding  and  delivering  into  prisons  both  men  and  women.  As  the 
high-priest  (3)  doth  bear  me  witness,  and  all  the  ancients  (4)  ;  from 
whom  also  receiving  letters  to  the  brethren,  I  went  to  Damascus, 
that  I  might  bring  them  bound  from  thence  to  Jerusalem  to  be  pun- 

la)  Acts,  xxii.  1. 


(1)  Masters,  in  every  country,  occupy  seats  higher  than  those  of  their  pupils;  this 
was  especially  the  case  in  the  East,  where  the  pupils,  or  disciples,  are  seated  on  carpets 
or  mats  on  the  floor.  Hence  arose  that  figure  of  speech,  to  approach  the  feet  of  any  one, 
meaning  to  become  his  disciple.  In  this  way  is  explained  that  text,  Deut.,  xxxiii.  3  : 
They  who  approach  to  his  feet  shall  receive  of  his  doctrine.  This  is  what  Mary  did,  when 
sitting  at  the  Lord's  feet,  she  heard  his  word  (St.  Luke,  x.  39). 

(2)  This  Gamaliel  is  the  same  who  was  mentioned  in  chap.  v. 

(3)  The  high-priest  here  referred  to,  was  not  the  same  who  then  held  office  ;  whether 
it  was  that  St.  Paul  was  unaware  that  this  dignity  had  devolved  on  another,  or  that  lie 
took  it  for  granted  that  his  hearers  understood  him  in  the  sense  we  have  given. 

(4)  The  Greek  word,  which  the  Vulgate  here  gives  as  the  ancients,  literally  signifies 
the  sacerdotal  senate. 


ishecl.  And  it  came  to  pass,  as  I  was  going,  and  drawing  nigh  to 
Damascus  at  mid-day  (1),  that  suddenly  from  heaven  there  shone 
found  about  me  a  great  light.  And  falling  on  the  ground,  I  heard 
a  voice  saying  to  me  :  Saul,  Saul,  why  persecutest  thou  me  ?  And 
I  answered  :  Who  art  thou,  Lord?  And  he  said  to  me:  I  am  Jesus 
of  Nazareth,  whom  thou  persecutest.  And  they  that  were  with  me 
saw  indeed  the  light,  but  they  heard  not  the  voice  of  him  that  spoke 
with  me  (2).  And  I  said  :  What  shall  I  do,  Lord  ?  And  the  Lord 
said  to  me  :  Arise,  and  go  to  Damascus  ;  and  there  it  shall  be  told 
thee  of  all  things  that  thou  must  do.  And  whereas  I  did  not  see 
for  the  brightness  of  that  light,  being  led  by  the  hand  by  my  com¬ 
panions,  I  came  to  Damascus,  And  one  Ananias,  a  man  according 
to  the  law,  having  testimony  of  all  the  Jews  who  dwelt  there,  com¬ 
ing  to  me,  and  standing  by  me,  said  to  me  :  Brother  Saul,  look  up. 
And  I  the  same  hour  looked  upon  him  (3).  But  he  said  :  The  God 
of  our  fathers  hath  pre-ordained  thee  that  thou  shouldst  know  his 
will,  and  see  the  Just  One  (4),  and  shouldst  hear  the  voice  from  his 
mouth.  For  thou  shalt  be  his  witness  to  all  men  of  those  things 
which  thou  hast  seen  and  heard.  And  now  wThy  tarriest  thou? 
Rise  up,  and  be  baptized,  and  wash  away  thy  sins  (5),  invoking  his 
name.” 


(1)  The  circumstance  of  the  hour  of  mid-day,  of  which  we  find  no  mention  at  chap, 
ix.,  is  far  from  being  useless  here.  It  goes  to  prove  that  this  light  came  indeed  from 
heaven,  and  was  miraculous.  We  frequently  see  during  the  night  very  brilliant  lights, 
formed  of  the  exhalations  from  the  earth,  when  they  become  inflamed  and  ignite  in  the 
air  ;  but  this  dazzling  light  which  was  seen  by  St.  Paul  appeared  in  the  middle  of  the 
day,  and  must,  therefore,  have  been  supernatural. 

(2)  He  here  declares  which  voice  it  was  that  they  did  not  hear.  It  was  the  voice  of 
him  that  spoke  with  him  ;  they  must  have  heard  the  vôice  of  St.  Paul,  since  it  is  said  in 
chap.  ix.  that  they  heard  a  voice.  See  note  3  of  page  t»2'7. 

(3)  He  looked  up,  and  saw  him,  because  at  the  first  word  spoken  by  Ananias,  he  had 
miraculously  recovered  his  sight.  This  fact,  here  casually  mentioned,  is  given  in  detail 
in  chap.  ix. 

(4)  Jesus  Christ,  who  is  called  the  Just  One  by  excellence,  because  he  is  essentially 
just,  and  that  all  justice  is  derived  from  his,  according  to  that  saying  of  St.  Paul  :  Jesus 
has  been  made  our  justice  and  our  sanctification. 

(5)  Wash  away  thy  sins  by  baptism,  1st,  as  regards  the  fault,  if  the  dispositions  are 
not  sufficiently  good  to  effect  the  justification  before  the  reception  of  the  sacrament  ;  2d, 
as  regards  the  temporal  punishment  still  due  for  these  sins  although  they  be  forgiven. 
It  is  the  peculiar  effect  of  baptism  to  wash  away  the  traces  of  sin,  and  remit  the  tem- 


N 


My  sole  desire  was  to  communicate  this  great  blessing  to  my 
brethren  ;  but  “it  came  to  pass  when  I  was  come  again  to  Jerusalem, 
and  was  praying  in  the  temple,  that  I  was  in  a  trance,  and  saw”  the 
Lord,  “  saying  unto  me  :  Make  haste,  and  get  thee  quickly  out  of 
Jerusalem  ;  because  they  will  not  receive  thy  testimony  concerning 
me.  And  I  said  :  Lord,”  they  cannot  doubt  my  testimony  ;  “  they 
know  that  I  cast  into  prison  and  beat  in  every  synagogue  them  that 
believed  in  thee.  And  when  the  blood  of  Stephen  thy  witness  was 
shed,  I  stood  by  and  consented,  and  kept  the  garments  of  them  that 
killed  him.  And”  the  Lord  “  said  to  me  :  Go,  for  unto  the  Gentiles 
afar  off  will  I  send  thee  (1).” 

It  was  neither  through  dislike  of  his  own  people,  nor  any  predi¬ 
lection  in  favor  of  the  Gentiles,  that  St.  Paul  went  to  preach  the 
Gospel  to  the  nations,  but  solely  in  virtue  of  a  divine  commission, 
and  by  the  express  command  of  his  Master.  An  announcement  so 
proper  to-  appease  the  people  did  but  exasperate  them  still  more. 
“They  heard  him  until  this  word,  and  then  lifted  up  their  voice, 
saying  :  Away  with  such  an  one  from  the  earth  (2)  ;  for  it  is  not  fit 
that  he  should  live.  And  as  they  cried  out  and  threw  off  their  gar¬ 
ments,  and  cast  dust  into  the  air  (3),  the  tribune  commanded  him 


poral  punishment.  The  desire  of  baptism,  joined  to  the  justifying  dispositions,  do  not 
produce  this  effect,  unless  the  sacrament  be  really  conferred  and  received.  Such  is  the 
common  opinion  of  theologians. 

(1)  St.  Paul,  since  his  conversion,  has  visited  Jerusalem  three  times,  and  the  commen¬ 
tators  are  at  a  loss  to  know  on  which  of  these  occasions  he  had  this  vision.  It  is  plain 
that  it  was  not  in  his  third  visit,  which  he  was  then  making  ;  and  it  appears  to  us  more 
than  probable  that  it  was  in  the  first,  since  it  was  immediately  after  that  first  visit  that 
he  commenced  preaching  the  Gospel  to  the  Gentiles,  for  whom  he  had  just  received  his 
mission. 

(2)  St.  Peter,  who  bitterly  reproached  them,  yet  converted  thousands — while  St.  Paul, 
though  addressing  them  with  all  possible  mildness,  does  but  excite  their  anger.  The 
reason  of  these  two  different  results  may  be  found  by  the  difference  of  vocation.  He, 
says  St.  Paul,  who  wrought  in  Peter  to  the  apostleship  of  the  circumcision,  wrought  in 
me  also  among  the  Gentiles  (Gal.,  ii.  8).  It  is  not  that  St.  Peter  did  not  sometimes  an¬ 
nounce  the  Gospel  to  the  Gentiles,  and  St.  Paul  to  the  Jews.  Neither  was  their  preach¬ 
ing  altogether  fruitless  on  those  occasions  ;  but  still  the  main  success  was  attached  to 
the  special  vocations.  This  would  seem  to  be  the  meaning  of  those  words  which  we 
have  just  read:  They  will  not  receive  thy  testimony  concerning  me. . . . unto  the  Gentiles 
will  I  send  thee. 

(3)  This  might  be  their  usual  mode  of  expressing  indignation  or  execration  ;  or  pos- 


—<Sk. 


r/<T\vvrg^ 


SX, 


opr 


f? 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XXII. 


to  be  brought  into  the  castle,  and  that  he  should  be  scourged  and 
tortured  ;  to  know  for  what  cause  they  did  so  cry  out  against  him.” 

He  was  ignorant  of  it,  because  he  did  not  understand  the  language 
in  which  St.  Paul  spoke  ;  and,  as  we  have  already  remarked,  he 
judged  the  accused  party  by  the  fury  of  his  accusers.  Hence  it  was 
that  he  treated  him  with  so  little  respect  ;  but  it  was  not  long  till 
he  changed  his  conduct  towards  him.  “  When  they  had”  already 
“  bound  him  with  thongs  (1),  Paul  saith  to  the  centurion  that  stood 
by  him  :  Is  it  lawful  for  you  to  scourge  a  man  that  is  a  Roman  (2), 
and  uncondemned  ?  Which  the  centurion  hearing,  went  to  the 
tribune,  and  told  him,  saying  :  What  art  thou  about  to  do  ?  for  this 
man  is  a  Roman  citizen.  And  the  tribune  coming,  said  to  him  : 
Tell  me,  art  thou  a  Roman  ?  But  he  said  :  Yea.  And  the  tribune 
answered  :  I  obtained  the  being  free  of  this  city  with  a  great  sum. 
And  Paul  said  :  But  I  was  born  so.  Immediately,  therefore,  they 
departed  from  him  that  were  about  to  torture  him.  The  tribune, 
also,  was  afraid  (3),  after  he  understood  that  he  was  a  Roman  citi¬ 
zen,  and  because  he  had  bound  him.  But  on  the  next  day,  meaning 
to  know  more  diligently  for  what  cause  he  was  accused  by  the  Jews, 
he  loosed  him,  and  commanded  the  priests  to  come  together,  and  all 
the  council  ;  and  bringing  forth  Paul,  he  set  him  before  them.” 


sibly  they  might  have  meant  to  call  for  lapidation,  of  which  they  judged  St.  Paul  worthy, 
and  were  ready  to  commence  the  work  of  death,  provided  the  tribune  did  not  pre¬ 
vent  them. 

(  1  )  The  person  who  was  to  undergo  this  punishment  was  fastened  with  thongs  to  a 
stake. 

(2)  We  have  before  alluded  to  the  means  taken  by  St.  Paul  on  this  occasion  in  order 
to  avoid  a  punishment  at  once  cruel  and  ignominious. 

(3)  His  fear,  and  that  of  the  magistrates  of  Philippi,  mentioned  in  chap,  xvi.,  makes 
known  to  us  that  it  was  a  perilous  thing  to  ill-use  a  Roman  citizen.  The  emperors  pub¬ 
licly  declared  themselves  the  avengers  of  such  insult  or  outrage  offered  to  a  citizen  of  the 
empire,  and  it  was  not  long  before  that  for  a  like  offence  the  emperor  Claudius  had  de¬ 
prived  the  Rhodians  of  their  franchise.  If  a  whole  nation  had  been  thus  severely  pun¬ 
ished,  what  had  not  a  single  individual  to  fear  ? 


I 


I  ci 


4 


k\ 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

ST.  PAUL  STRUCK,  BY  ORDER  OF  THE  HIGH  PRIEST.- — HE  CURSES  HIM,  AND  EXCUSES 

HIMSELF  FOR  SO  DOING. - DISPUTE  BETWEEN  THE  PHARISEES  AND  SADDUCEES. - 

CONSPIRACY  AGAINST  ST.  PAUL. - HE  IS  SENT  TO  CESAREA. 

(a)  “  And  Paul,  looking  upon  the  council,  said  :  Men,  brethren,  I 
have  conversed  with  all  good  conscience  (1)  before  God,  until  this 
present  day.”  He  was  about  to  continue,  when  “the  high-priest 
Ananias  commanded  them  that  stood  by  him  to  strike  him  on  the 
mouth  (2).  Then  Paul  said  to  him  :  God  shall  strike  thee  (3),  thou 
whited  wall.  For  sittest  thou  to  judge  me  according  to  the  law,  and 
contrary  to  the  law  commandest  me  to  be  struck  ?” 

“  And  they  that  stood  by,”  whether  they  struck  him  as  they  were 
commanded,  or  whether  they  did  not,  is  not  written,  but  they  “  said  : 
Dost  thou  revile  the  high-priest  of  God  ?  And  Paul  said  :  I  knew 
not,  brethren,  that  he  is  the  high-priest  (4).  For  it  is  written  :  Thou 
shall  not  speak  evil  of  the  pr  ince  of  thy  people  (5).” 

(a)  Acts,  xxiii.  1. 

(1)  St.  Paul  bad  always  followed  the  dictates  of  his  conscience,  whether  as  a  Jew,  or 
as  a  Christian.  The  first  of  these  consciences  was  erroneous,  the  second  enlightened 
and  correct.  It  was  easy  for  him  to  justify  the  latter,  and  for  the  former  his  adversaries 
could  not  blame  him.  By  this  we  see  that  he  had  ever  been  an  upright  and  righteous 
man,  and  by  this  means  God  had  been  moved  to  compassionate  his  errors.  We  derive 
this  idea  from  St.  Paul  himself,  who,  after  having  spoken  of  the  excesses  which  preceded 
his  conversion,  adds  (1  Tim.  i.  13)  :  “But  I  obtained  the  mercy  of  God,  because  I  did  it 
ignorantly  in  unbelief.” 

(2)  When  those  who  were  interrogated  by  the  magistrates  forgot  the  respect  due  to 
them,  they  were  struck  on  the  face  by  certain  officials  who  stood  near  for  that  purpose. 
In  this  instance  we  cannot  see  how  St.  Paul  gave  offence  in  his  opening  words,  and  we 
can  only  conclude  that  the  order  to  strike  him  was  the  effect  of  savage  fury. 

(3)  This  was  a  prophecy,  if  it  be  true,  as  people  think,  that  this  Ananias  is  the  same 
who  was  massacred,  together  with  his  brother,  by  a  rival  faction  of  the  Jews. 

(4)  1st,  St.  Paul  knew  him  not  by  sight,  because  he  had  only  recently  arrived  in  Je¬ 
rusalem,  after  an  absence  of  several  years.  2d,  It  must  have  been  that  the  high-priest 
was  not  distinguished  from  the  others  either  by  his  seat,  or  by  his  dress  ;  for,  if  so,  St. 
Paul  could  easily  have  recognized  him  by  either  of  these  marks.  This  was  simply  a 
meeting  called  by  the  tribune,  wherein  the  order  usual  amongst  the  Jews  on  such  occa¬ 
sions  was  very  possibly  disregarded  ;  it  might  even  be  that  the  tribune  himself  presided 
over  the  assembly. 

(5)  What  mildness,  after  receiving  so  gross  an  insult  !  This  sudden  transition  from 


é 


urn 

!  n 


%  if 


i 


i\ 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  XXIII. 


This  answer  was  sufficient  to  criminate  him,  supposing  he  had 
been  aware  that  he  spoke  to  the  high-priest  ;  but,  as  the  case  stood, 
his  reply  was  perfectly  just  and  reasonable.  It  is  sometimes  expedi¬ 
ent  to  convince  passion  and  prejudice  of  their  injustice,  and  this  was 
one  of  those  occasions.  Nevertheless,  St.  Paul  saw  from  this  open¬ 
ing  that  he  would  have  gained  little  from  a  formal  apology,  and  he 
therefore  took  a  shorter  and  surer  way  of  getting  out  of  his  embar¬ 
rassment.  “  And  Paul,  knowing  that  the  one  part  were  Sadducees, 
and  the  other  Pharisees,  cried  out  in  the  council  :  Men,  brethren,  I 
am  a  Pharisee  (1),  the  son  of  Pharisees  (2)  :  concerning  the  hope 
and  resurrection  of  the  dead  (3)  I  am  called  in  question.  And  when 
he  had  so  said,  there  arose  a  dissension  (4)  between  the  Pharisees 
and  the  Sadducees  ;  and  the  multitude  was  divided.  For  the  Sad¬ 
ducees  say  that  there  is  no  resurrection,  neither  angel,  nor  spirit  (5)  ; 
but  the  Pharisees  confess  both.  And  there  arose  a  great  cry.  And 
some  of  the  Pharisees  rising  up  strove,  saying  :  We  find  no  evil  in 
this  man.  What  if  a  spirit  hath  spoken  to  him,  or  an  angel  ?  And 
when  there  arose  a  great  dissension,  the  tribune  fearing  le§t  Paul 
should  be  pulled  in  pieces  by  them,  commanded  the  soldiers  to  go 
down  and  to  take  him  by  force  from  among  them,  and  to  bring  him 
into  the  castle.  And  the  night  following,  the  Lord  standing  by  him, 


ri 


M 


invective  to  mild  apology  is  so  very  unlike  human  nature,  that  it  induced  St.  Chrysostom 
to  believe  that  the  preceding  words  were  spoken  by  the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

(1)  He  retained  from  the  Pharisees  a  belief  in  the  resurrection  of  the  dead,  which  was 
the  only  sound  doctrine  that  they  had,  but  he  left  them  all  their  vices. 

(2)  The  first  idea  which  these  words  suggest  to  the  mind,  is  that  the  ancestors  of  St. 
Paul  were  Pharisees.  Still  it  may  be  that  the  words  filius  pharisceor um  signify  a  disci¬ 
ple  or  pupil  of  the  Pharisees,  by  a  Hebrew  idiom  frequently  employed. 

(3)  He  said  the  truth  ;  St.  Paul  and  all  the  other  apostles  announced,  first  of  all,  the 
two  resurrections,  viz.,  that  of  Jesus  Christ,  which  is  the  foundation  of  Christianity ,  and 
ours,  which  is,  as  it  were,  the  top  of  the  edifice.  They  afterwards  proposed  the  inter¬ 
mediate  truths. 

(4)  Union  is  a  good,  and  dissension  is  an  evil.  Nevertheless,  when  the  wicked  are 
united  for  an  evil  purpose,  it  is  expedient  to  divide  them,  if  possible,  because  sowing  dis¬ 
sension  between  them  may  frustrate  their  designs.  The  union  of  the  wicked  is  hurtful, 
says  St.  Gregory,  and  must,  therefore,  be  broken  up  (Greg.,  lib.  34,  Moral,  c.  4). 

(5)  They  did  not  believe,  therefore,  in  either  the  spirituality  of  the  soul,  or  that  of 
God  himself.  The  carnal  man  ignores  all  beings  but  those  who  have  bodies  ;  it  was 
this  absurd  idea  which  produced  heathenism  and  materialism — we  might  also  add 
atheism. 


ACTS  OF  TIIE  APOSTLES. 


105 


CHAP.  XXIII.] 

said  :  Be  constant  ;  for  as  thou  hast  testified  of  me  in  Jerusalem,  so 
must  thou  hear  witness  also  at  Borne  (1).” 

“  And  when  day  was  come,  some  of  the  Jews  gathered  together, 
and  hound  themselves  under  a  curse,  saying  :  That  they  would 
neither  eat  nor  drink  till  they  killed  Paul.  And  they  were  more 
than  forty  men  (2)  that  had  made  this  conspiracy.  Who  came,” 
therefore,  “to  the  chief  priests  and  the  ancients,  and  said:  We  have 
bound  ourselves  under  a  great  curse,  that  we  will  eat  nothing  till  we 
have  slain  Paul.  Now,  therefore,  do  you  with  the  council  signify  to 
the  tribune,  that  he  bring  him  forth  to  you,  as  if  you  meant  to  know 
something  more  certain  touching  him.  And  we,  before  he  come 
near,  are  ready  to  kill  him.  Which  when  Paul’s  sister’s  son  had 
heard  of  their  lying  in  wait,  he  came,  and  entered  into  the  castle, 
and  told  Paul.” 

Assured  by  the  revelation  of  the  Lord  that  he  should  testify  of 
him  in  Borne,  Paul  doubted  not  that  the  plot  would  fail.  A  man 
of  ordinary  virtue  would  have  been  content  to  remain  quiet  under 
those  circumstances,  and  some  might  suppose  that  such  inaction 
would  have  manifested  a  more  perfect  faith.  But  the  apostle  of  na¬ 
tions,  whose  faith  was  proof  against  every  trial,  knew,  moreover, 
that  the  divine  behests  are  often  executed  by  human  means,  and 
that  to  neglect  these,  when  they  presented  themselves,  would  be 
nothing  better  than  tempting  God,  as  it  would  be  distrusting  him 
not  to  believe  that  these  human  means  failing,  he  would  work  mira¬ 
cles  rather  than  suffer  his  word  to  fail.  Paul,  well  acquainted  with 
these  truths,  hastened  to  avail  himself  of  the  means  within  his  reach. 
“  Calling  to  him  one  of  the  centurions,”  he  “  said  to  him  :  Bring  this 


(1)  It  had  been  already  revealed  to  St.  Paul  that  he  should  go  to  Rome,  as  we  have 
seen,  chap,  xix.,  ver.  21.  The  announcement  is  here  confirmed  to  him  by  Jesus  Christ 
in  person;  and  because  he  has  testified  of  him  in  Jerusalem,  he  promises  that  he  shall 
likewise  testify  of  him  in  Rome.  One  trial  is  repaid  by  another,  and  a  contest  shall  be 
the  reward  of  a  contest.  Thus  God  rewards  the  merit  of  his  generous  servants  by  giv¬ 
ing  them  fresh  opportunities  of  obtaining  merit  ;  thus  he  multiplies  their  victories,  and 
enriches  their  crowns. 

(2)  It  is  believed,  and  with  much  probability,  that  these  conspirators  were  Sadducees  ; 
that  is  to  say,  materialists.  When  these  people  find  themselves  sufficiently  strong,  they 
say,  speaking  of  their  adversaries  :  They  must  be  got  rid  of;  when  they  are  weak,  their 
cry  is  for  liberty  :  Let  every  one  have  liberty  to  think  for  himself. 


45 


young  man  to  the  tribune,  for  he  hath  something  to  tell  him.  And 
he,  taking  him,  brought  him  to  the  tribune,  ai  d  said  :  Paul,  the 
prisoner,  desired  me  to  bring  this  young  man  unto  thee,  who  hath 
something  to  say  to  thee.  And  the  tribune,  taking  him  by  the  hand, 
went  aside  with  him  privately,  and  asked  him  :  What  is  it  that  thou 
hast  to  tell  me  ?  And  he  said  :  The  Jews  have  agreed  to  desire  thee 
that  thou  wouldst  bring  forth  Paul  to-morrow  into  the  council,  as  if 
they  meant  to  inquire  something  more  certain  touching  him.  But 
do  not  thou  give  credit  to  them  ;  for  there  lie  in  wait  for  him  more 
than  forty  men  of  them,  who  have  bound  themselves  by  oath  neither 
to  eat  nor  to  drink  till  they  have  killed  him  ;  and  they  are  now 
ready,  looking  for  a  promise  from  thee.” 

“  The  tribune,  therefore,  dismissed  the  young  man,  charging  him 
that  he  should  tell  no  man  that  he  had  made  known  these  things 
unto  him.  Then  having  called  two  centurions,  he  said  to  them  : 
Make  ready  two  hundred  soldiers  to  go  as  far  as  Cesarea,  and  seventy 
horsemen",  and  two  hundred  spearmen  (1),  for  the  third  hour  of  the 
night  ;  and  provide  beasts,  that  they  may  set  Paul  on,  and  bring 
him  safe  to  Felix  the  governor.  (For  he  feared  lest  perhaps  the 
Jews  might  take  him  away  by  force  and  kill  him,  and  he  should 
afterwards  be  slandered  as  if  he  was  to  take  money.)  And  he 
wrote  a  letter  after  this  manner  :  Claudius  Lysias  to  the  most  excel¬ 
lent  governor  Felix,  greeting:  This  man  being  taken  by  the  Jews, 
and  ready  to  be  killed  by  them,  I  rescued,  coming  in  with  an  army, 
understanding  that  he  is  a  Roman  (2).  And  meaning  to  know  the 
cause  which  they  objected  unto  him,  I  brought  him  forth  into  their 
council.  Whom  I  found  to  be  accused  concerning  questions  of  their 


(1)  God  had  decreed  it  so  that  St.  Paul  should  not  be  the  victim  of  these  ruffians. 
We  see  what  an  escort  he  provided  for  him,  without  appearing  at  all  to  act  :  a  monarch 
could  not  have  had  a  more  numerous  or  a  stronger  guard  ;  let  us  admire  and  adore  his 
providence. 

(2)  This  was  a  falsehood  :  at  the  time  when  he  delivered  Paul  from  their  hands,  he 
knew  not  yet  that  he  was  a  Roman  citizen,  but  he  knew  how  to  enhance  the  merit  of  his 
action  in  the  eyes  of  his  superiors.  A  little  reflection  will  convince  us  that  self-love  in¬ 
duces  us  to  do  such  things  very  frequently.  A  similar  prevarication,  provided  it  seems 
to  benefit  ourselves,  will  flow  from  the  lips  or  from  the  pen  like  water  from  its  source  ; 

'  nay,  it  suffices  if  the  falsehood  presents  itself  with  a  witty  saying,  it  will  be  given  rather 
than  the  plain,  unadorned  truth. 


if  J. 

4  ci 


y 


i7>. 


» 


CHAP.  XXIV.] 


ACTS 


law  ;  but  having  nothing  laid  to  his  charge  worthy  of  death  or  of 
bands.  And  when  I  was  told  of  ambushes  that  they  had  prepared 
for  him,  I  sent  him  to  thee,  signifying  also  to  his  accusers  to  plead 
before  thee.  Farewell.” 

“  Then  the  soldiers,  according  as  it  was  commanded  them,  taking 
Paul,  brought  him  by  night  to  Antipatris  (1).  And  the  next  day, 
leaving  the  horsemen  to  go  with  him,  they  returned  to  the  castle. 
Who  when  they  were  come  to  Cesarea,  and  had  delivered  the  letter 
to  the  governor,  did  also  present  Paul  before  him.  And  when  he 
had  read  it,  and  had  asked  of  what  province  he  was,  and  understood 
that  he  was  of  Cilicia  :  I  will  hear  thee,  said  he,  when  thy  accusers 
come.  And  he  commanded  him  to  be  kept  in  Herod’s  judgment- 
hall.” 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

ACCUSATION  OF  ST.  PAUL  BEFORE  FELIX,  AND  HIS  DEFENCE. 

(a)  “  And  after  five  days  (2),  the  high-priest  Ananias  came  down, 
with  some  of  the  ancients,  and  one  Tertullus  (3)  an  orator,  who  went 
to  the  governor”  to  speak  “  against  Paul.  And  Paul  being  called 

(a)  Acts,  xxiv.  1. 

(1)  This  is  thought  to  be  the  ancient  Capharsalama,  mentioned  in  the  first  hook  of 
Machabees,  chap,  vii.,  ver.  31.  It  was  rebuilt  by  Herod  the  Great,  who  called  it  Anti- 
patros,  from  the  name  of  his  father,  Antipater.  It  was  seated  on  the  Mediterranean,  mid¬ 
way  between  Joppa  and  Cesarea.  It  was  reckoned  seventeen  leagues  from  Jerusalem  to 
Antipatris  :  such  a  distance  could  not  well  be  made  in  one  night,  so  that  when  St.  Luke 
speaks  of  the  soldiers  returning  next  day,  he  must  compute  the  days  from  one  evening 
to  the  other,  according  to  a  mode  of  calculation  very  common  amongst  the  Jews,  and 
authorized  by  Scripture. 

(2)  After  five  days  from  the  beginning  of  this  affair,  that  is  to  say,  five  days  after  the 
arrest  of  St.  Paul  in  Jerusalem,  which  added  to  the  seven  days  that  he  had  previously 
been  in  that  city,  make  up  the  twelve  days  mentioned  by  him,  ver.  1 1 . 

(3)  This  is  a  Latin  name.  It  is  very  probable  that  Tertullus  was  a  Jew  born  in  Rome, 
who  had  been  brought  to  Jerusalem  by  the  Jews  for  the  purpose  of  advocating  their 


£ 


TV5TT  'j  ■>/i||  >'imf  |  J  o'\7 


for,  Tertullns  began  to  accuse  him,  saying  :  Whereas  through  thee 
we  live  in  much  peace,  and  many  things  are  rectified  by  thy  provi¬ 
dence,  we  accept  it  always  and  in  all  places,  most  excellent  Felix, 
with  all  thanksgiving.  But  that  I  be  no  further  tedious  to  thee,  I 
desire  thee  of  thy  clemency  to  hear  us  in  few  words.  We  have 
found  this  to  be  a  pestilent  man,  and  raising  seditions  among  all 
the  Jews  throughout  the  world,  and  author  of  the  sedition  of  the 
sect  of  the  Nazarenes.  Who  also  hath  gone  about  to  profane  the 
temple:  whom  we  having  apprehended,  would  also  have  judged 
according  to  our  law  (1).  But  Lysias  the  tribune,  coming  upon  us 
with  great  violence,  took  him  away  out  of  our  hands  ;  commanding 
his  accusers  to  come  to  thee  :  of  whom  thou  mayest  thyself,  by  ex¬ 
amination,  have  knowledge  (2)  of  all  these  things  whereof  we  accuse 
him.  And  the  Jews  also  added,  and  said  that  these  things  were  so.” 

“Then  Paul  answered  (the  governor  making  a  sign  to  him  to 
speak)  :  Knowing  that  for  many  years  thou  hast  been  judge  (3) 
over  this  nation,  I  will  with  good  courage  answer  for  myself.  For 
thou  mayest  understand  that  there  are  yet  but  twelve  days  since  I 


cause  with  the  governors,  who,  being  Romans,  understood  neither  Hebrew  nor  Syriac. 
We  see  by  the  way  in  which  he  opens  his  harangue,  that  this  man  was  an  orator  by 
profession. 

(1)  Not  so  ;  their  purpose  was  to  kill  him  immediately,  and  without  any  form  of  trial. 
The  whole  of  this  discourse  is  a  tissue  of  falsehoods,  but  we  only  notice  this  one,  because 
St.  Paul  himself  refuted  all  the  others. 

(2)  Of  whom  thou  mayest,  thyself,  have  knowledge,  that  is  to  say,  either  from  Paul 
or  from  Lysias  ;  the  phrase  is  ambiguous,  but  it  appears  more  reasonable  to  apply  it  to 
Lysias.  Felix  himself  appears  to  have  understood  it  so,  since  he  closed  the  session  by 
those  words  :  When  Lysias  the  tribune  shall  come  down  I  will  hear  you. 

(3)  Judge  here  means  governor.  The  Jews  were  in  the  habit  of  giving  the  name  of 
judge  to  the  magistrate  who  had  the  supreme  administration  of  affairs.  This  custom 
might  have  come  down  from  the  time  of  their  first  judges,  whose  government  had  pre¬ 
ceded  that  of  the  kings.  It  is  certain  that  in  authority  these  judges  were  at  least  dic¬ 
tators. 

St.  Paul  says  that  he  will  plead  his  cause  with  more  confidence,  knowing  that  Felix 
has  been  for  many  years  judge  over  the  nation.  The  connection  is  here  inexplicable  to 
us,  and  the  more  so,  as  the  administration  of  Felix  had  been  but  one  series  of  injustice, 
murder,  and  rapine.  Nevertheless,  although  we  cannot  understand  it,  St.  Paul  must 
have  had  some  rational  motive  for  confidence,  since  he  speaks  in  this  way  ;  except  that 
this  was  merely  meant  for  a  compliment,  and  assuredly  St.  Paul  was  not  apt  to  pay  com¬ 
pliments. 


\  V 


CHAP.  XXTV.J 


ACTS  OP  THE  APOSTLES. 


709 


went  up  to  adore  in  Jerusalem.  And  neither  in  the  temple  did  they 
find  me  disputing  with  any  man,  or  causing  any  concourse  of  the- 
people,  neither  in  the  synagogues,  nor  in  the  city  :  neither  can  they 
prove  unto  thee  the  things  whereof  they  now  accuse  me.  But  this  I 
confess  to  thee,  that  according  to  the  sect  which  they  call  heresy  (1), 
so  I  serve  the  Father  and  my  God,  believing  all  things  which  are 
written  in  the  law  and  the  prophets  ;  having  hope  in  God,  which 
these  also  themselves  look  for,  that  there  shall  be  a  resurrection  of 
the  just  and  unjust.  And  herein  (2)  do  I  endeavor  to  have  always 
a  conscience  without  offence  towards  God  and  towards  men.  Now 
after  many  years  I  came  to  bring  alms  to  my  nation,  and  offerings, 
and  vows.  In  which  I  was  found  purified  in  the  temple  ;  neither 
with  multitude  nor  with  tumult.”  For  the  rest,  they  who  found  me 
there,  are  “  certain  Jews  from  Asia,  who  ought  to  have  been  here 
before  thee  (3),  and  to  accuse,  if  they  had  any  thing  against  me  :  or 
let  these  men  themselves  say  if  they  found  in  me  any  iniquity,  when 
standing  before  their  council,  except  it  be  for  this  one  voice  only, 
that  I  cried  standing  among  them  :  Concerning  the  resurrection  of 
the  dead  am  I  judged  this  day  by  you.” 

This  challenge  made  it  necessary  for  his  accusers  either  to  prove 
their  charge,  or  remain  silent.  It  appears  that,  having  no  proof  to 
bring  forward,  they  were  reduced  to  silence.  “And  Felix  put  them 
off,  having  most  certain  knowledge  of  this  way  (4),  saying  :  When 
Lysias  the  tribune  shall  come  down  I  will  hear  you.” 

(1)  The  words  sect  and  heresy  had  not  always  amongst  the  Jews  the  precise  meaning 
which  we  now  give  to  them  ;  still  they  sometimes  had,  especially  that  of  heresy ,  which 
may  be  seen  by  the  way  in  which  St.  Paul  employs  it. 

(2)  That  is,  in  the  hope  of  the  resurrection.  Let  us,  too,  keep  this  hope  before  our 
eyes,  since  so  great  an  apostle  did  not  consider  it  unworthy  of  his  virtue  to  make  use  of 
its  assistance  in  order  to  preserve  his  conscience  from  all  stain. 

(3)  St.  Paul  skilfully  avails  himself  of  the  absence  of  these  Jews  from  Asia;  that  is 
to  say,  from  Ephesus.  These  were,  in  fact,  the  first,  or  rather  the  only  witnesses  who 
ought  to  be  heard,  because  they  were  the  first  to  recognize  him  in  the  temple,  to  lay 
hands  upon  him,  and  to  excite  the  people  to  rise  up  against  him.  Yet  these  men  acted 
prudently  in  not  appearing.  Who  knows  but  Felix  might  have  ordered  a  judicial  inves¬ 
tigation,  when  it  would  be  found  that  they  had  been  the  authors  and  abettors  of  the 
sedition,  and  they  be  punished  accordingly  ?  An  iniquitous  judge  is  at  all  times  dreaded 
by  the  wicked  when  they  know  that  he  has  no  interest  in  being  unjust. 

(4)  This  way,  that  is  to  say,  Christianity.  Felix  knew,  at  least,  that  they  who  pro¬ 
fessed  it  led  irreproachable  lives. 


710 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XXIV. 


He  had  discovered  the  innocence  of  the  accused  ;  but  being  un¬ 
willing  to  offend  his  accusers,  he  steered  a  middle  course  between 
justice  and  injustice.  Instead  of  acquitting  Paul,  and  sending  him 
forth  free,  as  he  should  have  done,  “  he  commanded  a  centurion  to 
keep  him  but  he  told  him  at  the  same  time,  “  that  he  should  be 
easy,  and  that  he  should  not  prohibit  any  of  his  friends  to  minister 
unto  him.” 

“  And  after  some  days,  Felix  coming  with  Drusilla  (1)  his  wife, 
who  was  a  Jew,  sent  for  Paul,  and  heard  of  him  the  faith  that  is  in 
Christ  Jesus.  And  as  he  treated  of  justice  (2),  and  chastity,  and 
of  the  judgment  to  come,  Felix  being  terrified,  answered:  For  this 
time  go  thy  way  ;  but  when  I  have  a  convenient  time  I  will  send 
for  thee.  Hoping  also  withal  that  money  should  be  given  him  by 
Paul  ;  for  which  cause  also  oftentimes  sending  for  him,  he  spoke 
with  him.  But  when  two  years  were  ended,  Felix  had  for  successor 
Portius  Festus.  And  Felix  being  willing  to  show  the  Jews  a  plea¬ 
sure,  left  Paul  bound  (3).” 


(1)  Drusilla  was  born  in  the  Jewish  religion,  but  of  the  Idumean  race,  being  of  the 
family  of  the  Herods.  Her  father  was  the  first  Agrippa,  spoken  of  under  the  name  oi 
Herod  in  chap,  xii.,  the  same  who  beheaded  St.  James  and  imprisoned  St.  Peter.  Dru¬ 
silla  had  been  first  married  to  Azisus,  king  of  Emesus.  Felix,  becoming  enamored  of 
her  beauty,  solicited  her  to  bestow  herself  on  him.  She  consented,  and  leaving  her  royal 
husband,  became  the  paramour  of  a  freedman.  Azisus  became  a  Jew,  in  order  to  obtain 
her  hand:  she  became  a  pagan  with  Felix.  It  was  through  curiosity  that  she  desired 
to  hear  St.  Paul,  and  hence  she  derived  no  profit  from  hearing  him.  Suetonius  says  of 
Felix  that  he  had  been  the  husband  of  three  queens,  but  we  know  not  who  the  others 
were.  Drusilla  perished  in  an  eruption  of  Mount  Vesuvius,  together  with  a  son  named 
Agrippa,  whom  she  had  had  by  Felix.  This  eruption  was  the  same  which  proved  fatal 
to  Pliny,  the  naturalist,  and  which -buried  the  city  of  Herculaneum. 

(2)  We  here  recognize  the  magnanimity  of  St.  Paul.  His  life  was  at  the  disposal  of 
Felix,  yet  he  dares  to  speak  to  him  on  the  two  points  the  most  likely  to  excite  his  anger, 
that  is  to  say,  chastity  and  justice. 

Had  he  stopped  there,  his  words  would  have  made  but  a  slight  impression.  The  finest 
code  of  morals  would  be  no  more  than  an  idle  speculation,  were  it  not  accompanied  by 
the  representation  of  an  inevitable  judgment,  wherein  virtue  shall  be  rewarded  and  vice 
punished. 

Felix  trembled,  and  this  fear  was  for  him  the  beginning  of  grace  ;  his  terror  made  him 
impose  silence  on  St.  Paul,  and  that  was  the  end  of  it. 

(3)  If  St.  Paul  had  given  him  money,  he  would  have  set  him  free;  and  because  he 
wished  to  conciliate  the  Jews,  he  left  him  in  chains.  He  was  unjust,  and  yet  he  gained 
nothing  by  it,  neither  money — for  St.  Paul  gave  him  none — nor  the  favor  of  the  Jews, 


C'|,; 


H' 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


■HE  DEFENDS  HIMSELF,  AND  APPEALS  TO 


BT.  PAUL  ARRAIGNED  BEFORE  FESTUS. 

CÆSAR. - AGRIPPA  AND  BERNICE  DESIRE  TO  HEAR  HIM, 


(a)  “Now  wlien  Festus  was  come  into  tlie  province,  after  tliree 
days  he  went  up  to  Jerusalem  from  Cesarea  (1).  And  the  chief 
priests,  and  principal  men  of  the  Jews,  went  unto  him  against  Paul  : 
and  they  besought  him,  requesting  favor  against  him,  that  he  would 
command  him  to  be  brought  to  Jerusalem,  laying  wait  to  kill  him 
in  the  way.  But  Festus  answered  that  Paul  was  kept  in  Cesarea  ; 
and  that  he  himself  would  very  shortly  depart  thither.  Let  them, 
therefore,  saith  he,  among  you  that  are  able,  go  down  with  me  and 
accuse  him,  if  there  be  any  crime  in  the  man.  And  having  tarried 
among  them  no  more  than  eight  or  ten  days,  he  went  down  to  Ce¬ 
sarea,  and  the  next  day”  after  his  arrival,  “  he  sat  in  the  judgment- 
seat,  and  commanded  Paul  to  be  brought.  Who  being  brought,  the 
Jews  stood  about  him,  who  were  come  down  from  Jerusalem,  object¬ 
ing  many  and  grievous  causes  which  they  could  not  prove,  Paul 
making  answer  for  himself  (2)  :  Neither  against  the  law  of  the  Jews, 

(a)  Acts,  xxv.  1. 

for  they  sent  a  deputation  to  Rome  to  accuse  him,  in  the  name  of  the  nation.  He  would 
have  been  disgraced  had  it  not  been  for  the  credit  of  his  brother  Pallas  :  these  men  were 
Arcadians  by  birth,  and  had  both  been  slaves.  Pallas  having  been  freed  by  the  emperor 
Claudius,  obtained  such  an  ascendency  over  the  mind  of  his  master,  that  he  became  the 
most  influential  man  in  the  empire.  He  very  soon  got  high  promotion  for  his  brother 
Felix,  whose  freedom  he  had  previously  obtained.  When  they  had  attained  rank  and 
fortune,  they  failed  not,  according  to  custom,  to  give  themselves  out  as  descendants  of 
the  ancient  kings  of  Arcadia.  This  assumption  was  ridiculed  by  the  people,  but  the 
senate  had  the  meanness  to  confirm  it  by  an  authentic  enactment.  In  their  hopes  and 
in  them  fears,  the  great  of  this  world  are  the  most  grovelling  of  all  men. 

(1)  Cesarea  was  the  seat  of  government,  and  was,  therefore,  considered  the  capital  of 
Judea,  as  a  Roman  province. 

(2)  He  not  only  said  it,  but  proved  it.  St.  Luke  only  mentions  here  the  heads  of  his 
discourse  ;  but  he  enlarged  on  each  of  these  points,  and  treated  them  so  forcibly,  that 
Festus,  convinced  of  his  innocence,  was  disposed  to  liberate  him,  had  it  not  been  that  lie 
feared  to  disoblige  the  Jews.  This  is  what  we  learn  from  St.  Paul  himself  (chap, 
xxviii.  18). 


//V« 

<9MEP 


f  _ 

11 

:n| 

ID 

f  €M„ 


fl 


VI 


2. 


nor  against  the  temple,  nor  against  Cæsar  (1)  have  1  offended  in  any 
thing.  But  Festus,  willing  to  show  the  Jews  a  pleasure,  answering 
Paul,  said:  Wilt  thou  go  up  to  Jerusalem,  and  there  be  judged  of 
these  things  before  me  ?  Then  Paul  said  :  I  stand  at  Cæsar’s  judg¬ 
ment-seat  where  I  ought  to  be  judged  :  to  the  Jews  I  have  done  no 
injury,  as  thou  very  well  knowest.  For  if  I  have  injured  them,  or 
have  committed  any  thing  worthy  of  death,  I  refuse  not  to  die.  But 
if  there  be  none  of  these  things  whereof  they  accuse  me,  no  man 
may  deliver  me  to  them  :  I  appeal  to  Cæsar  (2).  Then  Festus,  hav¬ 
ing  conferred  with  the  council,  answered:  Hast  thou  appealed  to 
Cæsar  ?  To  Cæsar  shalt  thou  go.” 

Thus  it  was  that  he  got  rid  of  his  embarrassment,  and  escaped  the 
unpleasant  alternative  of  condemning  or  acquitting  ;  but  he  knew 
not  that,  by  this  act,  he  prepared  the  way  for  the  fulfilment  of  the 
promise  made  by  the  Lord,  that  the  “  vessel  of  election”  who  had 
already  confessed  his  name  before  Jews  and  Gentiles  should  also 
confess  it  before  kings.  “  After  some  days  king  Agrippa  (3)  and 
Bernice  came  down  to  Cesarea  to  salute  Festus.  And  as  they  tar¬ 
ried  there  many  days,  Festus  told  the  king  of  Paul,  saying  :  A  cer¬ 
tain  man  was  left  prisoner  by  Felix;  about  whom,  when  I  was  at 
Jerusalem,  the  chief  priests  and  the  ancients  of  the  Jews  came  unto 
me,  desiring  condemnation  against  him.  To  whom  I  answered:  It 
is  not  the  custom  of  the  Romans  to  condemn  any  man  before  that 
he  who  is  accused  have  his  accusers  present,  and  have  liberty  to 
make  his  answer,  to  clear  himself  of  the  things  laid  to  his  charge. 


(1)  Since  he  defended  himself  on  this  point,  it  follows  that  he  must  have  been  accused 
in  that  way.  We  know  what  were  the  sentiments  of  the  Jews  with  regard  to  the  Roman 
government,  and  we  also  know  from  the  writings  of  St.  Paul  how  submissive  he  was  to 
all  authority.  Nevertheless,  it  was  these  same  Jews  who  dared  to  accuse  St.  Paul  of 
rebellion  against  Cæsar.  Passion  deprives  men  of  all  shame. 

(2)  Every  Roman  citizen,  when  tried  in  the  provinces,  had  the  privilege  of  appealing 
to  the  emperor  in  person  ;  he  was  then  conveyed  to  Rome  under  a  safe  guard. 

(3)  Agrippa  the  younger,  son  of  Herod  Agrippa,  and  brother  of  Drusilla  already 
mentioned,  and  of  Bernice,  by  whom  he  is  here  accompanied,  with  whom  he  is  suspected 
of  having  had  an  incestuous  intercourse.  Bernice  was  at  that  time  the  widow  of  her  uncle 
Herod,  king  of  Chalcedon  ;  she  subsequently  married  Polemon,  king  of  Cilicia,  whom 
she  soon  left  ;  she  finally  gained  the  affections  of  the  emperor  Titus,  who  would  have 
espoused  her,  were  it  not  for  the  murmurs  of  the  Roman  people. 


1 


a  »  a  >3  o  o  d  < 


j^VAvVs^ 


%? 


\L 


CHAP.  XXV.] 

When  therefore  they  were  come  hither,  without  any  delay,  on  the 
day  following,  sitting  in  the  judgment-seat,  I  commanded  the  man 
to  be  brought.  Against  whom,  when  the  accusers  stood  up,  they 
brought  no  accusation  of  things  which  I  thought  ill  of  :  but  had  cer¬ 
tain  questions  of  their  own  superstition  (1)  against  him,  and  of  one 
Jesus  deceased  (2),  whom  Paul  affirmed  to  be  alive.  I,  therefore, 
being  in  a  doubt  of  this  manner  of  question,  asked  him  whether 
he  would  go  to  Jerusalem,  and  there  be  judged  of  these  things.  But 
Paul  appealing  to  be  reserved  unto  the  hearing  of  Augustus,  I  com¬ 
manded  him  to  be  kept  till  I  might  send  him  to  Caesar  (3).  And 
Agrippa  said  to  Festus  :  I  would  also  hear  the  man  myself.  To¬ 
morrow,  said  he,  thou  shalt  hear  him.” 

“  And  on  the  next  day,  when  Agrippa  and  Bernice  were  come 
with  great  pomp,  and  had  entered  into  the  hall  of  audience  with 
the  tribunes  and  principal  men  of  the  city,  at  Festus’  command¬ 
ment,  Paul  was  brought  forth.  And  Festus  said  :  King  Agrippa, 
and  all  ye  men  who  are  here  present  with  us,  you  see  this  man,  about 
whom  all  the  multitude  of  the  Jews  dealt  with  me  at  Jerusalem,  re¬ 
questing”  me  against  him  “  and  crying  out  that  he  ought  not  to  live 
any  longer.  Yet  have  I  found  nothing  that  he  hath  committed 
worthy  of  death.  But  forasmuch  as  he  himself  hath  appealed  to 
Augustus,  I  have  determined  to  send  him.  Of  whom  I  have  nothing 
certain  to  write  to  my  lord  (4).  For  which  cause  I  have  brought 


(1)  Was  it  not  very  disrespectful  towards  king  Agrippa  to  apply  the  name  of  a  super¬ 
stition  to  the  religion  which  that  prince  professed?  or  rather  did  not  Festus  show  by 
that  contemptuous  epithet  how  little  the  Roman  governors  thought  of  these  petty  sove¬ 
reigns  whom  the  emperors  made  and  unmade,  as  a  merchant  engages  or  dismisses  his 
clerks. 

(2)  He  considered  Paul  innocent,  because  the  chief  charge  brought  against  him  ap¬ 
peared  to  him  of  little  or  no  consequence.  In  that  he  was  mistaken,  for  the  tiling  was 
all  important,  and  had  it  not  been  true  that  Jesus  had  risen  from  the  dead,  Paul  would 
have  deserved  to  die  as  a  public  disturber,  and  an  open  aggressor  against  a  religion  which 
had  God  for  its  author  ;  but  a  pagan  could  not  understand  this. 

(3)  It  is  well  known  that  the  Roman  emperors  had  appropriated  to  themselves  the 
names  of  Cæsar  and  of  Augustus.  The  Cæsar  here  referred  to  was  Nero,  but  Nero  yet 
in  the  commencement  of  his  reign,  before  he  had  begun  to  persecute  the  Christians,  as 
he  did  a  few  years  after  ;  God  having  apparently  decreed,  for  the  honor  of  his  religion, 
that  its  first  great  persecutor  should  be  the  most  execrable  of  princes. 

(4)  In  Latin,  domino ,  to  the  lord.  The  word  dominus  was  the  title  given  to  the  em- 


A 


< 


714 


THE  HISTORY  OF  TILE 


[chap.  XXVL 


him  forth  before  you,  and  especially  before  thee,  O  king  Agrippa, 
that  examination  being  made,  I  may  have  what  to  write.  For  it 
seemeth  to  me  unreasonable  to  send,  a  prisoner,  and  not  to  signify 
the  things  laid  to  his  charge  ” 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 


ST.  PAUL’S  ADDRESS  TO  KING  AGRIPPA. 


(a)  “  Then  Agrippa  said  to  Paul  :  Thou  art  permitted  to  speak 
for  thyself.  Then  Paul,  stretching  forth  his  hand,  began”  thus  “  to 
make  his  answer.  I  think  myself  happy,  O  king  Agrippa  (1),  that 
I  am  to  answer  for  myself  this  day  before  thee,  touching  all  the 
things  whereof  I  am  accused  by  the  Jews  ;  especially  as  thou  know- 
est  all,  both  customs  and  questions  that  are”  discussed  “  among  the 
Jews  :  wherefore  I  beseech  thee  to  hear  me  patiently.  And  my 
life,  indeed,  from  my  youth,  which  was  from  the  beginning  among 
my  own  nation  in  Jerusalem,  all  the  Jews  do  know  :  having  known 
me  from  the  beginning  (if  they  will  give  testimony),  that  according 
to  the  most  sure  sect  of  our  religion  I  lived  a  Pharisee.  And  now 
for  the  hope  of  the  promise  (2)  that  was  made  by  God  to  the  fa- 

(a)  Acts,  xxvi.  1. 


perors  in  speaking  or  writing  to  them,  as  we  see  by  the  letters  of  Pliny  to  Trajan.  When 
it  was  first  given  to  Augustus  he  modestly  refused  it,  so  great  was  the  dignity  expressed 
by  it.  It  has  now  become  so  common  that  it  has  no  longer  the  same  signification. 

(1)  The  appeal  having  been  made,  St.  Paul  was  not  here  before  judges.  .Agrippa 
made  him  speak  for  the  pleasure  of  hearing  him,  and  Festus,  with  the  hope  of  obtaining 
some  further  information  to  transmit  to  the  emperor.  Hence  it  is  not  surprising  that 
St.  Paul  does  not  address  himself  to  Festus,  as  he  should  have  done  had  the  latter  been 
still  his  judge.  Nevertheless,  it  must  have  been  with  his  consent  that  Agrippa  was  thus 
addressed,  in  a  place  where  the  governor  alone  had  authority.  It  would  seem  that  he 
chose  to  leave  the  honor  of  this  conference  to  the  king. 

(2)  The  promise  of  a  Messiah  and  of  a  Christ,  who  was  to  be  the  liberator  and  the 
Saviour  of  his  people. 


>'11.4, 


;o  a  ■■»  a  y  o  c  ■ 


|*~vni|  >imf  "çsij 


tliers,  do  I  stand  subject  to  judgment:  unto  which  our  twelve  tribes, 
serving  night  and  day,  hope  to  come.  For  which  hope,  O  king,  I 
am  accused  by  the  Jews.  Why  should  it  be  thought  a  thing  incredi¬ 
ble  (1),  that  God  should  raise  the  dead?” 

“  And  I  indeed  did  formerly  think  that  I  ought  to  do  many  things 
contrary  to  the  name  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  Which  also  I  did  at 
Jerusalem,  and  many  of  the  saints  did  I  shut  up  in  prisons,  having 
received  authority  of  the  chief  priests  ;  and  when  they  were  put  to 
death,  I  brought  the  sentence.  And  oftentimes  punishing  them  in 
every  synagogue,  I  compelled  them  to  blaspheme  (2)  :  and  being  yet 
more  mad  against  them,  I  persecuted  them  even  unto  foreign  cities.” 

“  Whereupon  when  I  was  going  to  Damascus  with  authority  and 
permission  of  the  chief  priests,  at  mid-day,  O  king,  I  saw  in  the  way 
a  light  from  heaven  above  the  brightness  of  the  sun,  shining  round 
about  me  and  them  that  were  in  company  with  me.  And  when  we 
were  all  fallen  down  on  the  ground,  I  heard  a  voice  speaking  to  me 
in  the  Hebrew  tongue  (3)  :  Saul,  Saul,  why  persecutest  thou  me  ? 
It  is  hard  for  thee  to  kick  against  the  goad.  And  I  said  :  Who  art 
thou,  Lord  ?  And  the  Lord  answered  :  I  am  Jesus,  whom  thou  per¬ 
secutest.  But  rise  up  and  stand  upon  thy  feet  ;  for  to  this  end  have 
I  appeared  to  thee  (4),  that  I  may  make  thee  a  minister  and  a  wit- 


(1)  Some  have  thought  that  this  could  only  be  addressed  to  those  of  the  audience 
who  denied  the  resurrection  of  the  dead,  and  not  to  the  Pharisees,  who  believed  in  it. 
St.  Paul  might,  however,  have  addressed  himself  to  both.  To  the  former,  he  signified  : 
You  contradict  yourselves,  if,  believing  in  an  Omnipotent  God,  you  yet  do  not  acknowl¬ 
edge  that  he  can  raise  the  dead  ;  to  the  latter  the  question  meant  :  It  is  very  inconsis¬ 
tent  for  you  to  deny,  without  examination,  the  particular  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ,  if 
you  believe  in  the  general  resurrection  of  all  mankind.  According  to  your  principles, 
instead  of  rejecting  the  fact  as  impossible,  you  ought  to  investigate  its  proofs  before  you 
decide  that  it  is  false  and  unfounded. 

(2)  That  is  to  say,  that  he  had  the  misfortune  to  make  martyrs  and  apostates.  St. 
Paul  does  not  by  any  means  spare  himself  in  relating  his  past  misdeeds  ;  he  finds  in  them 
his  own  shame  and  confusion,  and  he  desires  to  humble  himself  by  their  recital  :  he  sees 
them  redound  to  the  glory  of  his  Master  by  the  additional  weight  which  they  give  to  his 
testimony,  and  he  wishes  to  glorify  Him.  To  humble  themselves,  and  by  that  means  to 
glorify  God,  these  two,  when  united,  form  the  chief  delight  of  the  saints. 

(3)  From  this  we  learn  that  St.  Paul  was.  here  speaking  in  another  language,  which 
could  only  be  Latin  or  Greek. 

(4)  In  St.  Paul’s  address  to  the  Jews  (chap,  xxii.),  he  says  that  it  was  Ananias  who 
announced  to  him  the  mission  for  which  he  was  destined  ;  here  it  is  the  Lord  himself 


CHAP.  XXVI.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


é 

M  g-x 

% '"“J? 


(A- 


IA 


ness  of  those  things  which  thou  hast  seen,  and  of  those  things 
wherein  I  will”  yet  “  appear  to  thee,  delivering  thee  from  the  peo¬ 
ple,  and  from  the  nations  unto  which  I  now  send  thee,  to  open  their 
eyes,  that  they  may  be  converted  from  darkness  to  light,  and  from 
the  power  of  Satan  to  God,  that  they  may  receive  forgiveness  of 
sins,  and  a  lot  among  the  saints  by  the  faith  that  is  in  me.” 

“  Whereupon,  O  king  Agrippa,  I  was  not  incredulous  (1)  to  the 
heavenly  vision  :  but  to  them  first  that  are  at  Damascus  (2)  and  at 
Jerusalem,  and  unto  all  the  country  of  Judea,  and  to  the  Gentiles 
did  I  preach,  that  they  should  do  penance,  and  turn  to  God,  doing 
works  worthy  of  penance.  For  this  cause  the  Jews,  when  I  was  in 
the  temple,  having  apprehended  me,  went  about  to  kill  me.  But 
being  aided  by  the  help  of  God,  I  stand  unto  this  day,  witnessing 
both  to  small  and  great,  saying  no  other  thing  than  those  which  the 
prophets  and  Moses  did  say  should  come  to  pass,”  namely,  “  That 
Christ  should  suffer  (3),  and  that  he  should  be  the  first  that  should 
rise  from  the  dead,  and  should  show  light  to  the  people”  of  Israel 
“  and  to  the  Gentiles.” 

The  Gospel,  which  was  a  scandal  to  the  Jews,  was  to  be  a  folly  to 
the  incredulous  Gentiles.  “  As  he  spoke  these  things,  and  made  his 
answer,  Festus,”  whose  feeble  mind  could  not  attain  to  these  sublime 


who  declares  it;  both  accounts  are  true.  Jesus  Christ  had  revealed  it  to  one  and  to  the 
other,  to  the  end  that  each  might  confirm  it  to  the  other.  Two  men  may  dream  at  the 
same  time  ;  but  if  they  see  simultaneously  the  same  thing,  and  a  thing  as  far  distant  from 
their  thoughts  as  this  was,  then  it  is  no  longer  a  dream,  it  is  a  revelation. 

(1)  The  Greek  word  expresses  something  more  than  non-incredulity  ;  it  signifies  not 
only  that  the  apostle  believed  what  was  revealed  to  him,  but  also  that  he  did  as  he  was 
commanded  to  do,  as  the  sequel  testifies. 

(2)  We  have  before  observed  that  St.  Paul  made  two  sojourns  in  Damascus,  and  that 
he  passed  all  the  intermediate  time  in  Arabia,  being,  at  least,  two  years.  It  has  been 
conjectured  that  during  all  this  time  he  refrained  from  preaching,  and  applied  himself 
entirely  to  the  exercises  of  a  solitary  life.  The  passage  here  under  consideration  seems 
to  confirm  this  supposition,  since  the  apostle  makes  no  allusion  to  Arabia  when  enumera¬ 
ting  the  places  wherein  he  had  commenced  to  preach  the  Gospel.  It  is  rather  a  signifi¬ 
cant  fact  in  the  life  of  St.  Paul  that  he  prepared  himself  by  retreat  for  the  duties  of  the 
mission. 

(3)  That  Christ  should  suffer .  This  had  to  be  proved  to  the  Jews  in  order  to  dispel 
their  prejudices.  But  then  the  proof  is  so  clearly  manifested  by  all  the  prophets,  that 
the  most  obstinate  prejudice  cannot  hold  out  against  it. 


truths,  Festus  “  said  with  a  loud  voice  :  Paul,  thou  art  beside  thy¬ 
self  ;  much  learning  doth  make  thee  mad.  And  Paul  said  :  I  am 
not  mad,  most  excellent  Festus,  but  I  speak  words  of  truth  and 
soberness.  For  the  king  knowetk  of  these  things,  to  whom  also  I 
speak  with  confidence.  For  I  am  persuaded  that  none  of  these 
things  are  hidden  from  him.  For  neither  was  any  of  these  things 
done  in  a  corner.”  Then  turning  again  to  king  Agrippa,  he  said  : 
“Believest  thou  the  prophets,  O  king  Agrippa?”  Yes,  “I  know 
that  thou  believest.” 

He  did  indeed  believe,  since  St.  Paul  affirms  it  so  positively.  It 
only  remained,  then,  to  hear  that  testimony  of  Moses  and  the  proph¬ 
ets,  the  application  of  which  to  Jesus  Christ  is  so  clear  and  so  mani¬ 
fest.  The  inference  would  have  been,  that  he  must  believe  in  him. 
Grace  had  conducted  the  king  thus  far,  he  being  already  a  Jew  by 
profession,  and  with  conviction.  The  unhappy  prince,  however,  who 
foresaw  and  feared  this  result,  warded  it  off,  and  by  one  of  those 
answers  which  signify  nothing,  if  it  be  not  a  resolution  to  hear  no 
more.  “  In  a  little  (1),”  said  he,  “  thou  persuadest  me  to  become  a 
Christian.  And  Paul  said:  I  would  to  God,  that  both  in  a  little 
and  in  much,  not  only  thou,  but  also  all  that  hear  me  this  day, 
should  become  such  as  I  also  am,  except  these  bands  (2).” 

This  expression,  of  the  purest  and  most  ardent  zeal,  terminated 
the  conference.  “  The  king  rose  up,  and  the  governor,  and  Bernice, 
and  they  that  sat  with  them.  And  when  they  were  gone  aside, 
they  spoke  among  themselves,  saying  :  This  man  hath  done  nothing 
worthy  of  death  or  of  bands.  And  Agrippa  said  to  Festus  :  This 
man  might  have  been  set  at  liberty,  if  he  had  not  appealed  to  Cæsar.” 


m 


!  ii; 


(1)  Others  translate:  You  have  almost  persuaded  me  to  become  a  Christian.  From 
the  way  in  which  St.  Paul  frames  his  answer  (In  modico  vel  in  magma),  we  think  it  bet¬ 
ter  to  follow  the  interpretation  here  given. 

(2)  Why  except  his  bands,  since  he  regarded  it  as  so  great  an  honor  to  bear  them  for 
Christ’s  sake?  We  have  the  question  solved  by  Jesus  Christ  himself:  All  men  take 
not  this  word  (Matt.,  xix.).  And  it  was  not  fitting  to  expose  this  pearl  to  the  insults  of 
these  unclean  animals. 


o  a 


(WW) 


Up  Ym — p^nj  \  p 


718 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  XXVII 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

ST.  PAUL  IS  SHIPPED  FOR  ROME. — HE  ENCOUNTERS  A  VIOLENT  STORM. - THE  VES¬ 

SEL  IS  LOST,  BUT  ALL  ON  BOARD  ARE  SAVED,  CONFORMABLY  TO  THE  REVELA¬ 
TION  MADE  TO  PAUL  BY  AN  ANGEL. 

(a)  “  And  when  it  was  determined  that  he  should  sail  into  Italy, 
and  that  Paul  with  the  other  prisoners  should  be  delivered  to  a  cen¬ 
turion,  named  Julius,  of  the  band  Augusta,  going  on  board  a  ship  of 
Adrumetum  (1),  we  launched,  meaning  to  sail  by  the  coasts  of  Asia, 
Aristarchus  (2),  the  Macedonian  of  Thessalonica,  continuing  with  us. 
And  the  day  following  we  came  to  Sidon.  And  Julius,  treating 
Paul  courteously,  permitted  him  to  go  to  his  friends,  and  to  take 
care  of  himself.  And  when  we  had  launched  from  thence  we  sailed 
under  Cyprus  ;  because  the  winds  were  contrary.  And  sailing  over 
the  sea  of  Cilicia  and  Pamphilia,  we  came  to  Lystra,  which  is  in 
Lycia  (3)  :  and  there  the  centurion  finding  a  ship  of  Alexandria 
sailing  into  Italy,  removed  us  into  it.  And  when  for  many  days  we 
had  sailed  slowly,  and  were  scarce  come  over  against  G  nidus  (4), 
the  wind  not  suffering  us,  we  sailed  near  Crete  (5)  by  Salmone  ;  and 
with  much  ado  sailing  by  it,  we  came  into  a  certain  place  which  is 

(a)  Acts,  xxvii.  1. 


(1)  Adrumetum  was  a  port  of  Africa.  We  read  in  the  Greek,  Adrumythe,  which 
was  a  maritime  town  of  Mysia,  in  Asia  Minor.  We  have  adhered  to  the  Vulgate. 

(2)  He  had  followed  St.  Paul  to  Ephesus,  then  accompanied  him  in  his  voyage  to 
Greece  and  to  Macedonia;  he  then  came  with  him  to  Jerusalem,  thence  to  Cesarea,  and 
finally  to  Rome,  where  he  was  his  companion  in  imprisonment.  He  only  left  him  when, 
in  obedience  to  his  own  orders,  he  returned  to  Thessalonica,  his  native  city,  of  which  the 
apostle  had  ordained  him  bishop.  He  died  there  some  years  after,  full  of  virtue  and  of 
good  works.  He  is  commemorated  in  the  Roman  Martyrology  on  the  4th  of  August. 

(3)  This  addition,  which  is  in  Lycia,  may  have  been  put  in  to  distinguish  this  Lystra 
from  another  city  of  the  same  name  which  has  been  mentioned  in  chap.  xiv.  The  latter 
is  in  Lycaonia,  and  is  not  a  seaport.  Ancient  geographers  make  no  mention  of  Lystra 
in  Lycia.  In  the  common  Greek  text  there  is  Myra  instead  of  Lystra. 

(4)  Gnidus,  a  city  built  on  the  promontory  of  Asia  Minor  ;  it  is  now  called  Stadia. 

(5)  The  island  of  Crete,  now  Candia.  Cape  Solomon,  which  is  the  eastern  extremity 
of  that  island,  has  retained  its  ancient  name.  Of  the  other  places  here  mentioned  there 
is  not  a  trace  remaining. 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


719 


CHAP.  XXVII.] 

called  Good-havens,  nigh  to  which  was  the  city  of  Thalassa.  And 
when  much  time  was  spent,  and  when  sailing  now  was  dangerous, 
because  the  fast  (1)  was  now  past,  Paul  comforted”  and  at  the  same 
time  advised  “them,  saying  to  them  :  Ye  men,  I  see  that  the  voyage 
beginneth  to  be  with  injury  and  much  damage,  not  only  of  the 
lading  and  ship,  but  also  of  our  lives.” 

That  plainly  signified  that  it  was  better  to  remain  where  they 
were  until  a  more  favorable  season.  “  But  the  centurion  believed 
the  pilot  and  the  master  of  the  ship  (2)  more  than  those  things 
which  were  said  by  Paul.  And  whereas  it  was  not  a  commodious 
haven  to  winter  in,  the  greater  part  gave  counsel  to  sail  thence,  if 
by  any  means  they  might  reach  Phenice  to  winter  there,  which  is 
a  haven  of  Crete,  looking  towards  the  southwest  and  northwest. 
And  the  south  wind  gently  blowing,  thinking  that  they  had  obtained 
their  purpose,  when  they  had  loosed  from  Asson,  they  sailed  close 
by  Crete.” 

“But,”  and  this  is  the  beginning  of  the  storm,  “not  long  after 
there  arose  against  it  a  tempestuous  wind,  called  Euro-aquilo  (3). 
And  when  the  ship  was  caught,  and  could  not  bear  up  against  the 


(1)  This  feist  was  that  of  the  feast  of  expiation,  which  occurred  about  the  autumnal 
equinox.  To  say  that  this  fast  was  over,  signified  that  the  season  had  now  set  in  when 
navigation  became  dangerous. 

(2)  So  long  as  he  did  not  regard  St.  Paul  as  an  inspired  man,  he  was  quite  right  to 
be  advised  rather  by  the  pilot  and  shipmaster  ;  but  he  very  soon  found  out  that  the 
knowledge  which  comes  from  heaven  is  far  more  certain  than  that  which  is  merely  the 
result  of  reason  and  experience. 

(3)  The  Greek  calls  it  Eurochjdon,  which  signifies  a  stormy  east  wind,  without  de¬ 
termining  whether  it  was  northeast  or  southeast  ;  but  the  author  of  the  Vulgate,  who 
lived  at  that  time,  could  not  but  know  what  wind  it  was  that  the  Greeks  called  eurocly- 
don,  and  since  he  has  termed  it  northeast,  it  must  really  have  been  so.  Thus,  suppose 
it  were  hereafter  doubted  what  wind  it  is  that  the  Italians  call  sirocco,  if  it  were  found 
that  a  writer  of  our  time  had  translated  it  by  southwest  wind,  that  authority  would  be 
regarded  as  decisive,  because  it  is  taken  for  granted  that  an  author  will  not  be  ignorant 
of  a  thing  so  well  known.  This  observation,  though  apparently  of  little  consequence, 
gives  considerable  weight  to  the  common  opinion,  which  is  that  the  vessel  anchored  at 
the  island  of  Malta,  and  not  at  that  of  Meleda,  which  is  in  the  Gulf  of  Venice.  A  glance 
at  the  map  will  suffice  to  show  that  it  was  impossible  for  a  vessel  driven  on  by  a  north¬ 
east  wind  so  violent  that  they  were  obliged  to  leave  the  ship  to  its  control — that  it  was 
impossible  for  such  a  vessel  to  make  her  way  from  the  coast  of  Crete  into  the  Gulf  of 
Venice. 


yV 

4 


LTV 


1 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XXVII. 


wind,  giving  up  the  ship  to  the  winds,  we  were  driven.  And  run¬ 
ning  under  a  certain  island  that  is  called  Cauda  (1),  we  had  much 
work  to  come  by  the  boat.  Which  being  taken  up,  they  used 
helps  (2),  under-girding  the  ship  (3),  and  fearing  lest  they  should 
fall  into  the  quicksands,  they  let  down  the  sail-yard  (4),  and  so  were 
driven.  And  we  being  mightily  tossed  with  the  tempest,  the  next 
day  they  lightened  the  ship  ;  and  the  third  day  they  cast  out  with 
their  own  hands  the  tackling  of  the  ship.  And  when  neither  sun 
nor  stars  appeared  for  many  days,  and  no  small  storm  lay  on  us,  all 
hope  of  our  being  saved  was  now  taken  away.” 

All  must,  indeed,  have  perished,  had  not  Heaven  heard  the  prayer 
of  a  powerful  intercessor,  and  granted  to  one  the  safety  of  all.  “  And 
after  they  had  fasted  a  long  time,  Paul  standing  forth  in  the  midst 
of  them,  said:  You  should  indeed,  O  ye  men,  have  hearkened  unto 
me  (5),  and  not  have  loosed  from  Crete,  and  have  gained  this  harm 
and  loss.  And  now  I  exhort  you  to  be  of  good  cheer.  For  there 
shall  be  no  loss  of  any  man’s  life  among  you,  but  only  of  the  ship. 
For  an  angel  of  God,  whose  I  am  (6),  and  whom  I  serve,  stood  by 


A  e> 


(1)  There  is  to  the  south  of  Crete  a  small  island  named  Goza,  which  is  believed  to  be 
that  here  mentioned. 

(2)  The  Latin  and  Greek  say,  they  used  helps,  which  leaves  it  uncertain  whether  it  is 
meant  that  they  employed  in  this  manœuvre  all  that  were  in  the  vessel,  or  that  they 
compelled  all  on  board  to  lend  a  hand,  passengers  as  well  as  sailors,  as  is  usual  in  great 
tempests. 

(3)  The  under-girding  of  the  ship  could  not  prevent  her  from  running  on  the  quick¬ 
sands,  but  in  case  that  misfortune  did  happen,  they  could  prevent  her  from  falling  asunder. 

(4)  There  is  in  the  text  submisso  vase,  and  in  this  the  Latin  and  Greek  agree.  Most 
of  the  commentators  translate  vase  by  the  mainmast  (le  grand  mât).  Some  understand 
it  of  the  sails,  and  we  have  followed  them.  The  word  vase  is  by  no  means  applicable 
to  a  mast,  but  it  is  to  a  sail,  which,  when  it  is  inflated  by  the  wind,  appears  to  contain 
one  in  its  concavity.  What  supports  this  interpretation  is,  that  the  great  sheet  shown  to 
St. ‘Peter  in  his  mysterious  vision  is  thrice  mentioned  as  a  vessel. 

(5)  It  is  not  through  vexation,  and  still  less  through  vanity,  that  he  reminds  them  of 
his  advice,  which  they  had  rejected  ;  it  is  merely  to  induce  them  to  put  faith  in  the  pre¬ 
diction  which  he  is  about  to  make.  It  is  as  if  he  said  to  them  :  You  can  no  longer  doubt 
that  my  word  is  worthy  of  belief,  since  I  foretold  what  has  happened  to  you  ;  believe 
me  now  then  when  I  announce  to  you  that  you  are  now  to  be  saved. 

(6)  He  was  speaking  to  idolaters,  who  had  to  be  informed  that  the  God  to  whom  he 
belonged,  and  whom  he  served,  was  different  from  theirs  ;  and  that  since  his  God  was 
the  only  one  who  could  save  them,  they  should  no  longer  acknowledge  any  other.  * 


P  v  ÆpM 


\ 


\\ 


X 


CHAP,  xxvn.] 

me  this  night,  saying:  Fear  not,  Paul,  thou  must  be  brought  before 
Cæsar;  and  behold  God  hath  given  thee  all  them  that  sail  with 
thee  (1).  Wherefore,  sirs,  be  of  good  cheer  ;  for  I  believe  God,  that 
it  shall  so  be,  as  it  hath  been  told  me.  And,”  he  added,  “  we  must 
come  unto  a  certain  island.”  He  did  not  mention  the  name  of  the 
island,  apparently  because  the  angel  had  not  made  it  known  to  him. 

“  But  after  the  fourteenth  night  was  come,  as  we  were  sailing  in 
Adria  (2),  about  midnight  the  ship-men  deemed  that  they  discovered 
some  country.  Who  also  sounding,  found  twenty  fathoms;  and 
going  on  a  little  further,  they  found  fifteen  fathoms.  Then  fearing 
lest  we  should  fall  upon  rough  places,  they  cast  four  anchors  out  of 
the  stern,  and  wished  for  the  day.  But  as  the  ship-men  sought  to 
fly  out  of  the  ship,  having  let  down  the  boat  into  the  sea,  under 
color  as  though  they  would  have  cast  anchors  out  of  the  fore  part 
of  the  ship,  Paul  said  to  the  centurion  and  to  the  soldiers  :  Except 
these  stay  in  the  ship  you  cannot  be  saved  (3).”  They  believed 
him  at  last,  and,  “  then  the  soldiers  cut  off  the  ropes  of  the  boat, 
and  let  her  fall  off.” 

“  And  when  it  began  to  be  light,  Paul  besought  them  all  to  take 
meat,  saying  :  This  day  is  the  fourteenth  day  that  you  expect  and 
remain  fasting  (4),  taking  nothing.  Wherefore  I  pray  you  to  take 


(1)  He  had,  therefore,  asked  it,  since  the  angel  declares  that  God  had  granted  it  to 
him.  Hence  he  had  done  more  by  praying  than  the  others  by  their  labor,  as  the  hands 
of  Moses  raised  to  heaven  contributed  more  to  gain  the  victory  than  the  armed  hands 
which  dealt  the  blows. 

Those  who,  in  their  state,  have  no  other  occupation  than  prayer,  if  they  pray  with 
feryor  and  devotion,  are  more  useful  to  their  country  than  those  who  serve  her  with  aim 
and  head. 

(2)  This  makes  a  difficulty  against  the  descent  into  the  island  of  Malta.  It  follows 
from  this  that  it  is  only  the  Gulf  of  Yenice  which  got  the  name  of  the  Adriatic  sea  ;  but 
we  learn  from  Strabo,  a  cotemporary  of  St.  Paul,  that  this  name  had  then  a  more  en¬ 
larged  signification,  and  that  it  contained  besides  the  Gulf  of  Venice,  the  Ionian  sea  and 
the  sea  of  Sicily,  in  which  the  island  of  Malta  is  situated. 

(3)  The  accomplishment  of  the  divine  promise  depended  on  the  sailors  remaining  in 
the  ship  ;  not  absolutely  so,  but  because  God,  who  had  resolved  to  save  them  all,  had 
resolved  to  save  them  by  natural  and  human  means,  wherefore  the  experience  of  the 
sailors  would  be  mainly  useful. 

(4)  That  is  to  say,  that  they  had  scarcely  taken  any  thing,  as  it  happens  during  storms, 
when,  independent  of  the  fright  which  destroys  the  appetite,  the  stomach  becomes  so 

46 


722 


THE  HISTORY  OF  TIIE 


[chap.  XXVII. 


some  nourishment  for  your  health’s  sake  (1)  ;  for  there  shall  not  a 
hair  of  the  head  of  any  of  you  perish.  And  ivhen  he  had  said  these 
things,  taking  bread,  he  gave  thanks  to  God  in  the  sight  of  them 
all  (2)  :  and  when  he  had  broken  it,  he  began  to  eat.  Then  they 
were  all  of  better  cheer,  and  they  also  took  some  meat.  And  we 
were  in  all  in  the  ship,  two  hundred  three  score  and  sixteen  souls, 
and  when  they  had  eaten  enough,  they  lightened  the  ship,  casting 
the  wheat  into  the  sea.  And  when  it  was  day,  they  knew  not  the 
land  ;  but  they  discovered  a  certain  creek  that  had  a  shore,  into 
which  they  minded,  if  they  could,  to  thrust  in  the  ship.  And  when 
they  had  taken  up  the  anchors,  they  committed  themselves  to  the 
sea,  loosing  withal  the  rudder-bands  (3)  ;  and  hoisting  up  the  main¬ 
sail  to  the  wind,  they  made  towards  shore.” 

This  was  the  moment  when  all  the  predictions  of  the  holy  apostle 
were  to  be  both  tested  and  fulfilled.  “  And  when  we  were  fallen 
into  a  place  where  two  seas  met,”  the  tongue  of  land  by  which  they 
were  separated  being  covered  by  the  water  was  not  seen  by  them, 
so  that  “  they  run  the  ship  aground  :  and  the  fore-part  indeed,  stick¬ 
ing  fast,  remained  unmovable  ;  but  the  hinder  part  was  broken  with 
the  violence  of  the  sea.  And  the  soldiers’  counsel  was  that  they 
should  kill  the  prisoners,  lest  any  of  them,  swimming  out,  should 
escape,”  and  that  they  might  have  to  answer  for  them  with  their 
own  lives  ;  “  but  the  centurion,  willing  to  save  Paul,  forbade  it  to 
be  done  ;  and  he  commanded  that  they  who  could  swim  should  cast 
themselves  first  into  the  sea,  and  save  themselves  and  get  to  land. 
And  the  rest,  some  they  carried  on  boards,  and  some  on  those  things 


disordered  by  the  violent  rocking  of  the  vessel,  that  even  those  most  accustomed  to  the 
sea  cannot  eat. 

(1)  The  apostle  adds  that  they  must  eat  in  order  to  save  their  lives,  pro  salute  vestra, 
because  being  exhausted  with  fatigue  and  long  fasting,  they  would  have  been  wholly 
unable  to  save  themselves  in  a  shipwreck  like  that  which  they  Were  soon  to  encounter. 
God,  as  we  have  just  said,  would  only  save  them  by  natural  means  ;  and  to  look  for  any 
other  means  would  have  been  no  better  than  tempting  him. 

(2)  Christians  are  often  deterred  by  a  false  shame  from  doing  before  other  Christians 
that  which  St.  Paul  did  before  idolaters.  Is  it  then  disgraceful  to  believe  that  it  is  God 
alone  who  gives  us  our  nourishment?  and  if  we  believe  it,  is  it  a  weakness  to  testify  our 
gratitude  to  him  ? 

(3)  The  ancients  had  two  rudder-bands  at  the  stern,  one  on  either  side. 


â  ..  J  r 

fk  €%. 

>hU 

W' 


a. 


% 


CHAP.  XXVIII.] 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


that  belonged  to  the  ship.  And  so  it  came  to  pass  that  every  soul 
got  safe  to  land.”  Thus  the  destruction  of  the  vessel  was  completed, 
and  every  living  soul  on  board  saved,  so  that  the  prophecy  was  in 
both  instances  verified. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

ARRIVAL  AT  MALTA  AND  SOJOURN  THERE. - ST.  PAUL  MIRACULOUSLY  CURES  ALL 

THE  SICK. HE  DEPARTS  FROM  MALTA  AND  ARRIVES  AT  ROME. HE  ASSEMBLES 

THE  CHIEFS  OF  THE  JEWS.— HE  ADDRESSES  THEM,  BUT  FOR  THE  MOST  PART  WITH 

LITTLE  SUCCESS. - HE  ANNOUNCES  THE  GOSPEL  TO  ALL  THOSE  WHO  COME  TO 

VISIT  HIM. 

(a)  “  And  when  we  had  escaped,  then  we  knew  that  the  island 
was  called  Melita.  But  the  barbarians  (1)  showed  us  no  small  cour¬ 
tesy.  For,  kindling  a  fire,  they  refreshed  us  all,  because  of  the  pres¬ 
ent  rain  and  of  the  cold.  And  when  Paul  had  gathered  together  a 
bundle  of  sticks,  and  had  laid  them  on  the  fire,  a  viper  (2)  coming 
out  of  the  heat,  fastened  on  his  hand.  And  when  the  barbarians 
saw  the  beast  hanging  on  his  hand,  they  said  one  to  another  :  Un¬ 
doubtedly  this  man  is  a  murderer,  who  though  he  hath  escaped  the 
sea,  yet  vengeance  (3)  doth  not  suffer  him  to  live. 


And  he,  indeed, 


(a)  Acts,  xxviii.  1. 


(1)  The  word  barbarian,  in  its  primitive  signification,  simply  means  a  stranger.  The 
Greeks  and  Romans  applied  it  to  those  nations  who  spoke  a  language  different  from 
theirs  ;  these  were  apparently  Africans  who  had  established  themselves  m  the  island  of 
Malta,  which  lies  contiguous  to  the  coast  of  Africa. 

(2)  There  are  still  serpents  in  the  island  of  Malta,  but  they  are  free  from  venom  : 
children  are  often  seen  to  handle  them  and  even  put  them  in  their  bosom,  without  re¬ 
ceiving  any  injury.  If  it  be  thought  that  St.  Paul  did  not  land  at  Malta,  the  conse¬ 
quence  must  be  that  this  exemption  from  venom  is  peculiar  to  the  serpents  of  that  island  ; 
but  if  St.  Paul  was  really  there,  then  the  miracle  is  incontestable  ;  for,  seeing  that  the 
people  expected  to  see  him  fall  down  dead  when  he  was  bitten  by  the  viper,  it  follows 
that  before  his  arrival  the  serpents  there  had  been  venomous. 

(3)  The  idea  of  an  avenging  justice  is  common  to  all  mankind.  The  impious  may 
choose  to  scoff  at  it,  but  they  cannot  help  fearing  it,  in  the  depth  of  their  own  hearts. 


A' 


724 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[chap.  XXVIII. 


shaking  off  the  beast  into  the  fire,  suffered  no  harm.  But  they  sup¬ 
posed  that  he  would  begin  to  swell  up,  and  that  he  would  suddenly 
fall  down  and  die.  But  expecting  long,  and  seeing  that  there 
came  no  harm  to  him,  changing  their  minds  they  said  that  he  was 
a  god  (1)” 

“Now  in  these  places  were  possessions  of  the  chief  man  of  the 
island,  named  Publius  (2),  who  receiving  us,  for  three  days  enter¬ 
tained  us  courteously.  And  it  happened  that  the  father  of  Publius 
lay  sick  of  a  fever  and  of  a  bloody  flux.  To  whom  Paul  entered  in, 
and  when  he  had  prayed,  and  laid  his  hands  on  him,  he  healed  him. 
Which  being  done,  all  that  had  diseases  in  the  island  came,  and  were 
healed.  Who  also  honored  us  with  many  honors,  and  when  we  were 
to  set  sail,  they  laded  us  with  such  things  as  were  necessary”  for  the 
voyage  (3). 

“  And  after  three  months  we  sailed  in  a  ship  of  Alexandria,  that 
had  wintered  in  the  island,  whose  sign  was  the  Castors  (4).  And 
when  we  were  come  to  Syracuse  (5),  we  tarried  there  three  days. 


(1)  The  people  know  no  medium,  and  it  is  truly  surprising  to  see  how  rapidly  they 
pass  from  one  extreme  to  the  other.  In  Lystra  they  had  at  first  taken  St.  Paul  for  a 
god,  and  the  next  day  they  stoned  him.  These  Maltese  regarded  him  at  first  as  a  mur¬ 
derer,  and  a  few  minutes  after  they  believed  him  to  be  a  god. 

(2)  Publius  is  a  Roman  name.  The  Greek  says  of  him  that  he  was  the  chief  man, 
and  the  Latin  that  he  was  prince  of  the  island.  It  is  generally  understood  that  he  was 
the  governor,  or  chief  magistrate,  under  the  authority  of  the  prætor  of  Sicily,  of  which 
island  Malta  was  a  dependency. 

(3)  Nothing  is  said  of  the  fruit  produced  by  St.  Paul’s  preaching  in  the  island  of 
Malta.  The  tradition  of  the  country  is,  that  the  inhabitants  were  all  converted.  This  is 
very  probable,  considering  the  zeal  of  the  holy  apostle,  and  the  blessing  attached  to  his 
mission,  especially  amongst  the  Gentiles,  as  these  people  were,  together  with  the  great 
number  of  miracles  performed  by  him  in  the  island,  the  honors  paid  him  by  the  island¬ 
ers,  and  on  his  account  to  all  those  who  accompanied  him. 

(4)  Castor  and  Pollux,  two  of  the  heathen  deities,  who  were  believed  to  have  a  care 
over  mariners  ;  their  images  were  either  painted  or  carved  on  the  prow  or  stern  of  the 
ship,  which  usually  took  its  name  from  them. 

(5)  It  is  a  very  short  sail  from  Malta  to  Syracuse  ;  but  from  the  other  Melita,  now 
called  Meleda,  the  voyage  is  long  and  circuitous.  It  would  be  rather  strange  if  such  a 
voyage  could  be  made  without  either  storm  or  calm,  or  any  other  incident  worthy  of  St. 
Luke’s  notice  ;  considering  that  he  has  given  the  most  minute'  particulars  of  all  these 
occurrences,  mentioning  not  only  the  places  where  they  landed,  but  even  those  that  came 
in  view.  This  is  another  presumption  in  favor  of  the  island  of  Malta. 


f 


\\ 


J 


r/m 


From  thence,  compassing  by  the  shore,  we  came  to  Rltegium  (1)  ; 
and  after  one  day,  the  south  wind  blowing,  we  came  the  second  day 
to  Puteoli  (2).  Where  finding  brethren  (3),  we  were  desired  to 
tarry  with  them  seven  days  ;  and  so  we  went  to  Pome.  And  from 
thence,  when  the  brethren  had  heard  of  ’ us,  they  came  to  meet  us  as 
far  as  Appii  Forum,  and  the  Three  Taverns  (4),  whom  when  Paul 
saw,  he  gave  thanks  to  God,  and  took  courage.  And  when  we  were 
come  to  Rome,  Paul  was  suffered  (5)  to  dwell  by  himself,  with  a 
soldier  that  kept  him.  And  after  the  third  day”  from  his  arrival, 
that  indefatigable  minister  still  burning  with  zeal  for  the  salvation 
of  his  brethren,  notwithstanding  all  the  persecution  that  he  under¬ 
went,  “  called  together  the  chiefs  of  the  Jews.  And  when  they  were 
assembled,  he  said  to  them  :  Men,  brethren,  I  having  done  nothing 
against  the  people,  or  the  custom  of  our  fathers,  was  delivered  pris¬ 
oner  from  Jerusalem  into  the  hands  of  the  Romans,  who,  when  they 
had  examined  me,  would  have  released  me,  for  that  there  was  no 
cause  of  death  in  me.  But  the  Jews  contradicting  it,  I  was  con¬ 
strained  to  appeal  unto  Cæsar,  not  that  I  had  any  thing  to  accuse 
my  nation  of.  For  this  cause,  therefore,  I  desired  to  see  you  and  to 
speak  to  you,  because  that  for  the  hope  of  Israel  I  am  bound  with 
this  chain.  But  they  said  to  him  :  We  neither  received  letters  con- 


(1)  A  town  of  Calabria,  on  the  soil  of  Messina.  Syracuse  and  Rhegium  have  pre¬ 
served,  by  tradition,  the  remembrance  of  the  miracles  and  conversions  wrought  there  by 
St.  Paul  on  his  passage. 

(2)  A  maritime  town  of  the  land  of  Labour,  three  leagues  from  Naples.  It  was  at 
Puteoli  that  they  disembarked,  and  the  rest  of  the  journey  to  Rome  was  made  by  land. 

(3)  Those  who  are  here  called  brethren  are  Christians,  who  were  already  very  numer¬ 
ous  in  Rome  and  throughout  Italy.  Some  years  before  this,  St.  Paul  wrote  to  the  Ro¬ 
mans,  whom  he  had  not  yet  seen,  that  their  faith  was  famous  all  over  the  world  ;  St. 
Peter  it  was  who  had  planted  it  there.  St.  Paul,  who  did  not  visit  Rome  for  several 
years  after  him,  watered  that  blessed  plant,  and  contributed  much  to  its  increase. 

(4)  Two  small  towns,  which  are  now  only  known  as  having  been  on  the  way  to  Rome. 

(5)  This  good  treatment  might  have  had  two  causes  :  one  is  the  letter  of  Festus,  who, 
in  giving  an  account  of  the  prisoner,  doubtless  declared  that  he  found  him  guilty  of  no 
crime;  the  other  might  be  the  report  of  the  centurion  Julius,  who,  having  become  his 
admirer,  and  apparently  his  convert,  must  have  spoken  of  him  according  to  the  high 
opinion  he  had  conceived  of  him.  Thus  was  accomplished  the  design  of  God,  that  St. 
Paul,  though  captive  and  in  chains,  should  still  have  sufficient  liberty  to  labor,  as  he  did, 
for  the  propagation  of  the  faith. 


\B 


A 


i 


Ÿ26 


THE  HISTORY  OF  THE 


[CHAP.  XXVIII. 

cerning  thee  from  Judea,  neither  did  any  of  the  brethren  that  came 
hither  relate  or  speak  any  evil  of  thee.  But  we  desire  to  hear  of 
thee  what  thou  thinkest  ;  for  as  concerning  this  sect,  we  know  that 
it  is  gainsaid  everywhere.” 

“  And  when  they  had  appointed  him  a  day,  there  came  very 
many  to  him  unto  his  lodgings  ;  to  whom  he  expounded,  testifying 
the  kingdom  of  God,  and  persuading  them  concerning  Jesus,  out  of 
the  law  of  Moses  and  the  prophets,”  the  whole  day,  “  from  morning 
until  evening.  And  some  believed  the  things  that  were  said  ;  but 
some  believed  not.  And  when  they  agreed  not  among  themselves, 
they  departed,  Paul  speaking  this  one  word:  Well  did  the  Holy 
Ghost  speak  to  our  fathers  by  Isaias  the  prophet,  saying:  Go  to 
this  people,  and  say  to  them  :  With  the  ear  you  shall  hear ,  and  shall 
not  understand  ;  and  seeing  you  shall  see ,  and  shall  not  perceive. 
For  the  heart  of  this  people  is  grown  gross ,  and  with  their  ears  have 
they  heard  heavily ,  and  their  eyes  they  have  shut  :  lest  perhaps  they 
should  see  with  their  eyes ,  and  hear  with  their  ears ,  and  understand 
with  their  heart ,  and  should  be  converted ,  and  I  shoidd  heal  them  (1). 
Be  it  known,  therefore,  to  you  that”  the  word  of  “  this  salvation  of 
God  is  sent  to  the  Gentiles,  and  they  will  hear  it.  And  when  he 
had  said  these  things  the  Jews  went  out  from  him,  having  much 
reasoning  among  themselves.  And  he  remained  two  whole  years 
in  his  own  hired  lodging  :  and  he  received  all  that  came  in  to  him, 
preaching  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  teaching  the  things  which  con¬ 
cern  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  with  all  confidence,  without  prohibition.” 


(1)  The  small  number  of  those  who  believed  might  be  shaken  by  the  incredulity  of 
the  majority.  St.  Paul  strengthened  them  against  this  temptation  by  showing  that  the 
incredulity  of  the  latter  had  been  foretold.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  this  is  the  rea¬ 
son  why  this  prophecy  of  Isaias,  announcing  so  unequivocally  the  incredulity  of  the  bulk 
of  the  Jewish  nation,  is  six  times  recorded  in  the  New  Testament. 


CHAR  XXIX.  J 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES. 


727 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

CONTAINING  THOSE  PASSAGES  FROM  THE  EPISTLES  OF  ST.  PAUL  WHEREIN  IIE  MAKES 
MENTION  OF  WHAT  HAPPENED  TO  HIM  DURING  THE  TWO  TEARS  OF  HIS  IM¬ 
PRISONMENT. 

His  lodging  had  been  assigned  to  him  for  a  prison  ;  but  that 
prison  was  speedily  converted  into  a  public  school  of  Christianity, 
because  of  the  great  number  of  people  who  thronged  in  to  see  and 
hear  a  man  so  celebrated,  (a)  “  For  which,”  says  he  himself,  “  I  am 
an  ambassador  in  a  chain,  so  that  therein  I  may  be  bold  to  speak 
according  as  I  ought.”  Some  appeared  to  fear  that  his  captivity 
might  be  an  obstacle  to  the  progress  of  religion  :  the  contrary  was 
the  case.  ( b )  “  Xow,  brethren,”  wrote  he  to  the  Philippians,  “  I  de¬ 
sire  you  should  know  that  the  things  which  have  happened  to  me 
have  fallen  out  rather  to  the  furtherance  of  the  Gospel  :  so  that  my 
bonds  are  made  manifest,  in  Christ,  in  all  the  court,  and  in  all  other 
places.”  Conversions  failed  not  to  follow,  and  they  multiplied  so 
fast,  that  a  domestic  church  was  speedily  formed  even  in  the  most 
dissolute  of  all  courts.  When  he  salutes  the  Philippians  on  the 
part  of  the  saints  who  were  in  Rome,  he  does  it  principally  in  the 
name  of  them  “  that  are  of  Caesar’s  household  (1).” 

His  success  soon  gained  him  fellow-laborers.  Some  became  so 
through  genuine  zeal  :  others  through  a  secret  jealousy  which  they 
concealed  beneath  a  show  of  zeal  :  this  also  St.  Paul  makes  known 

l 

to  us.  (c)  “  Many  of  the  brethren  in  the  Lord,  growing  confident 
by  my  bands,  are  much  more  bold  to  speak  the  word  of  God  with¬ 
out  fear.  Some,  indeed,  even  out  of  envy  and  contention  ;  but  some 
also  for  good-will  preach  Christ  :  some  out  of  charity,  knowing  that 
I  am  set  for  the  defence  of  the  Gospel  :  and  some  out  of  contention 

(a)  Ephes.,  vi.  20.  ( b )  Phil.,  i.  12.  (c)  Phil.,  i.  14. 


(1)  Philip.,  iv.  22.  Salutant  vos  omnes  sancti,  maxime  autem  qui  de  Cæsaris  domo 
sunt. 


*28  THE  HISTORY  OF  THE  [CHAP.  XXIX. 

preach  Christ  not  sincerely,  supposing  that  they  raise  affliction  to 
my  hands.  But  what  then  ?”  adds  this  magnanimous  man,  who  was 
as  far  elevated  above  human  infirmity  as  heaven  is  above  earth, 
“  What  then  ?  so  that  by  all  means,  whether  by  occasion,  or  by 
truth,  Christ  be  preached:  in  this  also  I  rejoice,  yea,  and  will 
rejoice.” 

Thus  it  was  that,  with  the  merit  of  his  own  works,  he  also  acquired 
the  merit  of  what  others  did,  whatsoever  might  be  their  intentions. 
Meanwhile  his  zeal  was  not  confined  to  Borne  or  to  Italy.  Paul  was 
in  bondage,  but,  to  use  his  own  expression,  the  word  of  God  was 
not  bound  (1).  Enchained  as  he  was,  he  sent  it  flying  to  the  most 
distant  countries  ;  and  from  the  darkness  of  his  obscure  den,  he  en¬ 
lightened  all  nations  and  all  ages.  It  was  during  his  captivity  iu 
Borne  that  he  wrote  his  Epistles  to  the  Ephesians,  to  the  Philippi- 
ans,  to  the  Colossians,  that  to  the  Laodiceans,  which  has  not  come 
down  to  us,  the  second  to  Timothy,  that  to  Philemon,  and  the  sub¬ 
lime  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  wherein  he  demonstrates  with  so  much 
depth  and  so  much  magnificence  the  infinite  superiority  given  to  the 
new  law  by  the  divinity  of  its  founder,  and  the  excellence  of  the 
priesthood  of  Jesus  Christ,  who,  at  the  same  time  that  he  is  the 
eternal  priest,  is  also  the  sole  and  eternal  victim. 

If  St.  Paul  received  consolation  and  assistance  from  his  brethren, 
they  were  also  the  cause  of  many  trials  to  him.  Many  of  them  fell 
away  from  him  ;  some  through  weariness,  and  others  through  fickle¬ 
ness.  Besides  the  envious  of  whom  we  have  spoken,  he  had  some 
avowed  persecutors  :  such  was  Alexander  the  coppersmith,  who  did 
him,  he  says,  “  much  evil  (2).”  The  apostle  had  delivered  him  up 
to  Satan,  together  with  Hymeneus,  because  they  taught  evil  doc¬ 
trines  (a).  It  is  held  that  through  revenge  he  exerted  himself 
against  St.  Paul,  and  left  no  means  untried  that  might  bring  about 
his  condemnation  in  the  impending  trial.  But  the  greatest  trial  of 
all  was  to  see  himself  abandoned  by  his  friends  in  the  time  of  need. 

(a)  1  Tim.,  i.  20. 


(1)  2  Tim.,  ii.  9.  Yerbum  Dei  non  est  alligatum. 

(2)  2  Tim.,  iv.  14.  Alexander  ærarius  multa  owila  mild  ostendit. 


CHAP.  XXIX. 


ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


Not  one  of  them  would  venture  to  go  with  him  when  he  had  to 
make  his  first  appearance  in  court.  He  begged  of  God  that  he 
would  forgive  them  for  this  desertion,  but  as  for  himself,  he  was  no 
ways  disconcerted.  Though  deserted  by  men,  (a)  “the  Lord,”  said 
he,  “  stood  by  me  and  strengthened  me,  that  by  me  the  preaching 
may  be  accomplished,  and  that  all  the  Gentiles  may  hear  ;  and,”  he 
adds,  “  I  was  delivered  out  of  the  mouth  of  the  lion.”  By  this  ex¬ 
pression,  which  is  drawn  from  Holy  Writ,  he  meant  the  Emperor 
Nero,  whose  cruelty  soon  exceeded  that  of  the  most  ferocious  lion. 
In  the  end,  St.  Paul  became  the  victim  of  that  monstrous  cruelty  ; 
but  that  occurred  nine  years  later,  when  on  the  same  clay,  and  for 
the  same  cause,  he  and  the  chief  of  the  apostles  sealed  with  their 
blood  the  glorious  testimony  -which  they  had  rendered  to  the  Lord 
Jesus,  to  whom  be  honor,  glory,  and  power  for  ever  and  ever.  Amen. 

(a)  2  Tim.,  iv.  16. 


END  OF  THE  ACTS  OF  THE  APOSTLES» 


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i|\\l 


St.  Petee,  the  prince  of  the  apostles,  and  first  vicar  of  Christ  on 
earth,  was  the  son  of  Jonas,  or  John,  of  the  tribe  of  jSTephtali,  and 
was  born  in  Bethsaida,  a  city  of  Galilee,  seventy-five  miles  distant 
from  Jerusalem,  situated  on  the  Sea  of  Tiberias.  His  original  name 
was  Simon.  Some  authors  have  fixed  the  date  of  his  birth  three 
years  before  that  of  the  Blessed  Virgin,  and  seventeen  years  before 
the  birth  of  Christ.  He  was  the  brother  of  St.  Andrew,  and  ac¬ 
cording  to  Epiphanius  was  older  than  he.  Before  his  apostleship 
he  was  married,  and  dwelt  with  his  wife  and  relations  in  Capherna- 
um,  pursuing  the  trade  of  a  fisherman,  and  by  this  means  endeavor¬ 
ing  to  support  his  family.  His  wife  was  the  daughter  of  Aristobu- 
lus,  the  brother  of  Barnabas,  and  she  is  said  by  Clement  Alexan- 
drinus  to  have  obtained  the  crown  of  martyrdom.  He  was  brought 
to  our  Lord  by  St.  Andrew,  who  tells  him  he  had  found  the  Mes- 
sias,  and  brings  him  to  him  who  is  the  Christ.  When  our  Lord  be¬ 
holds  him,  he  says  :  “  Thou  art  Simon  the  son  of  Jonas  ;  thou  shalt 
be  called  Cephas,  which  is  interpreted  Peter.” 

That  the  Cephas  who  was  reprehended  by  St.  Paul  for  the  in¬ 
consistency  of  his  conduct  with  respect  to  the  Mosaic  rites,  was  not 
St.  Peter,  is  the  opinion  of  the  best  writers.  Eusebius  quotes  Cle*^ 


fe: 


Tsn  ■p^n'V^Hr  "A  '"*^1  \  j1  'I'w  '«pi 


732 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


ent  Alexandrinus  as  maintaining  that  this  Cephas  was  one  of  the 
seventy  disciples.  This  opinion  is  followed  by  the  most  learned 
writers  of  antiquity,  by  St.  Jerome,  by  St.  Gregory  the  Great,  by 
St.  Anselm,  and  by  many  others. 

Some  have  supposed  that  St.  Andrew  and  St.  Peter  were  amongst 
the  disciples  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  and  were  anxiously  looking  for 
the  expectation  of  the  promised  Messias.  St.  Andrew  having  heard 
St.  John  the  Baptist  call  our  Lord  “  the  Lamb  of  God  ;  behold,  he 
who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world,”  (a)  was  convinced  of  his 
being  the  Messias,  and  hastens  to  impart  the  intelligence  to  St.  Peter 
He  was  equally  anxious  with  his  brother  to  see  the  promised  Messias, 
him  of  whom  the  law  and  the  prophets  had  written  so  much,  so 
that  when  he  beholds  him  he  believes  in  him,  and  stays  with  him 
during  the  remainder  of  the  day.  After  this  the  two  brothers 
leave  our  Lord,  and  return  to  their  ordinary  occupation  as  fisher¬ 
men. 

About  the  end  of  this  year,  the  first  of  our  Lord’s  ministrations, 
it  would  appear  that  the  Saviour  of  the  world  saw  St.  Peter  and  St. 
Andrew  washing  their  nets  on  the  shores  of  the  Sea  of  Tiberias  ;  he 
enters  into  the  ship  which  belonged  to  St.  Peter,  and  desires  him 
“  to  thrust  out  a  little  from  the  land,  and  sitting  down,  he  taught 
the  multitude  out  of  the  ship,  and  when  he  had  ceased  to  speak,  he 
said  to  Simon  :  Launch  out  now  into  the  deep,  and  let  down  your 
nets  for  a  draught,  and  Simon  answering  said  to  him  :  Master,  we 
have  labored  all  the  night  and  have  taken  nothing;  but  at  thy 
word  I  will  let  down  the  net  ;  and  when  they  had  done  this  they 
enclosed  a  very  great  multitude  of  fishes,  and  their  net  was  break¬ 
ing,  and  they  beckoned  to  their  partners  who  were  in  the  other 
ship  that  they  should  come  and  help  them,  and  they  came,  and 
filled  both  the  ships,  so  that  they  were  almost  sinking,  which  when 
Simon  Peter  saw,  he  fell  down  at  Jesus’  knees  saying,  Depart  from 
me,  for  I  am  a  sinful  man,  O  Lord.”  This  humility  of  St.  Peter 
procures  for  them  greater  graces,  for  “  when  they  had  brought  their 
ships  to  land,  leaving  all  things,  they  follow  him.”  And  for  this 
promptness  in  forsaking  the  things  of  the  world,  to  become  the  dis- 


(a)  St.  John,  i.  29. 


/Fr 

Mï 


LIFE  OF  Sï.  PETEE. 


ciples  of  Christ,  St.  Peter  is  told,  when  he  asks  our  Lord  what  they 
shall  have  who  have  left  all  things  and  followed  him  :  “  Amen,  I  say 
to  you,  that  you  who  have  followed  me  in  the  regeneration,  when 
the  Son  of  Man  shall  sit  on  the  seat  of  his  majesty,  you  also  shall  sit 
on  twelve  seats,  judging  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel.  And  every  one 
that  hath  left  house,  or  brethren,  or  sisters,  or  father,  or  mother,  or 
wife,  or  children,  or  lands,  for  my  name’s  sake,  shall  receive  a  hun¬ 
dred-fold,  and  shall  possess  life  everlasting.”  (a) 

Our  Lord  is  said  to  have  baptized  St.  Peter  and  his  apostles  ;  the 
seventy  disciples  are  said  to  have  been  baptized  by  St.  Peter  and 
St.  John. 

Several  of  the  fathers  assert  that  after  his  apostleship  St.  Peter 
separated  from  his  wife,  and  lived  in  a  state  of  continency  for  the 
remainder  of  his  days.  St.  John  Chrysostom,  speaking  of  him,  calls 
him  an  illustrious  model  of  chastity.  Q)) 

From  this  period  St.  Peter  and  St.  Andrew  closely  unite  them¬ 
selves  to  onr  Lord,  and  do  not  leave  him  during  the  entire  period 
of  his  ministrations.  Going  from  thence  they  proceed  to  Capherna- 
um,  and,  accompanied  by  St.  James  and  St.  John,  they  enter  their 
own  house.  There,  too,  our  Lord  enters,  and  heals  Simon’s  wife’s 
mother,  who  is  sick  of  a  fever  :  “  They  tell  him  of  her,  and  he  came 
and  lifted  her  up,  taking  her  by  the  hand,  and  immediately  the 
fever  left  her,  and  she  ministered  unto  him.”  (c) 

Our  Lord  generally  addressed  his  conversation  to  St.  Peter,  who 
usually  answered  on  behalf  of  all  the  apostles.  Our  Lord  had  hith¬ 
erto  distinguished  him  from  the  other  apostles  by  the  tokens  of  dig¬ 
nity  and  honor  which  he  had  shown  him.  About  a  year  before  the 
events  connected  with  his  passion  took  place,  our  Lord  resolves  to 
entrust  to  his  keeping  the  Church  which  he  was  to  found  on  earth. 
After  having  received  testimony  of  his  faith  and  of  his  charity,  and 
of  his  zeal  for  the  salvation  of  souls,  our  Lord  says  to  him  :  “  Thou 
art  Peter,  and  upon  this  rock  I  will  build  my  church,  and  the  gates 
of  hell  shall  not  prevail  against  it  ;  and  I  will  give  to  thee  the  keys 
of  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  and  whatsoever  thou  shalt  bind  upon 
earth  it  shall  be  bound  also  in  heaven,  and  whatsoever  thou  shalt 

(a)  St.  Matt.  ix.  27-29.  ( b )  De  Virgin,  c.  82.  (c)  St.  Mark,  i.  31. 


734 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEK. 


loose  upon  earth  it  shall  he  loosed  also  in  heaven.”  (a)  St.  Peter  is 
often  represented  with  one  key  in  his  hand,  as  a  symbol  of  the  one 
holy  Catholic  and  apostolic  Church,  and  as  an  evidence  of  the  primacy 
of  this  being  granted  to  him,  that  thus  there  might  be  one  fold  and 
one  pastor.  By  the  three  keys  with  which  St.  Peter  is  often  repre¬ 
sented  as  holding  in  his  hand,  it  is  shown  that  authority  in  heaven, 
in  hell,  and  on  earth,  is  granted  to  him. 

On  another  occasion  our  Lord  declares  the  infallibility  of  St. 
Peter,  and  his  office  of  confirming  his  brethren  in  the  faith  ;  for  at 
the  Last  Supper  he  addresses  him  thus  :  “  And  thou  being  once  con¬ 
verted,  confirm  thy  brethren  f(b)  or,  as  the  most  celebrated  commen¬ 
tators  seem  inclined  to  render  the  passage,  giving  its  proper  force  to 
the  adverb,  “  thou  in  thy  turn  confirm  thy  brethren.”  By  the  trib¬ 
ute  which  our  Lord  paid  for  himself  and  St.  Peter,  he  desired  to 
confirm  the  supremacy  which  he  and  his  successors  were  to  exercise 
over  the  Church.  To  St.  Peter  our  Lord  had  consigned  the  mystical 
keys  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven;  and  by  this  he  and  the  Roman 
pontiffs  were  constituted  his  vicars  on  earth.  In  the  transfiguration 
our  Lord  made  him  also  partaker  of  his  glory,  with  two  other  apos¬ 
tles,  St.  James  and  St.  John. 

On  two  separate  occasions  St.  Peter  shows  his  zeal  and  love  for 
our  Lord  by  casting  himself  into  the  sea,  and  not  waiting  until  the 
ship  would  arrive  at  land.  When  St.  Peter  heard  our  Lord  predict 
his  death  and  sufferings  in  Jerusalem,  he  expresses  in  the  strongest 
language  his  attachment  and  devotion  to  him,  and  tells  him  he  is 
ready  to  go  with  him  to  prison  and  to  death. 

Before  the  Last  Supper  our  Lord,  having  loved  his  apostles,  loved 
them  to  the  end  ;  and  he  rises  from  the  table,  and  takes  a  towel  to 
gird  himself  with  it,  having  first  laid  aside  his  garments  ;  he  then 
pours  water  into  a  basin,  and  begins  to  wash  the  feet  of  his  disciples, 
and  to  wipe  them  with  the  towel  wherewith  he  was  girded.  “He 
cometh  therefore  to  Simon  Peter,  and  Peter  saith  to  him  :  Lord,  dost 
thou  wash  my  feet?  Jesus  answered  and  said  to  him:  What  I  do 
thou  knowest  not  now,  but  thou  shalt  know  hereafter.  Peter  said 
to  him:  Thou  shalt  never  wash  my  feet.”  He  only  permits  his 


(a)  St.  Matt.  xvi.  18,  19. 


(6)  St.  Luke,  xxii.  32. 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER 


735 

Lord  to  do  so,  when  he  tells  him  that  “  If  I  washed  thee  not,  thon 
shalt  have  no  part  with  me.”  (a) 

He  then  has  the  privilege  of  following  him  to  the  Garden  of  Geth- 
semane,  where,  with  St.  James  and  St.  John  he  is  a  witness  of  our 
Lord’s  being  carried  away  as  a  prisoner,  by  Judas  and  by  the  crowd 
who  accompanied  him.  St.  Peter  accompanied  our  Lord,  and  his 
heart  is  filled  with  zeal,  when  he  beholds  him  thus  taken  prisoner  ; 
and  he  stretches  forth  his  hand  and  draws  out  his  sword,  and  strikes 
the  servant  of  the  high-priest,  and  cuts  off  his  ear.  Our  Lord  turns 
round  to  St.  Peter,  and  having  healed  the  wound  which  he  had  in¬ 
flicted  on  the  servant,  whose  name  was  Malchus,  he  addressed  him 
in  the  following  words  :  “  Put  up  thy  sword  again  into  its  place,  for 
all  that  take  the  sword  shall  perish  with  the  sword.”  (b)  When  our 
Lord  was  brought  before  his  judges,  St.  Peter  accompanies  him,  and 
enters  with  him  into  the  house  of  Caiaphas,  where  two  of  the  ser¬ 
vant-maids  say  to  him,  that  he  was  with  Jesus  of  Galilee;  this  St. 
Peter  denies  before  them  all,  saying:  “I  know  not  what  thou  say- 
est  ;”  the  second  time  he  denies  with  an  oath,  saying  :  “  I  know  not 
the  man.”  And  after  a  little  while,  those  that  stood  by  say  to  St. 
Peter  :  “  Surely  thou  also  art  one  of  them,  for  even  thy  speech  doth 
discover  thee.”  Then  he  begins  to  curse  and  to  swear,  that  he  knew 
not  the  man  ;  “  and  immediately  the  cock  crew  ;  and  Peter  remem¬ 
bered  the  words  of  Jesus  which  he  had  said,  Before  the  cock  crow 
thou  wilt  deny  me  thrice  ;  and  going  forth,  he  wept  bitterly.”  (c)  So 
deep  was  the  contrition  of  St.  Peter  for  his  denying  his  Lord,  and  so 
bitter  were  the  tears  which  he  shed,  that  they  are  said  to  have 
formed  two  furrows  in  his  cheeks,  which  remained  there  during  his 
life-time;  and  the  life  which  he  led  from  that  time  forward  was  of 
so  mortified  a  nature,  that  he  usually  ate  nothing  but  herbs  or  roots. 

After  his  resurrection  our  Lord  appears  to  St.  Mary  Magdalen, 
and  bids  her  to  go  and  tell  his  apostles  and  St.  Peter,  that  he 
went  before  them  into  Galilee.  Thus,  by  especially  mentioning  his 
name,  he  desires  to  show  them  that  he  has  accepted  the  penance 
which  he  had  performed  for  denying  him. 

After  this  our  Lord  shows  himself  again  to  the  disciples  at  the 

(a)  St.  John,  xiii.  8.  (6)  Matt.  xxvi.  52.  (c)  Matt,  xxvii.  73-75. 


736 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER. 


Sea  of  Tiberias.  Simon  Peter  and  other  disciples  having  gone  a 
fishing,  during  the  night  they  caught  nothing;  when  the  morning 
came  they  beheld  Jesus  standing  on  the  shore,  and  they  knew  him 
not.  In  reply  to  our  Lord  they  tell  him  they  have  not  any  meat, 
and  he  bids  them  cast  their  nets  on  the  right  side  of  the  ship  and 
they  should  find.  In  obedience  to  our  Lord’s  directions,  they  cast 
on  the  side  of  the  ship  he  directed  them,  and  they  are  not  able 
to  draw  for  the  multitude  of  fishes.  The  disciple  whom  the  Lord 
loved,  St.  John,  says  to  St.  Peter,  “It  is  the  Lord.”  As  soon  as 
Simon  Peter  hears  this,  he  girds  his  coat  about  him,  and  casts  him¬ 
self  into  the  sea.  The  other  disciples  come  to  the  land  in  the  ship 
with  the  fishes  ;  and  they  find  hot  coals  lying,  and  a  fish  laid  there¬ 
on,  and  bread.  Our  Lord  tells  them  to  bring  to  him  some  of  the 
fishes  which  they  had  caught.  St.  Peter  draws  the  net  to  land  full 
of  great  fishes,  and  the  net  was  not  broken.  Our  Lord  then  tells 
them  to  come  and  dine  ;  they  know  it  is  the  Lord.  When  they  sit 
down  Jesus  comes  and  takes  bread  and  gives  it  them,  together  with 
the  fish  to  eat.  When  the  dinner  is  finished,  he  addresses  himself 
to  St.  Peter  and  says  :  “  Simon  son  of  John,  lovest  thou  me  more 
than  these?  He  saith  to  him,  Yea,  Lord,  thou  knowest  that  I  love 
thee  ;  and  he  saith  to  him  feed  my  lambs.  He  saith  to  him  again, 
Simon  son  of  John,  lovest  thou  me?  He  saith  to  him,  Yea,  Lord, 
thou  knowest  that  I  love  thee.  He  saith  to  him,  Feed  my  lambs. 
He  saith  to  him  the  third  time,  Simon  son  of  John,  lovest  thou  me  ? 
Peter  was  grieved  because  he  had  said  to  him  the  third  time,  Lovest 
thou  me  ?  And  he  said  to  him,  Lord,  thou  knowest  all  things  :  thou 
knowest  that  I  love  thee.  He  saith  to  him,  Feed  my  sheep.”  (a) 
Our  Lord  by  this  declaration  constitutes  St.  Peter  and  his  suc¬ 
cessors  the  vicars  and  pastors  of  his  Church,  and  then  imparts  to  St. 
Peter  even  more  joyful  intelligence  than  this  ;  for  he  tells  him  that 
the  death  of  the  martyr  was  to  be  his  privilege  :  “  Amen,  amen  I 
say  to  thee  :  when  thou  wast  younger,  thou  didst  gird  thyself,  and 
didst  walk  where  thou  wouldst  ;  but  when  thou  shalt  be  old,  thou 
shalt  stretch  forth  thy  hands,  and  another  shall  gird  thee,  and  lead 
thee  whither  thou  wouldst  not.”  ( b ) 


i 

p(v  , 


After  tlie  ascension  of  our  Lord,  the  apostles  returned  to  Jerusa,- 
lem,  and,  assembled  there,  they  proceed  to  the  election  of  a  successor 
to  Judas.  There  St.  Peter  exercises  his  first  act  of  jurisdiction,  by 
presiding  at  the  council  that  was  held  when  Matthias  was  elected  an 
apostle. 

On  the  day  of  Pentecost  the  apostles  receive,  in  the  upper  room 
where  our  Lord  had  instituted  the  sacrifice  of  the  Mass,  the  Holy 
Ghost,  (a)  Some  time  after  this  St.  Peter  consecrates  St.  James  Bish¬ 
op  of  Jerusalem  ;  and  in  the  year  34  celebrates  another  council,  in 
the  upper  room.  On  the  day  of  Pentecost,  the  Jews  had  accused 
the  apostles  of  being  full  of  new  wine.  St.  Peter  refutes  their  cal¬ 
umnies,  and  shows  it  was  only  a  fulfilment  of  the  predictions  of  the 
prophets  ;  and  so  powerful  is  the  sermon  he  preaches  on  the  resur¬ 
rection  and  ascension  of  our  Lord,  that  three  thousand  persons  are 
converted  and  baptized.  A  few  days  after  this  St.  Peter  and  St. 
John  go  up  to  the  temple,  where  they  meet,  at  the  gate  of  the  tem¬ 
ple  which  is  called  Beautiful,  a  man  who  was  lame  from  his  mother’s 
womb,  and  who  was  laid  every  day  in  the  temple.  He  asks  St. 
Peter  and  St.  John  for  alms.  St.  Peter  tells  him  that  he  has  no 
silver  or  gold  to  give  him,  but  bids  him,  “in  the  name  of  Jesus  of 
Nazareth  arise  and  walk.”  (I))  The  people,  astonished  at  beholding  the 
wonderful  miracle,  assemble  in  Solomon’s  porch,  where  St.  Peter 
addresses  them  with  such  wonderful  effect,  that  five  thousand  per¬ 
sons  were  converted.  With  his  shadow  many  extraordinary  cures 
are  performed,  and  in  the  name  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth  he  performed 
many  miracles. 

The  Holy  Ghost  had  wrought  a  great  change  in  him,  for  to 
his  courage  and  boldness  are  united  humility,  gentleness  and  pa¬ 
tience  ;  always  ready  to  yield  to  others,  he  humbles  himself  to  every 
one.  Ever  desirous  of  being  the  servant  of  all,  he  never  seems  to 
exercise  the  authority  with  which  he  is  invested  unless  when  the 
duty  of  God  requires  it. 

The  Jewish  priests  and  the  Sadducees,  jealous  of  the  conversions 
which  St.  Peter  had  effected,  and  of  the  miracles  which  he  wrought, 
cause  him  to  be  imprisoned  along  with  St.  John.  On  the  next  day 


(a)  Acts,  ii.  1. 


( b )  Acts,  iii.  0-10, 


47 


H- 


wmm 


they  are  brought  before  the  princes,  the  ancients,  and  the  scribes, 
who  are  assembled  in  council,  together  with  the  high-priest 
Annas  and  his  kinsmen.  There  St.  Peter  declares  to  them,  “that  it 
is  by  the  name  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth  that  this  man  standeth  before 
them  whole.”  As  the  assembled  Sanhedrim  could  not  deny  the 
miracle,  they  call  in  St.  Peter  and  St.  John,  and  charge  them  not  to 
speak  nor  teach  in  the  name  of  Jesus.  This  the  apostles  refuse  to 
do,  and  say  to  them  :  “  If  it  be  just  in  the  sight  of  God,  to  hear  you 
rather  than  God  judge  ye,  for  we  cannot  but  speak  the  things  which 
we  have  seen  and  heard.”  (a)  The  apostles  were  then  set  at  liberty. 

Those  who  had  become  Christians  had  their  attention  fixed  on 
the  great  blessings  which  they  enjoyed  on  becoming  members  of 
the  Church.  Worldly  riches  and  honors  had  no  value  in  their 
sight  ;  therefore  the  wealthy  amongst  them  sold  their  possessions, 
and  laid  the  money  for  which  they  sold  them  at  the  apostles’  feet — • 
who  would  make  an  equal  distribution  of  the  different  sums  thus 
presented  to  them,  amongst  the  members  of  the  Church  who  were 
in  need  of  it.  Amongst  the  different  persons  who  sold  their  prop¬ 
erty,  there  was  a  certain  man  named  Ananias,  and  Saphira  his  wife  ; 
they  sold  their  field  for  a  certain  price,  (and,  by  fraud,  kept  back 
part  of  it,)  and  laid  it  down  at  the  apostles’  feet — the  wife  being 
conscious  of  this.  Peter,  as  the  chief  of  the  apostles,  deemed  it  to 
be  his  duty  to  check  this  fraudulent  mode  of  acting,  in  the  infancy 
of  the  Church,  and  he  asks  Ananias  why  Satan  had  tempted  his 
heart,  that  he  should  lie  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  keep  back,  through 
fraud,  part  of  the  price  of  the  field,  and  he  shows  him  the  nature  of 
the  fraud  he  had  committed  :  “  Whilst  it  remained,  was  it  not  thine 
own  ?  and  being  sold,  was  it  not  in  thy  power  ?  Why  hast  thou 
conceived  this  thing  in  thy  heart  ?  Thou  hast  not  lied  to  men  but 
to  God.”  ( b )  As  soon  as  Ananias  had  heard  these  words,  he  fell  down 
and  gâve  up  the  ghost.  The  young  men  who  were  present  remove 
his  body,  and  take  it  out  and  bury  it.  About  three  hours  after  this 
event  had  taken  place,  his  wife,  not  knowing  what  had  happened, 
came  in,  and  St.  Peter  asks  her  whether  she  had  sold  the  field  for  so 
much  ;  and  she  says,  in  reply,  that  she  had  sold  it  for  this  sum.  St. 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER. 


(a)  Acts,  iv.  19, 20. 


( b )  Acts,  v.  4. 


â'. , 

p(Ç  g;% 

4  M 

Mr 

Ml 


Peter  says,  in  reply  to  her  :  “  Why  have  you  agreed  together  to 
tempt  the  spirit  of  the  Lord  ?  Behold,  the  feet  of  those  who  have 
buried  thy  husband  are  at  the  door,  and  they  shall  carry  thee  out.” (a) 
And  she  immediately  fell  down  dead  before  his  feet;  and  the 
young  men  who  had  carried  her  husband  to  the  grave  perform  the 
same  office  for  her,  and  bury  her  beside  her  husband.  This  cir¬ 
cumstance  produced  a  good  effect  upon  the  whole  Church,  and  upon 
all  that  heard  of  these  things. 


CHAPTER  H. 

THE  APOSTLES  BROUGHT  BEFORE  TIIE  COUNCIL. - PRUDENT  COUNSEL  OF  GAMA¬ 
LIEL.  - ST.  PETER  AT  JOPPE. - HE  MEETS  WITH  CORNELIUS. 

The  apostles  had  given  proofs  of  their  divine  mission  by  working 
a  great  number  of  miracles.  These  circumstances  excited  the  indig¬ 
nation  of  the  high-priest  and  of  the  other  members  of  the  Sanhe¬ 
drim,  especially  as  many  sick  persons  had  been  healed  by  the  mere 
shadow  of  St.  Peter  passing  over  them  ;  and  persons  afflicted  with 
diseases  were  brought  from  the  neighboring  cities,  and  were  cured 
of  their  diseases  by  the  miraculous  powers  which  the  apostles  exer¬ 
cised.  Such  as  were  troubled  with  unclean  spirits  were  also  healed. 
The  high-priest  and  the  Sadducees  resolved  to  put  an  end  to  this, 
and  they  therefore  laid  hands  on  the  apostles,  and  put  them  in  the 
common  prison.  But  the  angel  of  the  Lord  by  night  opened  the 
doors  of  the  prison,  and  leading  them  out  bid  them  go  to  the  tem¬ 
ple,  and  preach  there  “  all  the  words  of  this  life.”  (h)  The  officers  in 
the  morning  are  much  astonished,  at  finding  the  prison  shut  but  no 
man  within.  Whilst  the  chief  priest  and  those  assembled  with  him 
are  in  doubt  as  to  what  had  become  of  them,  a  certain  man  comes 
and  tells  them  that  the  men  whom  they  put  in  prison  are  teaching 
the  people  in  the  temple.  The  magistrates,  when  they  heard  this, 


7/t 


Üü; 


X\ 


0,0/ 


f/imV 


'  o 


go  and  bring  them  without  violence — for  they  fear  the  people,  lest 
they  should  be  stoned.  When  the  apostles  are  brought  before  the 
council,  and  the  high-priest  reminds  them  of  the  charge  that  had  al¬ 
ready  been  given  them  that  they  should  not  teach  in  the  name  of 
Jesus,  and  how  they  had  disobeyed  this  command,  and  had  filled 
Jerusalem  with  their  doctrine,  and  would  bring  the  blood  of  “  this 
(for  so  the  high-priest  calls  our  Lord)  upon  them — to  this  St. 


man 


Peter,  in  the  name  of  the  apostles,  replies,  “  that  we  ought  to  obey 
God  rather  than  man  (a)  and  he  then  openly  charges  the  high-priest 
and  those  assembled  with  him,  as  having  put  to  death  Jesus,  whom 
God  had  now  raised  up,  and  exalted  with  his  right  hand  to  give 
penitence  to  Israel  and  remission  of  sins  ;  and  he  further  adds,  that 
he  and  the  other  apostles  are  witnesses  of  these  things,  and  “  the 
Holy  Ghost,  whom  God  had  given  to  all  who  obey  him.”  (5)  The 
high-priest  and  the  assembly,  when  they  had  heard  these  things, 
were  cut  to  the  heart,  and  but  for  the  prudent  counsel  of  Gamaliel, 
would  have  put  them  to  death — who  told  them  that,  if  it  be  the 
design  or  work  of  men,  the  preaching  of  the  apostles  will  fall  to 
nothing  ;  but  that  if  it  be  of  God,  they  could  not  destroy  it.  The 
council  hearken  to  the  words  of  Gamaliel,  and  scourge  the  apostles, 
and  charge  them  not  to  speak  in  the  name  of  Jesus,  and  after  this 
dismiss  them.  The  apostles  leave  them,  rejoicing  that  they  were 
deemed  worthy  to  suffer  reproach  for  the  name  of  their  Lord  and 
Master  ;  and  they  continue  their  preaching  and  teaching  from  house 
to  house. 

The  number  of  those  who  joined  the  Church  increased  from  day 
to  day,  and  a  great  number  of  the  priests  embrace  the  faith.  This 
wondrous  triumph  of  the  Church,  and  the  progress  which  religion  is 
making,  stir  up  the  hatred  and  the  enmity  of  its  opponents  against 
the  faithful,  and  a  great  persecution  is  raised  against  the  Church. 
St.  Stephen  is  stoned  and  put  to  death,  and  all  the  faithful,  except 
the  apostles,  are  dispersed  through  the  countries  of  Judea  and  Sa¬ 
maria.  In  the  latter  city,  Philip,  one  of  the  seven  deacons,  had  con¬ 
verted  many  by  his  preaching  and  had  performed  many  miracles. 
St.  Peter  and  St.  John  go  down  to  Samaria  to  strengthen  the  faith 


(a)  Acts,  v.  29. 


(b)  Acts,  v.  32. 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE.  741 

of  the  converts,  by  administering  to  them  the  sacrament  of  con¬ 
firmation.  Amongst  those  whom  Philip  had  converted  was  a  per¬ 
son  named  Simon  Magus.  He  had  been  a  magician,  and  had  se¬ 
duced  the  people  of  Samaria,  giving  himself  out  to  be  some  great 
person.  When  he  saw  the  number  of  men  and  women  that  had 
been  baptized  by  Philip,  he  also  believes  and  is  baptized.  When 
he  beholds  that  by  the  laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the  apostles  the 
Holy  Ghost  is  given,  he  offers  to  give  money  to  St.  Peter  if  he 
should  confer  the  same  power  on  him,  and  enable  him  to  impart 
the  Holy  Ghost  on  whomsoever  he  would  lay  his  hands.  St.  Peter 
replies  to  his  request  in  the  following  words:  “May  thy  money 
perish  with  thee,  because  thou  hast  esteemed  the  gift  of  God  to  be 
purchased  with  money.  Thou  hast  no  part  nor  lot  in  this  matter, 
for  thy  heart  is  not  right  in  the  sight  of  God.  Do  penance,  there¬ 
fore,  from  this  thy  wickedness,  and  pray  to  God,  that  perhaps  this 
thought  of  thy  heart  may  be  forgiven  thee,  for  I  see  thou  art  in 
the  gall  of  bitterness  and  in  the  bonds  of  iniquity.”  (a) 

Peace  is  once  more  restored  to  the  Church,  throughout  Judea, 
Galilee,  and  Samaria.  St.  Peter,  in  the  course  of  his  missionary 
labors  and  the  apostolical  superintendence  which,  as  prince  of  the 
apostles,  he  bestowed  on  the  Church,  visits  Lydda,  where  he  finds 
a  certain  man  named  Eneas,  lying  on  his  bed  for  eight  years,  who 
was  ill  of  the  palsy.  St.  Peter  says  to  him:  “Eneas,  the  Lord 
Jesus  healeth  thee:  arise,  and  make  thy  bed;  and  immediately  he 
arose.”  (b)  The  apostle  also  visits  Joppe,  where  a.  certain  disciple 
named  Tabitha,  who  was  full  of  good  works  and  alms-deeds,  be¬ 
comes  sick  and  dies.  When  they  had  laid  her  out  in  an  upper 
chamber,  the  disciples  sent  to  Lydda  for  St.  Peter,  who,  when  he 
was  arrived,  is  brought  by  the  faithful  into  the  upper  chamber 
where  the  good  woman  was  laid  out.  There  St.  Peter  finds  assem¬ 
bled  all  the  widows  weeping,  who  show  him  the  garments  which 
Dorcas  (for  so  also  the  good  woman  was  called)  had  made  for  them. 
St.  Peter,  having  put  them  all  out,  kneels  down  and  prays,  and 
turning  to  the  body  he  said:  “Tabitha,  arise  ;”  (c)  and  she  opens  her 
eyes  and  sits  up  ;  and  he  gives  her  his  hand  and  raises  her  up,  and 

(a.)  Acts,  viii.  19-22.  (4)  Acts,  ix.  34.  (c)  Acts,  ix.  40. 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


742 

presents  lier  alive  to  the  saints  and  the  widows.  This  is  made 
known  through  all  Joppe,  and  many  believe  on  the  Lord. 

St.  Peter  sojourns  many  days  at  Joppe,  in  the  house  of  Simon,  a 
tanner,  for  there  the  Lord  had  wondrous  work  for  him  to  perform. 
Whilst  he  is  staying  at  Joppe,  St.  Peter,  on  a  certain  day,  about  the 
sixth  hour,  goes  up  into  the  higher  parts  of  the  house  to  pray,  and 
whilst  they  are  preparing  something  for  him  to  eat,  he  falls  into  an 
ecstasy,  and  he  sees  heaven  opened,  and  a  certain  vessel  descending, 
as  it  were  a  great  sheet  let  down  by  the  four  corners  from  heaven 
to  earth  ;  in  this  are  all  manner  of  four-footed  beasts  and  creeping 
things  of  the  earth  and  fowls  of  the  air,  and  he  hears  a  voice  saying 
to  him  :  “  Arise,  Peter,  kill  and  eat  ;”  (a)  and  Peter,  in  reply  to  this, 
says  :  “Far  be  it  from  me,  Lord,  for  I  have  never  eaten  any  com¬ 
mon  and  unclean  thing.”  Again,  a  second  time,  he  hears  the  same 
voice  speaking  to  him,  and  saying  :  “  That  which  God  hath  purified, 
do  not  thou  call  common.”  ( b )  This  was  done  three  times.  Whilst 
St.  Peter  is  doubting  what  this  means,  and  what  could  be  the  na¬ 
ture  of  the  vision,  certain  persons  come  from  Cornelius,  a  centurion 
who  dwelt  at  Cesarea — he  was  a  religious  man  and  feared  God — 
in  compliance  with  directions  which  had  been  given  him  in  a  vision, 
to  request  him  to  come  with  them  to  Cesarea.  St.  Peter  again 
hears  the  Spirit  addressing  him  and  saying:  “ Behold,  three  men 
seek  thee.  Arise,  therefore  ;  go  down,  and  go  with  them  doubting 
nothing,  for  I  have  sent  them.”(c)  St.  Peter  goes  down  to  them,  and 
they  tell  him  how  that  Cornelius  had  received  answer  of  a  holy 
angel  to  send  for  him  into  his  house,  and  to  hear  words  from  him. 
St.  Peter  lodges  them  in  the  house  for  that  night,  and  on  the  day 
following  he  goes  with  them,  some  of  those  from  Joppe  accompany¬ 
ing  him. 

When  St.  Peter  arrives  at  Cesarea,  he  meets  Cornelius,  and  goes 
in  with  him  to  his  house,  and  finds  many  of  the  friends  of  Cornelius 
assembled  there  ;  and  he  tells  them  that  they  knew  how  abominable 
a  thing  it  was  for  a  man  who  was  a  Jew  to  keep  company  with  any 
person  of  other  nations  ;  but  that  God  had  shown  him  how  he  was 
to  call  nothing  common  or  unclean  ;  therefore  he  came  when  he  was 

(a)  Acts,  x.  13.  ( b )  Acts,  x.  14,  15.  (c)  Acts,  x.  20. 


T~m — 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER.  743 

sent  for.  He  desires  also  to  know  tlie  cause  of  tlieir  sending:  for 

O 

him.  To  this  Cornelius  replies  in  the  following  words  :  “  Four  days 
ago,  until  this  hour,  I  was  praying  in  my  house  at  the  ninth  hour, 
and  behold  a  man  stood  before  me  in  white  apparel,  and  said:  Cor¬ 
nelius,  thy  prayer  is  heard,  and  thy  alms  are  remembered  in  the 
sight  of  God.  Send,  therefore,  to  Joppe,  and  call  hither  Simon,  who 
is  surnamed  Peter  ;  he  lodgeth  in  the  house  of  one  Simon,  a  tanner, 
by  the  sea-side.  Immediately,  therefore,  I  sent  to  thee,  and  thou 
hast  done  well  in  coming.  How,  therefore,  all  we  are  present  in 
thy  sight,  to  hear  all  things  whatsoever  are  commanded  thee  by  the 

Lordf’O) 

St.  Peter,  in  reply  to  the  request  made  to  him  by  Cornelius  and 
his  friends,  said  to  them  :  “  I  perceive  that  God  is  no  respecter 
of  persons  ;  but  in  every  nation  he  that  feareth  him,  and  worketh 
justice,  is  acceptable  to  him.”  (5)  He  then  proceeds  to  tell  them 
how  the  word  of  God  had  been  published  through  all  Judea,  and  4 
how  our  Lord  had  gone  about  doing  good,  and  healing  all  who  were 
oppressed  by  the  demi,  and  that  he  and  the  other  apostles  were  the 
witnesses  of  these  things,  as  they  were  also  of  his  resurrection.  He 
then  declares  to  them  how  they  were  commanded  to  preach  to  the 
people,  and  to  testify  that  our  Lord  hath  been  appointed  to  be 
Judge  of  the  living  and  of  the  dead. 

Whilst  St.  Peter  was  yet  speaking  these  words,  the  Holy  Ghost 
fell  upon  all  them  that  were  hearing  the  word.  This  caused  much 
astonishment  amongst  the  members  of  the  Church  who  had  been 
Jews  ;  for  they  wondered  that  the  grace  of  the  Holy  Ghost  was  also 
poured  out  upon  the  Gentiles,  and  that  they  should  hear  them  speak 
with  tongues  and  magnify  God. 

St.  Peter  then  asked  them  :  “  Can  any  man  forbid  water,  that 
these  should  not  be  baptized,  who  have  received  the  Holy  Ghost  as 
well  as  we  ?”  (c)  And  he  then  commanded  them  to  be  baptized  in 
the-  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus.  Thus  was  the  Vicar  of  Christ  deputed 
to  receive  the  Gentiles  within  the  fold  of  the  Church. 

Through  the  kindness  of  the  Emperor  Tiberius,  who  showed  much 
favor  to  the  Church,  the  spirit  of  persecution  which  had  been  raised 

(a)  Acts,  x.  30-33.  (/;)  Acts,  x.  34,  35.  (c)  Acts,  x.  47. 


744 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


against  it  ceased,  and  peace  was  at  length  restored  to  it.  The  apos¬ 
tles  left  Jerusalem  to  spread  the  doctrines  of  Christianity;  and  they 
commenced  with  Syria,  and  with  the  countries  which  were  situated 
near  Jerusalem  and  Judea.  St.  Peter  departs  from  Judea,  and  pro¬ 
ceeds  to  Syria,  the  capital  of  which  was  Antioch. 

St.  Jerome,  Eusebius,  and  the  ancient  writers  agree  in  their  state¬ 
ments  respecting  Antioch  being  the  first  episcopal  see  of  St.  Peter, 
and  that  the  apostle  governed  this  city  during  the  space  of  seven 
years. 

St.  Gregory  the  Great  informs  us  in  one  of  his  Epistles,  (a)  that 
the  faithful  were  first  called  Christians  in  this  city.  It  was  but 
just  that  the  prince  of  the  apostles  should  be  its  first  pastor.  Dur¬ 
ing  the  period  that  St.  Peter  ruled  the  see  of  Antioch,  he  was  con¬ 
stant  in  making  missionary  tours  into  other  countries,  that  he  might 
convert  all  who  desired  to  become  members  of  the  Church.  He 
preached  the  faith  to  the  Gentiles  in  the  provinces  of  Pontus,  Gala¬ 
tia,  Cappadocia,  and  Bithynia. 

About  the  year  37,  St.  Peter  was  visited  by  St.  Paul  in  Jerusa- 
salem,  who  spent  fifteen  days  with  him,  and  acquaints  him  with  his 
conversion,  and  acknowledges  him  to  be  the  supreme  head  of  the 
Church. 

In  the  divisions  which  the  apostles  made  of  the  different  places 
where  they  proposed  to  preach  the  gospel,  St.  Peter  selected  the 
city  of  Rome,  the  capital  of  the  world,  as  the  principal  theatre  of 
his  apostolic  labors.  This  city  the  prince  of  darkness  had  caused 
to  become  the  centre  of  superstition  and  error.  Here  wickedness 
reigned  in  its  basest  forms,  and  superstition  exercised  its  influence 
by  the  worship  of  false  gods.  Rome  had  become  the  centre  of 
power  and  of  all  earthly  authority,  being  raised  to  this  high  posi¬ 
tion  in  accordance  with  the  designs  of  Providence,  who  had  desired 
that  through  these  means  the  Church  might  be  propagated,  and  the 
gospel  spread  throughout  the  world.  It  was  the  design  of  our 
blessed  Lord  to  plant  the  rock  on  which  his  Church  was  founded  in 
the  metropolis  of  the  world,  in  order  that  the  faith  might  be  spread 
with  the  greater  rapidity,  and  with  greater  ease,  amongst  the  na- 


(a)  Lib.  vii.,  Epist.  40. 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


745 


lions  who  were  subject  to  the  dominion  of  that  city,  which  was 
afterwards  to  be  called  the  eternal  city. 

The  many  difficulties  which  surrounded  the  great  object  which 
the  apostle  had  in  view  only  increased  his  zeal,  and  made  him 
anxious  to  perform  greater  acts  of  devotion  in  behalf  of  the  Church 
of  which  he  was  the  supreme  head. 


CHAPTER  III. 

MARSILIUS’S  HOSTILITY  TO  POPE  JOHN  XXH. - HIS  ASSERTION  THAT  ST.  PETER  HAL 

NEVER  BEEN  AT  ROME. - TESTIMONY  PROVING  THAT  HE  HAD. 

St.  Petee  having  arrived  at  the  capital  of  the  Roman  empire,  and 
having,  as  it  were,  by  his  presence  taken  possession  of  the  city  of  Rome, 
was  faithful  to  the  trust  which  had  been  committed  to  him,  and 
with  zeal  and  diligence  preached  the  gospel  to  all  who  were  willing 
to  receive  its  powerful  influences.  On  his  way  there  he  had  planted 
the  faith  in  different  places  :  at  Pisa,  in  Sicily,  and  at  Naples.  In 
the  latter  city  he  is  said  to  have  consecrated  its  first  bishop,  having 
said  mass  on  an  altar  which  was  erected  on  the  spot  where  after¬ 
wards  was  built  the  Church  of  St.  Peter  ad  Aram. 

The  year  40,  or,  as  some  authors  affirm,  the  year  45,  is  fixed  as 
the  date  of  the  arrival  of  the  apostle  in  the  city  of  Rome  ;  who  also 
state  that  on  the  18th  of  January  he  established  his  see  there,  hav¬ 
ing  translated  it  from  Antioch.  Before  the  fourteenth  century  no 
person,  however  hostile  he  was  to  the  holy  see,  had  ventured  to 
deny  that  St.  Peter  was  Bishop  of  Rome,  and  had  dwelt  for  many 
years  in  the  city  of  the  Cæsars.  Marsilius,  of  Padua,  was  the  first 
person  who  advanced  such  a  statement  as  this.  On  the  death  of 
Henry  VII.,  Louis  Duke  of  Bavaria  claimed  the  Bavarian  crown, 
to  the  exclusion  of  Frederic,  the  son  of  Albert  I.,  of  Austria.  The 
Pontiff  John  XXII.,  having  espoused  the  cause  of  Frederic,  Marsi¬ 
lius,  who  was  a  firm  supporter  of  Louis,  offered  every  indignity  to 
the  holy  see.  He  carried  his  hostility  so  far,  that  he  denied  all  con¬ 
nection  between  St.  Peter  and  the  see  of  Rome.  St.  Peter,  he  said. 


pÀ  I 

4  ci 

‘tes# 


K 


r  - 


m 


LIFE  OE  ST.  PETER. 


had  never  been  at  Home,  and,  consequently,  that  John  XXII.,  who 
claimed  supremacy  over  the  Catholic  world,  as  the  successor  of  St. 
Peter,  the  first  Bishop  of  Borne,  claimed  that  supremacy  without 
any  lawful  grounds,  and  consequently  he  was  not  the  supreme  pon¬ 
tiff.  Errors  against  the  plainest  facts  of  history  were  followed  by 
errors  against  the  faith  of  the  Church,  and  as  the  number  of  those 
who  departed  from  the  faith  increased  they  adopted  the  state¬ 
ments  of  Marsilius.  Wickliffe,  and  after  him  Luther,  joined  in 
making  these  false  statements.  Calvin  seems  also  unwilling  to 
allow  the  fact  of  St.  Peter’s  ever  having  been  at  Borne,  for  the  ex¬ 
tent  of  his  admissions  respecting  it  amount  to  this  :  “  that  there  is 
nothing  repugnant  in  the  statement.”  Since  the  days  of  Calvin 
there  have  been  many  writers  who  have  maintained  that  St.  Peter 
was  never  at  Borne  ;  but  the  great  and  learned  men  of  every  creed 
and  of  every  country  have  ever  zealously  vindicated  the  truth  of 
history,  and  have  been  zealous  in  their  maintaining  the  connection 
of  St.  Peter  with  the  see  of  Borne.  The  result  of  this  has  been,  that 
the  fact  of  St.  Peter’s  residence  in  the  eternal  city  has  been  estab¬ 
lished  on  a  firmer  basis  than  almost  any  other  circumstance  connect¬ 
ed  with  the  history  of  that  time. 

Cave,  Pearson,  Whiston,  Young,  Blondel,  and  others,  all  authors 
of  eminence,  and  opposed  to  the  supremacy  of  the  Holy  See,  have 
written  against  the  system  of  Marsilius,  and  have  united  with  the 
most  eminent  Catholic  writers  in  showing  the  fallacies  contained  in 
the  writings  of  those  who  suppose  that  St.  Peter  never  had  been  at 
Borne. 

It  may  prove  both  interesting,  in  connection  with  a  life  of  the 
apostle,  and  also  instructive,  to  enter  into  a  consideration  of  this 
matter.  To  do  this  effectually  it  will  be  necessary  to  divide  the 
subject  into  distinct  heads.  In  the  first  place,  the  testimony  of  some 
of  the  leading  writers  of  the  four  or  five  first  centuries,  who  have 
left  us  a  record  of  their  opinions  respecting  this  matter,  will  be  ad¬ 
duced  ;  in  the  second  place,  the  causes  will  be  assigned  which  are 
said  to  have  drawn  the  great  apostle  to  Borne  ;  and,  in  the  third 
place,  some  facts  of  a  local  character  will  be  stated,  and  which  can¬ 
not  be  explained  by  any  other  means  than  by  allowing  the  resi¬ 
dence  of  the  apostle  in  the  eternal  city. 


i  ci 


a 


a 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 

Cave,  a  writer  opposed  to  tlie  supremacy  of  tlie  Holy  See,  has 
well  observed,  that  if  there  be  one  fact  of  history  which  is  affirmed 
continuously,  it  is  this  of  St.  Peter’s  residence  in  the  holy  city. 
Should  you  reject  this,  the  only  conclusion  you  can  come  to  is, 
that  history  is  a  mighty  conspiracy  against  truth,  and  we  must  be¬ 
come  skeptical  with  respect  to  all  matters  which  are  recorded 
in  it. 

The  first  testimony  which  shall  be  adduced  are  the  words  of 
Eusebius,  in  which  he  refers  to  the  statement  of  Papias,  and 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  both  of  whom  lived  in  the  second  century  : 
“  Under  the  reign  of  Claudius,  by  the  benign  and  gracious  provi¬ 
dence  of  God,  Peter,  that  powerful  and  great  apostle,  who,  by  his 
courage,  took  the  lead  of  all  the  rest,  was  conducted  to  Rome, 
against  the  pest  of  mankind,  [Simon  Magus*]  He  was  a  noble 
general  [appointed]  of  God,  armed  with  heavenly  weapons;  he 
brought  the  precious  merchandise  of  intellectual  light  from  the 
east  to  the  dwellers  in  the  west,  announcing  the  light  itself,  and 
salutary  doctrine  of  the  soul,  the  proclamation  of  the  kingdom  of 
God.  The  divine  word  having  been  thus  established  among  the 
Romans,  the  power  of  Simon  was  soon  extinguished  and  destroyed, 
together  with  the  man.  So  greatly,  however,  did  the  spirit  of  piety 
enlighten  the  minds  of  Peter’s  hearers,  that  it  was  not  sufficient 
to  hear  but  once,  nor  to  receive  the  unwritten  doctrine  of  the  gospel 
of  God,  but  they  persevered,  in  every  variety  of  entreaties,  to  solicit 
Mark,  as  the  companion  of  St.  Peter,  and  whose  Gospel  we  have, 
that  he  should  leave  them  a  monument  of  the  doctrine  thus  orally 
communicated,  in  writing  ;  nor  did  they  cease  their  solicitations 
until  they  had  prevailed  with  the  man  ;  and  thus  become  the  means 
of  that  history  which  is  called  The  Gospel  according  to  St.  Mark. 
They  say,  also,  that  the  apostle,  [Peter,]  having  ascertained  what 
was  done,  by  the  revelation  of  the  Spirit,  was  delighted  with  the 
zealous  ardor  expressed  by  these  men,  and  that  the  history  obtained 
his  authority  for  the  purpose  of  being  read  in  the  churches.  This 
account  is  given  by  Clement,  in  the  sixth  book  of  his  Institutions, 
whose  testimony  is  corroborated  by  that  of  Papias,  Bishop  of 
Hieropolis.”  (a) 

(a)  Eusebius,  1.  ii.  c.  14,  15. 


iTuTT  ,i 

I'M  h .  '! 

H''!:-  !ili 

m 

> 

f  s\\vii  hi/./'] 

"  -  ,  ■ 
alSN| 

3 

748 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


The  Papias  here  spoken  of  flourished  about  the  yearllS.  Prob¬ 
ably  he  was  the  disciple  of  the  apostle  St.  John,  and  the  friend  of 
St.  Polycarp.  What  we  know  of  him  for  certain  is  this,  that  he 
was  most  diligent  in  collecting  all  kinds  of  facts  regarding  the  apos¬ 
tles,  from  those  who  had  been  intimately  acquainted  with  them. 
“  If,”  he  says,  “  I  meet  with  any  one  who  had  been  a  follower  of  the 
elders  anywhere,  I  made  it  a  point  to  inquire  what  were  the  decla¬ 
rations  of  the  elders,  what  was-  said  by  Andrew,  Peter,  or  Philip, 
what  by  Thomas,  James,  John,  Matthew,  or  any  other  of  the  dis¬ 
ciples  of  our  Lord  ;  what  was  said  by  Aristion,  and  the  presbyter 
John,  disciples  of  the  Lord  ;  for  I  do  not  think  that  I  derived  so 
much  benefit  from  books  as  from  the  living  voice  of  those  that  are 
still  surviving.”  (a) 

This  same  century  supplies  us  with  three  other  ecclesiastical 
writers  who  have  referred  to  the  residence  of  St.  Peter  at  Pome. 
Caius,  who  visited  Rome  during  the  pontificate  of  Zephyrinus,  thus 
refers,  in  his  Disputations  with  Proclus,  to  the  tombs  of  St.  Peter 
and  St.  Paul  :  “  I  can  show  you  the  trophies  of  the  apostles,  for,  if 
you  will  go  to  the  Vatican,  or  to  the  Ostian  road,  you  will  find  the 
trophies  of  those  who  have  laid  the  foundation  of  this  [the  Roman] 
Church.”  (b) 

And  the  illustrious  prelate  St.  Dionysius  of  Corinth,  who  be¬ 
came  bishop  in  170,  in  his  Address  to  the  Romans,  speaking  of  the 
martyrdom  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  says  :  “  Thus  likewise  you,  by 
means  of  this  admonition,  have  mingled  the  flourishing  seed  that 
had  been  planted  by  Peter  and  Paul  at  Rome  and  Corinth,  for  both 
of  these  having  planted  us  at  Corinth,  likewise  instructed  us  ;  and 
having  in  like  manner  taught  in  Italy,  they  suffered  martyrdom 
about  the  same  time.”  ( o ) 

St.  Iræneus,  a  more  learned  writer  than  any  of  those  hitherto 
cited,  and  who  was  born  about  the  middle  of  the  second  century, 
presents  us  with  the  following  testimonies  connected  with  this  sub¬ 
ject:  “Matthew  produced  his  Gospel,  written  among  the  Hebrews, 
in  their  own  dialect,  whilst  Peter  and  Paul  proclaimed  the  gospel 
and  founded  the  Church  at  Rome.”  ( d)  He  repeats  this  testimony 

(a)  Euseb.  1.  iii.  c.  39.  ( b )  lb.  1.  ii.  c.  25.  (c)  lb.  (d)  lb.  1.  v.  c.  3 


LITE  OF  ST.  PETEK. 


749 


in  his  famous  work  against  heresies,  m  the  following  terms  :  “  But 
as  it  would  be  a  very  long  task  to  enumerate  in  such  a  volume  as 
this,  the  successions  of  all  the  churches,  pointing  out  the  tradition 
which  is  the  greatest,  and  most  ancient,  and  universally  known 
Church,  founded  and  constituted  at  Rome,  by  the  two  most  glorious 
apostles  Peter  and  Paul,  derives  from  the  apostles,  and  that  faith 
announced  to  all  men,  which,  through  the  succession  of  [her]  bish¬ 
ops,  has  come  down  to  us.  We  confound  all  those  who  in  any  way 
assemble  otherwise  than  as  behooveth  them.”  (a) 

The  establishment  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  through  the  ministry 
of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  is  spoken  of  here  again  as  a  fact  beyond 
question.  That  Church  was  most  universally  known  ;  its  origin  was 
best  investigated  and  established,  and  this  is  the  result  of  the  in¬ 
quiry  :  St.  Peter  had  been  at  Rome,  and  had  founded  the  Church 
there. 

The  third  century  offers  us  the  voluminous  writings  of  the  first 
African  ecclesiastical  author,  Tertullian.  Over  and  over  again  he 
refers  to  St.  Peter’s  founding  the  Roman  Church  and  dying  there. 
“  Come  now,  thou  who  wilt  exercise  thy  curiosity  to  better  purpose, 
run  over  the  apostolic  chairs  of  the  apostles  to  this  very  time  ;  pre¬ 
side  over  their  own  places  in  which  their  own  authentic  letters  are 
read,  echoing  the  voice  and  making  the  face  of  each  present.  Is 
Achaia  near,  then  thou  hast  Corinth  ;  if  thou  art  not  far  from  Mace¬ 
donia,  thou  hast  Philippi,  thou  hast  the  Thessalonians  ;  if  thou  canst 
travel  into  Asia,  thou  hast  Ephesus  ;  but  if  thou  art  near  Italy,  thou 
hast  Rome,  whence  an  authority  is  ready  at  hand  to  us.  Oh,  how 
happy  is  that  Church  in  which  the  apostles  have  poured  out  all 
their  doctrine  with  their  blood,  where  Peter  had  a  like  passion  with 
his  Lord,  where  Paul  is  crowned  with  an  end  like  the  Baptist, 
where  the  apostle  John  was  plunged  into  boiling  oil  !”  ( b ) 

In  other  writings  besides  that  from  which  the  above  quotation 
has  been  made,  he  refers  constantly  to  the  planting  of  the  faith  and 
the  death  of  St.  Peter  at  Rome.  He,  like  all  the  other  authorities, 
speaks  confidently,  his  words  evidently  regarding  it  as  an  acknowl¬ 
edged  fact  ;  not  a  thing  to  be  proved  but  a  matter  of  public  no¬ 
toriety. 


(a)  Here.  1.  iii.  c.  3. 


(£)  De  Pros.  n.  35,  36. 


750 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER. 


Origen  has  left  us  the  tradition  of  former  times  relative  to  the 
countries  assigned  to  each  of  the  apostles  for  the  work  of  the  minis¬ 
try  ;  speaking  of  St.  Peter  he  says  :  “  Peter  appears  to  have  preach¬ 
ed  through  Pontus,  Galatia,  Bithynia,  Cappadocia,  and  Asia,  to  the 
Jews  that  were  scattered  abroad,  who  also,  finally  coming  to  Borne, 
was  crucified,  with  his  head  downwards,  himself  having  requested 
to  suffer  in  that  way.”  (a) 

Lactantius,  in  his  work  on  the  death  of  the  persecutors,  and  also 
in  his  fourth  book  on  the  true  wisdom,  agrees  with  the  preceding 
writers.  In  the  former  work  he  states:  “When  Nero  reigned,  Peter 
came  to  Borne,  and  having  wrought  some  miracles,  which  he  effect¬ 
ed  by  the  might  of  the  Almighty  power  to  this  effect  being  given  to 
him  by  him,  he  converted  many  to  justice,  and  raised  up  to  God  a 
faithful  and  enduring  temple.  When  Nero  was  informed  of  this, 
and  he  saw  that,  not  only  at  Borne  but  everywhere,  a  great  multi¬ 
tude  day  by  day  abandoned  the  worship  of  idols  and  passed  over  to 
the  new  religion,  to  the  rejection  of  the  ancient  one,  being,  as  he 
was,  an  execrable  tyrant,  he  rushed  forward  to  destroy  the  heavenly 
temple,  and  the  first  of  all  others  persecuting  the  servants  of  God, 
he  affixed  Peter  to  a  cross  and  Paul  he  slew.”  ( b ) 

Eusebius’s  sentiments  with  regard  to  St.  Peter’s  visit  to  Borne 
have  already  been  alluded  to.  He  repeats  the  same  remarks,  not 
once  or  twice  but  several  times,  and  in  such  a  manner  as  to  convince 
the  reader  that  what  he  states  was  universally  believed  to  be  true. 

St.  Peter  of  Alexandria,  who  was  martyred  a.  d.  311,  after  he 
had  governed  the  see  of  that  city  for  eleven  years,  speaks  of  the 
prince  of  the  apostles  in  the  following  terms  :  “  Peter,  the  ruler  of 
the  apostles,  after  having  been  often  seized  and  imprisoned,  and  ig- 
nominiously  treated,  was  at  length  crucified  at  Borne.”  ( c ) 

St.  Optatus  of  Melevis  defies  even  the  Donatists,  the  worst  and 
most  daring  enemies  of  the  Church,  to  deny  that  St.  Peter  had  been 
at  Borne  :  “  Thou  canst  not,  then,  deny  that  thou  knowest  that  the 
episcopal  chair  was  given,  in  the  city  of  Borne,  to  Peter  the  first  of 
all  others,  in  which  Peter,  the  head  of  all  the  apostles,  sat . 

(a)  Eusebius,  1.  iii.  c.  1.  ( b )  Do  Morte  Persec.  c.  ii.  p.  523. 

(c)  Apud  Galland,  t.  iv.,  p.  98. 


N 


Peter,  therefore,  first  filled  that  pre-eminent  chair  which  is  the  first 
mark  of  the  Church.  To  him  succeeded  Linus.”  (a) 

St.  Jerome,  who  was  weil  acquainted  with  the  history  of  the 
Church  of  Rome,  having  resided  there  for  a  long  period,  and  acted 
as  secretary  to  one  of  the  pontiffs,  Pope  Damasus,  thus  mentions  St. 
Peter,  in  his  Catalogue  of  Ecclesiastical  Writers:  “Simon  Peter, 
the  son  of  John,  of  the  province  of  Galilee,  from  the  village  of  Beth- 
saida,  the  brother  of  Andrew  the  apostle,  and  the  prince  of  the 
apostles,  after  his  episcopate  in  the  Church  of  Antioch,  and  his 
preaching  to  those  scattered  about,  of  the  circumcision,  who  had  be¬ 
lieved,  in  Pontus,  Galatia,  Cappadocia,  Asia,  and  Bithynia,  goes  to 
Rome,  in  the  second  year  of  Claudius,  to  overthrow  Simon  Magus  ; 
and  there  he  held  the  sacerdotal  chair  for  five-and-twenty  years, 
down  to  the  last,  that  is  to  the  14th  year  of  Nero.  Buried  at  Rome, 
in  the  Vatican,  near  the  triumphal  way,  he  is  honored  by  the  ven¬ 
eration  of  the  whole  city.” 

Rufinus,  the  opponent  of  St.  Jerome,  is  as  clear  on  this  head  as 
any  other  writer  :  “  Peter,”  he  says,  “  ruled  the  Roman  Church  for 
twenty-four  years.”  (£) 

St.  Augustine  constantly  appeals  to  the  authority  of  that  chair  at 
Rome  in  which  Peter  sat  :  “  Nay,”  he  says,  in  his  work  against  the 
Letters  of  Petilian,  “  if  all  throughout  the  world  were  such  as  you 
most  idly  slander  them,  what  has  the  chair  of  the  Roman  Church, 
in  which  St.  Peter  sat,  and  in  which  Anastasius  now  sits,  done  to 
this  ?”  The  east  knew  as  well  as  the  west  of  St.  Peter’s  journey  to 
Rome  ;  the  Christians  of  Antioch  pointed  with  pride  to  St.  Peter  as 
the  founder  of  their  see,  but  they  were  forced  to  admit  that  Anti¬ 
och  could  not  keep  for  ever  the  prince  of  the  apostles  as  its  bishop. 

“This,”  writes  St.  John  Chrysostom,  “is  one  of  the  privileges  of 
this  our  city,  [Antioch,]  that  it  had  at  first  as  teacher  the  leader  of 
the  apostles.  For  it  was  befitting  that  that  city  which,  before  the 
rest  of  the  world,  was  crowned  with  the  Christian’s  name,  should 
receive  as  shepherd  the  first  of  the  apostles  ;  but  after  having  had 
him  as  our  teacher,  we  did  not  retain  him,  but  surrendered  him  to 
regal  Rome.”  ( c ) 

(a)  De  Schis.  Don.  ii.  2-4.  ( b )  Invect.  in  S.  Hieron,  2,  p.  661. 

(c)  T.  Ill,  Home 24. 


V 


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^-1 


Ÿ52 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER. 


“  It  [Rome]  contains  within  it,”  says  Theodoret,  “  the  tombs  of 
our  common  fathers  and  teachers  of  the  truth,  Peter  and  Paul — 
tombs  which  illuminate  the  souls  of  the  faithful.  Their  thrice- 
blessed  and.  divine  twin  star  rose  indeed  in  the  east,  but  had  the 
settling  of  its  existence  by  choice  in  the  west,  and  thence  even  now 
illuminates  the  whole  world.  These  have  made  your  throne  most 
illustrious  ;  this  is  the  culminating  point  to  your  blessings  ;  and 
their  God  has  even  now  made  illustrious  their  throne,  having  estab¬ 
lished  thereon  your  Holiness,  emitting  the  rays  of  orthodoxy.”  (a) 

This  letter  was  addressed  to  Pope  Leo.  Every  expression  and 
allusion  obviously  regards  the  unvarying  tradition  of  St.  Peter’s 
preaching  and  dying  at  Rome. 

Pope  Innocent’s  words  would  seem  at  first  sight  nearly  a  tran¬ 
script  of  those  of  St.  Chrysostom  which  we  have  just  adduced:  “Ob¬ 
serve,”  he  writes,  “that  this  [privilege]  has  been  assigned  to  this 
city  [Antioch]  not  so  much  on  account  of  its  magnificence,  as  be¬ 
cause  it  is  known  to  have  been  the  first  see  of  the  first  apostle, 
where  the  Christian  faith  took  its  name,  and  has  had  the  honor  to 
have  held  within  it  a  most  celebrated  assembly  of  the  apostles' — a 
city  which  would  not  yield  to  the  see  of  the  city  of  Rome,  save  that 
it  was  honored  by  him  but  temporarily,  whereas  this  city  [Rome] 
glories  in  having  received  him  to  herself,  and  that  he  here  consum¬ 
mated  [his  martyrdom].”  (5) 

The  testimony  of  another  pontiff  will  draw  this  first  part  of  the 
argument  to  a  conclusion. 

Pope  Gelasius  thus  clearly  and  elegantly  expresses  himself  with 
respect  to  the  prince  of  the  apostles  :  “  There  were  assuredly  twelve 
apostles,  endowed  with  equal  merits  and  equal  dignity,  and  whereas 
they  all  shone  equally  with  spiritual  light,  yet  it  was  Christ’s  will 
that  one  amongst  them  should  be  the  chief,  and  him  by  an  admi¬ 
rable  dispensation  did  he  guide  to  Rome,  the  queen  of  nations,  that 
in  the  principal  or  first  city  he  might  direct  that  first  and  principal 
[apostle]  St.  Peter.”  (p) 


(a)  T.  4,  Ep.  113. 


(6)  Ep.  24.  n.  1. 


(c)  T.  10,  Galland,  p.  677. 


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SIMON  MAGUS. - HE  PROMISES  TO  FLY  TO  THE  HEAVENLY  ABODES. 

THE  EARTH  AT  THE  PRAYER  OF  ST.  PETER. - HIS  DEATH.  —  ST 

STATEMENT. 

It  has  already  been  stated  that  one  of  the  causes  of  St.  Peter’s  go¬ 
ing  to  Rome  is  frequently  referred  to  by  the  fathers  of  the  Church, 
and  assists  much  in  elucidating  the  truth  of  the  events  connect¬ 
ed  with  the  residence  of  St.  Peter  in  Rome,  and  seems  to  con¬ 
firm  a  fact  which  the  east  and  the  west,  Greece  and  Italy,  Africa 
and  Gaul,  have  believed  in  for  more  than  eighteen  centuries. 

According  to  Eusebius,  St.  Jerome,  and  Orosius,  St.  Peter  visited 
Rome  for  the  first  time  in  the  2d  year  of  Claudius  the  emperor, 
which  corresponds  with  the  forty-second  of  the  Christian  era  ;  and 
he  went  thither,  if  we  may  believe  the  statements  of  Eusebius  and 
St.  Jerome,  in  order  to  silence  the  heresiarch  Simon  Magus  :  “Imme¬ 
diately  under  the  reign  of  Claudius  ....  Peter,  the  powerful  and 
great  apostle  ....  was  conducted  to  Rome  against  this  pest  of 
mankind.”  (a) 

St.  Jerome  also  bears  testimony  to  the  same  fact  :  “  Simon,  the 
son  of  John,  ....  the  brother  of  Andrew  the  apostle,  and  the 
prince  of  the  apostles,  goes  to  Rome,  in  the  second  year  of  Claudius, 
to  overthrow  Simon  Magus.”  (Z>) 

Of  this  infamous  man  Magus,  St.  Justin  makes  distinct  and  de¬ 
tailed  mention  in  his  first  Apology,  addressed  to  Antoninus  Pius. 
We  are  told  that  he  was  a  Samaritan,  of  the  village  of  Giton,  was 
versed  iu  magic,  and  was  so  successful  in  the  practice  of  his  art  as  to 
become  at  first  the  wonder  and  glory  of  the  Romans,  and  eventually 
the  object  of  their  adoration.  He  informs  us  farther  of  the  time 
when  this  man  flourished,  the  place  where  his  statue  was  set  up,  the 
inscription  it  bore:  “To  Simon  the  holy  god;”  and  he  also  tells 


(a)  Galland,  1.  ii.  c.  14. 


48 


(b)  Cat.  Scrip.  Ecc.  1. 


I 

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4, 


754 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER. 


us  that  his  companion  was  an  abandoned  person  of  the  name  of 
Helena.  He  also  proceeds  to  exhort  the  emperor  to  communicate 
these  particulars  to  the  Senate  and  the  people,  in  order  “  that  if  any 
of  them  should  chance  to  be  entangled  by  the  doctrines  of  Magus, 
they  might  at  length  free  themselves  from  the  trammels  of  error 
and  finally  he  prays  “  that  the  statue  raised  to  the  impostor  might 
be  taken  down.”  (a) 

With  equal  distinctness  Tertullian  alludes  to  the  heresiarch,  and 
rebukes  the  Romans  for  adoring  such  a  worthless  man. 

Vincent  of  Lerins,  in  his  Commonitory,  refers  to  the  overthrow 
of  Magus,  who  has  been  emphatically  called  by  the  fathers,  “the 
parent  of  heretics:”  “Was  not  Simon  Magus  the  first  so  deservedly 
smitten  by  the  apostolic  sword  ?  ....  Was  not  this  conjurer,  I  say, 
the  first  who  had  the  face  to  charge  God  the  Creator  as  the  author 
of  all  evil  ?”  ($) 

But  there  are  still  more  particular  statements  to  be  made  with  re¬ 
spect  to  St.  Peter  himself.  Arnobius  wrote  his  Apology  either  at 
the  close  of  the  third  or  as  early  in  the  fourth  century  as  the  year 
303.  In  the  second  book  of  this  work  the  following  words  occur  : 
‘  The  men  were  engaged  by  the  arts  of  King  Huma,  and  the  ancient 
superstitions  in  this  city,  [Rome,]  still  they  did  not  hesitate  about 
abandoning  the  concerns  of  their  country,  and  uniting  in  the  admis¬ 
sion  of  Christian  truth,  for  they  beheld  the  car  of  Simon  Magus  and 
his  fiery  steeds  blown  away  by  the  truth  of  Peter,  and  brought  to 
nothing  at  the  name  of  Christ.” 

It  appears  that  even  the  catechumens  were  instructed  about  this 
event,  for  St.  Cyril  of  Jerusalem,  in  his  Sixth  Catechetical  Address, 
tells  them  :  “  The  error  of  Simon  spreading  farther  and  farther,  the 
illustrious  pair  of  men,  Peter  and  Paul,  the  rulers  of  the  Church, 
corrected  it  by  going  thither,  who  soon  exhibited  as  dead  the  puta¬ 
tive  god,  on  his  appearance  ;  for  when  Simon  had  declared  that  he 
would  ascend  aloft  into  heaven,  ....  the  servants  of  God  .  .  .  . 
cast  him  headlong  on  the  earth  ;  .  .  .  .  and  though  this  occurrence 
was  wonderful  in  itself,  it  was  not  wonderful  under  the  circum¬ 
stances,  for  it  was  Peter  who  did  it,  he  who  bears  with  him  the  keys 


(a)  Apol.  i.  c.  34. 


(b)  Common,  c.  30. 


of  heaven  ;  it  is  not  worth  our  wonder,  for  it  was  Paul  who  did  it, 
he  who  was  caught  up  into  the  third  heaven.” 

St.  Cyril’s  testimony  agrees  with  those  already  cited,  as  to  the 
main  facts  of  the  magician’s  defeat  at  Rome  by  St.  Peter.  In  one 
respect,  however,  he  differs  from  the  writers  already  cited,  for  he 
supposes  this  event  to  have  taken  place  in  the  reign  of  Nero,  and 
not  in  the  time  of  Claudius.  Many  writers  agree  with  Cyril  in 
placing  the  downfall  of  Simon  Magus  in  the  reign  of  Nero. 

The  legates  of  the  holy  see,  in  a  letter  to  Eusebius  of  Vercelli, 
also  make  mention  of  this  event  :  “  For  the  Lord  and  his  Christ 
know  that  on  the  arrival  of  the  most  blessed  apostles,  the  name  of 
God  is  glorified  in  the  overthrow  of  Simon.” 

St.  Pacian  plainly  refers  to  this  well-known  story  :  “  Does  not 
Peter  confound  Simon  in  the  presence  of  the  judge  ?  does  not  Paul 
blind  Elymas  ?”  (a) 

Epiphanius,  when  writing  on  the  heresy  of  the  Simonians,  refers 
to  the  occurrence  in  the  following  words  :  “  Simon,  we  know,  paid 
the  debt  of  Nature  at  Rome,  when  falling  he  dies  miserably  in  the 
midst  of  the  city  of  the  Romans.”  (Ji) 

St.  Ambrose,  in  the  work  entitled  Egesippus,  which  he  wrote 
while  still  young  and  a  catechumen,  enters  into  greater  detail.  He 
tells  us  “  that  Simon  promised  to  fly,  and  thus  ascend  to  the  heav¬ 
enly  abodes.  On  the  day  agreed  upon  he  went  to  the  Capitoline 
Hill,  and,  throwing  himself  from  the  rock,  began  his  ascent.  Then 
Peter,  standing  in  the  midst,  said  :  “  O  Lord  Jesus,  show  him  that 
his  arts  are  vain.”  Hardly  had  these  words  been  uttered,  when  the 
wings  which  Simon  had  made  use  of  became  entangled,  and  he  fell. 
His  thigh  was  fractured,  never  to  be  healed  ;  and  some  time  after¬ 
wards  the  unhappy  man  died  at  Aretia,  whither  he  had  retired  after 
his  discomfiture.” 

In  another  of  his  works  Epiphanius  refers  to  the  same  fact  : 
“  Peter  overthrew  and  laid  prostrate  Simon,  as  he  soared  to  heaven 
by  magic  flight,  by  breaking  the  power  of  his  charms.” 

Philostrius  of  Brixia,  in  his  observations  on  the  heresy  of  Simon, 
says  “  that  when  the  heresiarch  arrived  in  Rome  where  he  would  con- 


7b 


10  3  <*  I 


<*  a  a  o  o  a  a  a 


MfI 


756 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


tend  with  the  blessed  apostle,  [Peter,]  in  the  presence  of  Nero  the 
king,  being  completely  overthrown  by  the  power  of  the  blessed 
apostle,  and  stricken  by  an  angel,  he  merited  such  a  death  as  made 
the  evident  lie  of  his  magic  patent  to  all  men.” 

St.  Augustine,  the  illustrious  prelate  of  Africa,  in  several  places 
distinctly  alludes  to  St.  Peter’s  overcoming  Simon  at  Rome.  In 
the  beginning  of  his  book  on  heresies,  he  says:  “In  which  city 
[Rome]  the  apostle  Peter  overcame  him  by  the  true  power  of  the 
Almighty  God.” 

In  answer  to  all  these  statements,  which  are  so  striking,  and 
which  so  fully  prove  St.  Peter’s  being  at  Rome,  it  is  alleged  by 
writers  of  an  infidel  turn  of  mind,  that  Simon  is  a  myth,  and  his 
doings  mere  fabulous  legends,  or  mere  romances  got  up  to  adorn 
the  life  of  St.  Peter.  For  the  following  reasons  this  statement 
would  appear  to  be  devoid  of  truth.  Those  writers  who  have 
been  referred  to,  as  may  be  seen,  speak  absolutely  about  the  person¬ 
ality  and  deeds  of  the  impostor.  Even  the  Apologists,  as  Justin, 
Tertullian,  and  Vincent  of  Lerins,  speak  in  as  plain  terms  about  him 
as  about  any  other  well  known  individual  ;  nor  could  they  refer 
even  emperors  and  a  Roman  senate  to  the  history  of  a  fictitious  per¬ 
son,  for  by  doing  this  they  would  render  their  own  proceed¬ 
ings  of  no  avail,  and  they  would  have  materially  injured  the  cause 
of  Christianity.  An  inaccuracy  of  this  nature  would  have  done  an 
amount  of  mischief  which  volumes  of  truths  would  not  have  suf¬ 
ficed  to  repair. 

St.  Augustine  informs  us,  that  as  Æneas  was  proclaimed  a  god 
after  his  death,  by  the  Latins,  so  was  Sangus  likewise  by  the 
Sabines,  and  therefore  the  inscription  which  was  discovered  with 
“  Sangus”  on  it,  refers  to  him,  and  is  altogether  different  from  the 
inscription  recorded  by  Justin,  and  which  has  already  been  referred 
to  ;  therefore  the  objection  drawn  from  the  discovery  of  this  statue, 
and  which  the  writers  before  referred  to  speak  so  much  of,  is  of  no 
avail,  as  it  does  not  militate  against  the  statement  of  Justin,  who 
refers  to  a  different  statue  and  a  different  inscription  altogether. 


SS; 


8T.  PETER  DATES  HIS  FIRST  EPISTLE  FROM  ROME.' — TESTIMONY  OF  PAPIAS,  VALE- 
SITJS,  AND  GROTTOS,  TO  THAT  EFFECT. 

If  further  proof  be  needed  of  the  sojourn  of  St.  Peter  at  Pome, 
the  following  reasons  will  supply  this. 

All  critics  of  any  weight  or  authority  assert  it,  as  a  certain  rule, 
that  any  circumstance  which  a  writer  of  respectability,  who  lived 
either  at  the  time  or  near  the  time  when  the  event  which  he  records 
took  place,  is  to  be  believed,  unless  a  writer  of  earlier  date  or  one 
whose  testimony  is  more  worthy,  does  not  profess  to  believe  in  it. 

A  public  fact  which  all  the  faithful,  and  which  even  those  who 
do  not  hold  the  faith,  have  believed  to  be  true  for  fifteen  centuries, 
must  be  supposed  to  have  taken  place,  although  there  would  be  no 
other  record  for  it  in  existence  than  the  fact  of  its  being  believed  in 
for  so  long  a  time. 

When  men  write  about  public  circumstances,  and  about  matters 
referring  to  history,  they  satisfy  themselves  about  the  truth  of  these, 
not  only  from  books  and  writings  but  also  from  public  monuments, 
from  inscriptions,  and  from  privileges  and  immunities  conferred  on 
any  particular  city  or  state,  for  all  these  have  authority  in  deter¬ 
mining  whether  the  matter  referred  to  took  place  or  not. 

The  law  of  nations  and  public  faith  require  that  credit  should  be 
given  to  any  city  or  state  recording  those  things,  while  those  who 
relate  them  must  have  sufficient  opportunity  of  knowing  whether 
they  took  place  or  were  connected  with  their  public  history. 

All  reasonings  or  arguments,  unless  they  be  direct  historical 
proofs,  are  of  no  weight  when  adduced  against  a  circumstance 
which  is  supported  by  cotemporaneous  history,  by  unanimous  con¬ 
sent,  and  by  a  tradition  of  many  ages  ;  and  if  what  has  been  already 
stated  be  called  to  mind,  it  will  be  found  that  the  journey  of  St. 
Peter  to  Rome  is  to  be  accounted  amongst  those  facts  which  the 


iiir 


758 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


above  rules  relate  to,  for,  as  we  have  seen,  it  is  referred  to  by  Papias, 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  Origen,  Tertullian,  and  several  other  writers 
of  the  second  or  third  century  ;  and,  as  we  shall  see  in  the  follow¬ 
ing  chapters,  there  are  public  monuments  existing  in  Rome,  connect¬ 
ed  with  St.  Peter’s  stay  in  that  city.  The  Roman  pontiffs,  from  the 
time  of  SS.  Peter  and  Paul,  have  maintained  the  supreme  authority 
in  the  Church,  and  all  the  honors  and  privileges  connected  with 
this  high  position.  The  conclusion  from  all  these  proofs  is  evident 
— that  St.  Peter’s  visiting  Rome  rests  upon  such  historical  proofs, 
that  all  the  arguments  of  those  who  profess  to  disbelieve  it  cannot 
call  it  into  question. 

But  there  is  another  argument  remaining  to  be  stated  in  con¬ 
nection  with  this  subject.  This  is  the  testimony  of  St.  Peter  him¬ 
self,  who  dates  his  first  Epistle  from  Rome.  As  all  eminent  writers 
interpret  this  passage  in  his  first  Epistle:  “The  Church  which 
is  in  Babylon,  elected  together,  saluteth  you.”  (a)  In  calling 
the  city  of  Rome  Babylon,  the  apostle  seems  to  have  been  influ¬ 
enced  by  motives  of  prudence,  that  he  might  not  indicate  to  the 
many  enemies  which  he  had,  the  place  of  his  residence,  and  by  his 
doing  so,  subject  himself  to  constant  persecution.  This  he  was  ever 
ready  to  suffer  when  it  came  upon  him,  but  to  bring  it  upon  himself 
needlessly,  might  well  be  looked  upon  as  a  tempting  of  Providence. 
It  should  also  be  remembered  that  he  was  writing  to  those  of  He¬ 
brew  origin,  who  were  familiar  with  figurative  language,  from  peru¬ 
sing  the  writings  of  the  prophets,  which  abound  in  this  style  of 
speech.  It  had  been  usual  to  call  a  wicked  city,  Sodom,  a  country 
given  to  idolatry,  Egypt,  a  people  under  a  curse,  Chanaan,  a  city  which 
was  filled  with  wickedness,  and  which  might  be  looked  upon  in  the 
light  of  an  enemy,  Babylon.  This  city  had  been  the  place  where 
their  ancestors  suffered  captivity,  and  it  had  spoiled  their  ancestors 
of  their  country  and  of  their  kingdom.  Pagan  Rome  resembled 
this  in  many  respects  ;  for  it  had  reduced  Judea  into  a  province,  and 
had  already  persecuted  the  Christians,  and  stirred  up  the  hatred  of 
its  inhabitants  against  them. 

When  St.  Peter  dwelt  at  Rome,  and  when  he  wrote  to  the 

(a)  C.  v.  13. 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEK. 


strangers  dispersed  through.  Pontus,  Galatia,  Cappadocia,  Asia,  and 
Bithyuia,  it  was  natural  to  call  Rome  by  the  name  of  Babylon, 
being  the  name  by  which  these  persons,  as  ancient  writers  tell  us, 
were  accustomed  to  call  that  city.  Papias  informs  us,  that  St.  Peter 
wrote  his  first  Epistle  at  Rome,  and  that  he  referred  to  Rome,  when 
he  made  use  of  these  words  :  “  The  Church  which  is  in  Babylon, 
elected  together,  saluteth  you.”  (a)  And  Valesius,  a  writer  of  note, 
states  that  those  who  wish  to  refer  the  Babylon  spoken  of  by  St. 
Peter  to  the  eastern  metropolis  of  that  name,  are  going  contrary  to 
the  opinion  of  eastern  writers  ;  and  Grotius,  a  writer  whose  belief 
would  have  led  him  to  have  adopted  a  different  opinion,  if  facts 
were  not  too  strong  against  him,  writes  as  follows:  “The  new  and 
the  old  interpreters  differ  respecting  Babylon.  The  old  interpre¬ 
ters  refer  it  to  Rome,  where  no  true  Christian  ever  doubted  that  St. 
Peter  had  been  ;  the  new  state  that  Babylon  in  Chaldea  is  meant 
by  it  ;  I,  however,  agree  with  the  old.”  ( b ) 

It  also  appears  that  the  Jews,  to  whom  St.  Peter  wrote  his  Epis¬ 
tle,  would  not  be  likely  to  apply  Babylon  to  the  city  of  that  name 
which  was  in  Chaldea,  for  it  appears  from  the  testimony  of  Pliny, 
that  it  was  rather  a  heap  of  stones  than  a  city.  Strabo  speaks  of  it 
as  nearly  altogether  deserted  ;  Diodorus  speaks  of  it  as  having  only 
its  smallest  part  inhabited.  They  also  add,  that  a  short  time  be¬ 
fore  the  reign  of  Claudius,  in  the  reign  of  Caius,  the  Jews  were  ban¬ 
ished  from  Babylon,  and  came  to  Seleucia. 

Josephus  gives  a  more  detailed  account  of  this  event.  He  says, 
“that  the  Babylonians,  Anilaus  and  his  companions  being  put  to 
death,  attacked  the  Jews,  who,  deeming  themselves  not  equal  to 
enter  into  a  contest  with  them,  fled  to  Seleucia,  where  they  were 
safe  from  any  assault  for  fifty  years  ;  that  six  years  after  this  a  pes¬ 
tilence  raged  in  the  city,  and  that  a  few  families  of  the  Jews  who 
had  not  yet  migrated  from  the  city,  came  to  Seleucia,  where  a  dread¬ 
ful  calamity  overpowered  them,  for  the  Greeks  and  the  Syrians, 
who  were  the  inhabitants  of  the  city,  though  hitherto  they  were  not 
on  good  terms,  entered  into  a  league  to  destroy  the  Jews,  and  slew 
more  than  fifty  thousand  of  them  ;  and  those  who  escaped  from  the 

(a)  1  Peter,  v.  13.  ( b )  Grotius  on  1  Peter  v.  13. 


slaughter  went  to  Neesda  and  Nesbis,  esteeming  themselves  safer 
there.” 

There  was  a  village  in  Egypt  called  Babylon,  which  is  now  the 
modern  Cairo.  This  appears  to  have  been  built  by  the  Persians, 
when  Cambyses,  who  was  also  king  of  Egypt,  permitted  the  Per¬ 
sians  to  settle  in  that  country.  In  the  time  of  Strabo,  one  of  the 
Roman  legions,  which  had  been  emancipated  in  Egypt,  retired  there, 
as  into  a  strong  fortification;  but  there  does  not  appear  to  have 
been  either  Jews  or  Christians  residing  there.  Nor  is  it  asserted 
by  any  eminent  writer  that  St.  Peter  went  there,  or  preached  the 
gospel  there.  Nor  does  it  appear  to  have  had  a  bishop  before  the 
time  of  the  Council  of  Chalcedon,  according  to  Spanheim,  whose 
name  was  Cyrus.  Baronius,  however,  states,  that  the  first  bishop 
of  this  place  was  called  Zosimus,  and  that  in  the  fifth  century, 
when  Justin  was  emperor,  he  ruled  over  the  church  in  that  city. 
If  St.  Peter  had  established  a  church  there,  it  could  not  have  re¬ 
mained  unknown  through  so  many  ages  ;  and  if  he  were  writing  to 
the  Jews  of  this  place,  he  would  have  added  some  word  which 
would  have  marked  it  more  distinctly,  that  there  might  not  have 
been  a  possibility  of  confounding  it  with  Babylon  of  Chaldea — a 
city  which  was  nearer  to  them,  and  being  more  closely  connected 
with  their  history,  and  with  the  various  events  which  took  place 
during  the  time  they  had  dwelt  in  Palestine.  Besides,  it  has  never 
been  shown  that  St.  Peter  crossed  the  Euphrates,  or  ever  visited 
Babylon  in  Chaldea  or  Babylon  in  Egypt.  Neither  Scripture  nor 
ecclesiastical  history  even  allude  to  such  an  event  ever  having  taken 
place.  There  is  therefore  no  reason  for  departing  from  the  usually 
received  interpretation,  and  not  supposing  that  St.  Peter  meant  by 
Babylon  the  city  of  Rome. 

The  Jews  to  whom  St.  Peter  wrote  could  not  suppose  that  the 
apostle  alluded  either  to  Babylon  in  Chaldea  or  Babylon  in  Egypt, 
and,  as  we  have  seen,  it  was  more  natural  that  they  should  believe 
he  referred  to  Pagan  Rome,  which,  as  a  city  filled  with  iniquity, 
might  well  be  called  Babylon. 

The  passage  in  the  first  Epistle  of  St.  Peter,  where  he  speaks  of 
the  church  which  is  in  Babylon,  could  not  have  remained  unknown 
for  so  many  centuries,  as  those  who  are  not  inclined  to  admit  that 


B 


■si;;  "h! 

t  ( 


'Sl  V«j 


the  apostle  in  these  words  refers  to  pagan  Rome  would  have  us  be¬ 
lieve.  Whoever  read  the  passage  would  at  once  come  to  the  con¬ 
clusion  whether  Babylon  was  to  be  understood  in  an  allegorical 
sense  or  in  a  literal  sense.  The  most  illiterate  as  well  as  the  most 
learned  would  soon  make  up  their  minds  on  this  point,  and  having 
once  done  so,  would  not  hastily  change  ;  they  could  not  be  at  a  very 
great  loss  to  find  out  where  St.  Peter  was  when  he  wrote  this  Epis¬ 
tle,  and  then  they  would  infer  that  he  was  purposing  to  designate 
that  place  by  the  name  of  Babylon.  We  do  not  find  any  per¬ 
son  doubting  that  the  apostle  was  at  Rome  when  he  wrote  this 
Epistle. 

Those  who  had  read  the  Epistle  would  also  be  able  to  find  out 
whether  St.  Peter  was  ever  at  Babylon  or  not,  and  also  whether  he 
was  at  Rome  when  he  wrote  the  Epistle.  It  does  not  appear  that 
any  writer  mentions  any  difference  of  opinion  having  existed  re¬ 
specting  this  matter  ;  they  all  seem  to  conclude  that  by  Babylon  St. 
Peter  intends  to  designate  the  city  of  Rome,  then  the  capital  of  the 
pagan  world.  It  would  also  seem  that  these  persons  held  this  as  an 
apostolic  tradition,  which  had  been  handed  down  to  them  by  the 
apostles  themselves,  or  by  their  disciples. 

Modern  writers  would  oppose  this,  though  they  adduce  no  argu¬ 
ments  or  authorities  of  any  weight  to  corroborate  their  statements. 
The  differences  which  exist  in  their  interpretations  of  this  passage 
show  also  their  want  of  unity,  and  that  they  are  destitute  of  that 
which  has  ever  been  looked  upon  as  a  mark  of  truth — agreement  in 
the  main  facts  of  the  statements  which  are  made.  The  fathers  and 
the  Catholic  interpreters  have  always  taught,  without  any  one  at¬ 
tempting  to  deny  it,  from  the  first  ages  of  the  Church  until  the  pres¬ 
ent  day,  that  St.  Peter,  in  his  first  Epistle,  by  Babylon  intended  to 
point  out  Rome,  as  the  place  from  which  he  wrote  his  first  Epistle. 
Their  statement  has  met  with  no  contradiction  until  of  late  years. 
The  conclusion  is  evident  that  it  must  be  looked  upon  as  true. 

It  has  been  stated  as  an  objection  to  St.  Peter’s  being  at  Rome, 
that  the  different  writers  have  not  been  agreed  amongst  themselves 
as  to  the  exact  year  when  he  first  came  there  ;  but  this  objection  is 
of  no  weight,  for  though  the  writers  may  differ  in  their  statements 
respecting  the  date  of  the  apostle’s  coming  to  Rome,  they  all  are 


m 


aaaaoooo# 


f 


762 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER. 


unanimous  in  maintaining  the  fact  of  his  coming  there.  Lactan- 
tius  places  the  time  of  St.  Peter’s  coming  to  Pome  in  the  reign  of 
Nero  ;  Eusebius,  St.  Jerome,  and  others  fix  the  date  in  the  second 
year  of  Claudius.  Many  of  the  ancient  fathers  say  that  he  was 
bishop  of  Pome  for  twenty-five  years.  St.  Paul,  though  dwelling  at 
Rome,  and  having  written  many  Epistles  from  it,  nowhere  mentions 
St.  Peter.  These  also  are  urged  as  objections  against  the  apostle’s 
ever  being  at  the  capital  of  the  pagan  world.  It  is  also  added  that 
Claudius,  in  the  year  49,  in  the  ninth  year  of  his  reign,  banished  all 
the  Jews  from  Pome,  therefore  that  St.  Peter  must  have  left  it  at 
that  period. 

It  may  be  said  in  reply  to  those  who  maintain  that  St.  Peter  was 
never  at  Pome,  because  the  writers  differ  about  the  year  when  he 
came  there,  that  the  Church  affirms  nothing  respecting  the  time 
when  St.  Peter  came  to  that  city  ;  all  that  it  maintains  is,  that  St. 
Peter  was  at  Pome  ;  and  gives  perfect  liberty  to  follow  the  writer 
who  maintains  with  the  clearest  arguments  what  seems  to  be  the 
true  date.  Those  who  place  the  advent  of  St.  Peter  to  Rome  in  the 
second  year  of  Claudius,  and  those  who  maintain  that  he  came  there 
when  that  emperor  began  his  reign,  do  not  differ  from  each  other  ; 
for  when  Claudius  reigned  thirteen  years,  the  second  year  of  this 
emperor  may  be  called  the  beginning  of  his  reign. 

Though  it  may  be  maintained  that  St.  Peter  was  bishop  of  Pome 
for  twenty-five  years,  it  is  not  to  be  inferred  from  thence  that  he 
remained  there  during  all  that  time  ;  for,  as  the  necessities  of  the 
Church  required  it,  he  could  go  to  the  east  or  the  west,  and  yet  not 
have  given  up  his  see,  as  the  bishops  who,  in  the  present  time,  are 
obliged  to  visit  the  holy  city,  are  not  said  to  have  given  up  their 
see,  because  they  go  away  from  it  for  a  short  time  ;  and  from  the 
second  year  of  Claudius  to  the  last  year  of  Nero  a  space  of  ex¬ 
actly  twenty-five  years  intervened.  Nor  is  there  any  difficulty  in 
reconciling  those  statements  which  differ  from  each  other  ;  for  it  is 
probable  that  St.  Peter  came  to  Rome,  according  to  the  opinion  of 
St.  Jerome,  Eusebius,  and  other  writers,  in  the  second  year  of  the 
reign  of  Claudius,  and  then  left  it  for  some  time;  but  returned 
again  in  the  12th  or  1.3th  year  of  the  reign  of  Nero,  shortly  be¬ 
fore  he  suffered  martyrdom;  and,  being  cast  into  prison,  suffered 


sfr 

Û  |  r 

(o  tâà 

'g-  ,iü 

ye&' 

\h 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETER. 


together  with  St.  Paul,  in  the  year  66,  on  the  29th  of  June,  the 
day  in  which  the  Church  celebrates  their  martyrdom. 

Nor  is  there  any  thing  strange  in  St.  Paul,  in  writing  to  others 
from  Rome,  or  in  writing  to  the  Romans  his  Epistle,  not  mentioning 
St.  Peter,  when  St.  Peter  was  absent  from  Rome  at  that  time.  It  is 
stated  as  a  strong  objection  against  the  apostle’s  being  at  Rome,  that 
it  is  recorded  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  that  the  Jews  dwelling  at 
Rome,  whom  St.  Paul  questioned  respecting  the  Christian  religion, 
—  and  told  the  nature  of  the  persecution  he  underwent,  —  that 
they  stated  the  only  knowledge  they  had  respecting  the  Chris¬ 
tian  religion  was  that  it  was  spoken  against  everywhere  ;  for  they 
told  him  :  “For  as  concerning  this  sect  we  know  that  it  is  every¬ 
where  contradicted  .”(«)  It  would  appear  that  these  Jews  were  not 
of  the  fold  of  Christ,  and,  imbued  with  the  false  opinions  which  they 
had  received  from  the  calumnies  and  writings  of  the  Hebrews,  were 
acquainted  with  the  Christian  religion  only  by  name  ;  and  when  St. 
Paul  came  to  Rome,  they  eagerly  flocked  to  hear  him.  Knowing 
that  he  was  a  learned  man,  they  were  anxious  to  hear  something 
more  respecting  the  Christians  against  whom  the  synagogue  had 
been  so  greatly  excited  ;  and  although  many  of  the  Jews  who  dwelt 
at  Rome,  as  also  many  of  the  heathens,  had  embraced  the  faith,  as 
they  did  not  frequent  the  synagogue,  there  is  no  difficulty  in  sup¬ 
posing  that  the  Jews  had  not  heard  of  the  Epistle  which  St.  Paul 
had  written  to  the  Romans  ;  therefore  it  is  natural  to  expect  that 
they  should  be  unacquainted  with  the  labors  both  of  St.  Paul  and 
St.  Peter,  in  propagating  the  faith. 

It  would  appear  that  when  SS.  Peter  and  Paul  had  resolved  to 
devote  themselves,  one  exclusively  to  the  Jews,  and  the  other  to  the 
Gentiles,  they  did  not  intend  thereby  to  preclude  themselves  from 
preaching  to  either  Gentiles  or  Jews,  whenever  an  opportunity 
should  present  itself.  St.  Peter  administered  the  sacrament  of  bap¬ 
tism  to  Cornelius  and  his  entire  household  ;  and  St.  Paul,  wherever 
he  went,  or  in  whatever  city  he  dwelt,  flrst  preached  the  faith  to 
the  Jews  and  afterwards  to  the  Gentiles,  when  there  seemed  to  be  a 
hope  of  converting  them  to  the  faith.  St.  Peter,  without  neglecting 

(«)  Acts,  xxviii.  22. 


ips 

1 

II 

ii 

m 

A 


f 


-nm — — T  T 


/I t' 


6 


X 


the  Gentiles,  made  it  his  duty  to  bring  the  Jews  within  the  fold  of 
the  Church  ;  and  St.  Paul  followed  a  like  course  with  respect  to  the 
Gentiles,  always  instructing  them,  without  declining,  whenever  an 
opportunity  presented  itself,  to  make  the  Jews  participators  in  the 
same  blessings. 

At  Rome  St.  Peter  would  find  an  ample  field  for  exercising  his 
mission  ;  for,  when  Herod  died,  Josephus  informs  us  that  the  am¬ 
bassadors  who  came  from  Jerusalem  to  Rome,  to  request  that  they 
might  for  the  future  be  free  from  the  government  of  the  kings, 
brought  twelve  thousand  Jews  with  them,  (a)  And  Philo  records 
that  the  part  of  Rome  beyond  the  Tiber  now  called  the  Traste- 
vere  was  chiefly  inhabited  by  the  Jews,  (b)  In  the  reign  of  Clau¬ 
dius  there  were  so  many  Jews  residing  at  Rome  that  he  feared  a 
tumult.  He  did  not  however  dare  to  expel  them  from  the  city,  but 
was  content  to  forbid  their  assembling  together.  It  appears,  how¬ 
ever,  he  expelled  them  in  the  ninth  year  of  his  reign,  because,  on 
account  of  the  Christians,  they  were  constantly  engaging  in  tumul¬ 
tuous  proceedings,  (c) 

It  is  very  probable  that  St.  Peter  left  Rome  at  this  time,  and  re¬ 
turned  in  the  sixth  year  of  Hero,  who  did  not  persecute  the  Jews, 
but  only  exercised  his  cruel  disposition  in  persecuting  the  Chris¬ 
tians.  Hear  the  conclusion  of  the  reign  of  Hero,  all  ancient  writers 
affirm  that  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  both  returned  to  Rome,  where 
they  suffered  martyrdom.  The  objection  which  is  sometimes  urged, 
from  no  mention  being  made  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  of  St. 
Peter’s  being  at  Rome,  is  not  of  much  force  ;  for  St.  Luke  does  not 
profess  to  write  a  history  of  St.  Peter,  or  to  give  an  account  of  his 
life.  After  the  sixteenth  chapter  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  he 
seems  altogether  to  forget  St.  Peter,  in  order  that  he  may  devote 
himself  to  give  a  lengthened  account  of  the  labors  of  St.  Paul. 

Spanheim,  in  order  that  he  might  invalidate  the  testimony  which 
has  been  adduced  to  show  that  St.  Peter  was  at  Rome,  has  collected 
an  immense  number  of  legends  respecting  the  places  which  St.  Peter 
visited,  also  respecting  the  churches  and  altars  which  are  said  to 
have  been  consecrated  by  him  and  the  bishops  of  the  different  cities 


(a)  Antiqu.  1.  17,  c.  12. 


(b)  Legat  ad  Caium. 


(c)  Suetonius  in  Claudio. 


Ÿ65 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


who  were  the  companions  of  his  journeys.  To  these  he  has  added 
many  circumstances  which  hear  upon  them  the  stamp  of  falsehood. 
But  it  is  clear  that  these  cannot  invalidate  the  truth  of  the  question 
which  he  wishes  to  disprove,  that  St.  Peter  was  at  Borne  and  lived 
there  for  many  years,  no  more  than  the  false  statements  and  foolish 
stories  which  the  Jews  have  connected  with  the  life  of  our  Lord  and 
his  apostles,  would  show  that  such  a  person  never  existed,  and  that 
he  was  not  crucified  in  Jerusalem  ;  for  the  duty  of  the  critic  is  not 
to  reject  the  principal  facts  of  history  because  they  may  be  some¬ 
times  colored  with  false  assertions,  but  to  select  the  true  from  the 
false,  the  certain  from  the  doubtful,  and  genuine  facts  from  the  false 
adjuncts  with  which  they  may  be  encumbered. 

But  the  labors  of  our  adversaries  do  not  even  rest  here,  they 
make  use  of  all  possible  means  to  weaken  the  force  of  the  testimony 
of  the  writers  which  have  been  already  adduced.  They  say  that 
Papias  was  a  credulous  and  simple-minded  man,  and  believed  in 
every  story  that  he  might  chance  to  hear  ;  they  affirm  that  the  quo¬ 
tations  made  from  Ignatius  are  false,  and  that  the  Epistle  which  he 
wrote  from  Smyrna  to  the  Komans  is  incorrectly  attributed  to  him. 
They  add  to  these  assertions  that  Iræneus,  Clement  of  Alexandria, 
Tertullian,  and  Origen  have  committed  many  errors,  both  respect¬ 
ing  time  and  places,  in  their  writings,  and  are  not  therefore  worthy 
of  credit.  This  is  however  a  very  poor  way  to  elude  the  authority 
of  the  fathers,  and  to  seek  to  invalidate  their  writings.  If  the 
fathers  and  writers  of  the  first  three  centuries  are  of  no  weight,  and 
of  no  authority  respecting  matters  of  fact,  what  grounds  have  our 
adversaries  for  their  opinions,  and  for  the  creeds  which  they  profess 
to  hold  and  to  teach  ?  Many  of  the  dogmas  of  our  holy  religion  are 
so  closely  connected  with  facts,  and  so  interwoven  with  them,  that 
they  cannot  be  separated  from  them. 

If  we  reject  the  testimony  of  Ignatius,  of  Clement  of  Alexandria, 
of  Origen,  of  Tertullian,  and  of  the  writers  of  the  three  first  centu¬ 
ries,  where  can  we  find  other  writers  whose  authority  is  of  greater 
weight  than  these  ?  If  Origen  and  Tertullian  erred  in  matters  of 
faith,  this  will  not  serve  to  invalidate  their  testimony  respecting  a 
fact  publicly  known,  and  which  was  of  such  interest  to  religion  in 
general,  that  it  could  not  possibly  remain  unknown. 


766 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


The  only  conclusion  we  can  arrive  at  respecting  this  matter  is, 
that  St.  Peter  came  to  Home  and  was  bishop  of  that  see  for  twenty- 
five  years,  and  that  one  of  the  principal  objects  he  had  in  view  when 
he  came  to  that  city,  was  to  put  an  end  to  the  evil  machinations  of 
Simon  Magus  ;  and  that  it  also  appears  that  the  Babylon  from 
which  he  dates  his  first  Epistle  is  not  to  be  taken  as  referring  to 
Babylon  in  Egypt,  nor  Babylon  in  Chaldea,  but  that  the  apostle  in¬ 
tends  by  this  to  refer  to  Rome. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  CHAINS  OF  ST.  PETER  IN  THE  CHURCH  OF  ST.  PIETRO  IN  VINCOLI. - THE 

MAMERTINE  PRISON  THE  PLACE  OF  HIS  CONFINEMENT. - THE  OSTIAN  WAY, 

WHERE  OUR  LORD  APPEARED  TO  ST.  PETER. - CRUCIFIXION  OF  ST.  PETER. 

There  are  local  circumstances  connected  with  St.  Peter’s  dwell¬ 
ing  in  the  eternal  city  which  will  give  additional  weight  to  the  ar¬ 
guments  which  have  been  already  stated.  In  no  other  part  of  the 
world  save  in  Rome  shall  we  find  spots  pointed  out  as  places  hal¬ 
lowed  by  the  imprisonment  and  crucifixion  of  the  apostle,  and  also 
by  his  tomb  ;  in  no  other  city  in  the  world  are  there  existing  monu¬ 
ments  which  refer  to  a  person  who  lived  eighteen  centuries  ago, 
such  as  those  connected  with  St.  Peter  in  Rome. 

The  hill  on  which  he  suffered  is  shown,  and  the  spot  is  now  hal¬ 
lowed  by  having  a  circular  chapel  erected  over  it,  which  has  a 
dome  supported  by  sixteen  Doric  columns  of  black  granite,  and 
was  built  at  the  expense  of  Ferdinand  IV.,  the  king  of  Spain  ;  it  is 
near  the  Church  of  St.  Peter  in  Montorio,  the  hill  called  the  Mon- 
torio  being  considered  as  part  of  the  Vatican  and  not  as  part  of  the 
Janiculum.  This  spot  appears  to  have  been  selected  by  Nero  that 
he  might  be  able  to  witness  the  martyrdom  of  the  apostle  from  the 
palace  in  which  he  lived  on  the  Palatine  Hill.  There  St.  Peter 
was  crucified  with  his  head  downward,  as  he  esteemed  it  too  high  an 
honor  to  be  crucified  like  his  divine  Master. 

The  first  Christians  who  hallowed,  by  lasting  monuments,  the 


N<MïV\T£Î 


LIFE 


principal  places  which  were  made  sacred  by  the  footsteps  of  the 
apostles,  were  careful  to  mark  this  spot,  which  was  rendered  sacred 
by  the  death  of  St.  Peter,  and  the  Church  of  St.  Peter  in  Montorio, 
has  become  one  of  the  most  beautiful  in  that  part  of  the  city  of 
Pome. 

“His  chains  also  are  shown,  those  chains  which  he  wore  to  give 
liberty  to  the  world.  They  may  be  seen  in  the  Church  of  St.  Pietro 
in  Vincoli,  at  Rome,  any  day  during  the  octave  of  the  festival,  or 
on  the  day  in  Lent  on  which  the  station  is  held  there  ;  at  other 
times  they  are  kept  in  a  small  silver  box,  which  is  placed  in  a  large 
chest  fastened  by  two  locks,  one  key  of  which  is  kept  by  the  abbot 
of  the  monastery,  and  the  other  by  the  major  domo  of  the  sacred 
palace,  and  is  never  opened  without  the  written  order  of  the  pontiff, 
unless  on  the  station  in  Lent  and  during  the  octave  of  the  festival, 
when  they  are  exposed  on  an  altar  in  the  church,  over  which  is  a 
painting  of  the  miraculous  deliverance  of  St.  Peter  from  prison. 

“  Eudosia,  the  wife  of  the  Emperor  Theodosius  the  younger,  going 
to  Jerusalem,  received  there  the  chains  with  which  the  apostle  was 
bound  by  Herod;  these  chains- she  afterwards  sent  to  her  daughter 
Eudoxia,  to  Rome,  who  gave  them  to  the  pope  ;  he  showed  her  an¬ 
other  chain  with  which  Hero  had  bound  the  same  apostle,  and 
when  the  pontiff  placed  the  chains  near  each  other,  they  became 
miraculously  united,  and  form  now  but  one  chain;  the  different 
structure  of  the  two  parts  of  the  chain  is  clearly  marked.”  (a) 

The  place  of  his  imprisonment  is  also  shown.  “  The  Mamertine 
prison  is  situated  at  the  north-eastern  extremity  of  the  Capitoline 
Hill,  and  is  said  to  have  been  erected  by  Ancus  Martius.  The 
prison  is  divided  into  the  upper  and  lower.  The  descent  into  the 
first  is  by  a  modern  staircase  made  when  it  was  converted  into  a 
sacred  place.  The  first  prison  is  thirty  feet  long,  twenty-two  feet 
wide,  and  fourteen  feet  high  ;  there  was  a  hole  in  the  roof  through 
which  the  criminals  were  let  down  by  a  cord  ;  under  this  was  a 
similar  hole  leading  to  the  lower  prison,  the  descent  to  which  is  now 
by  a  modern  staircase  ;  this  lower  prison  is  twenty-two  feet  long, 
nine  feet  wide,  and  six  feet  high.  An  inscription  in  the  wall  of  the 

(a)  Neligan’s  Rome,  p.  135. 


7/i 


feet 


768 


LITE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 


upper  prison  states  it  was  restored  "by  tlie  consuls  Vibrius  and  Coc 
ceus  Her  va,  in  the  year  of  Rome  574.  Although  the  entrance  was 
towards  the  capitol,  the  ascent  to  it  was  on  the  side  of  the  forum, 
near  the  commencement  of  the  steps  called  the  Scala  Gemonia. 
These  steps  joined  the  prison  by  means  of  a  stone  bridge  ;  from  their 
summit  the  bodies  of  criminals  were  thrown,  in  order  to  terrify  the 
people  who  were  in  the  forum. 

“  In  this  prison  Jugurtha  died  of  hunger  ;  the  accomplices  of  Cata- 
line’s  conspiracy  were  strangled  here  ;  here,  also,  was  put  to  death 
Aristobuius  and  Sejanus  after  the  triumph  of  Pompey;  Sejanus 
by  the  order  of  Tiberius,  and  Simon,  the  chief  of  the  Jews,  by 
the  order  of  Titus.  As  the  conqueror  ascended  to  the  capitol  in 
triumphs,  the  prisoners  were  thrown  into  this  lower  prison,  being 
brought  there  by  the  Scala  Gemonia,  where  they  were  put  to 
death  ;  when  this  was  accomplished  the  cry  ‘  actum  est’ — it  is  done 
— told  the  conqueror  he  might  now  leave  the  temple. 

“  But  other  impressions  than  these  fill  the  Christian  as  he  enters 
this  place.  Here  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  were  both  imprisoned  ; 
from  this  place  they  were  taken  the  day  they  went  to  execution. 
We  kissed  with  respect  the  column  to  which  they  were  bound,  we 
drank  water  from  the  fountain  which  St.  Peter  caused  to  come  forth 
from  the  floor,  that  he  might  baptize  St.  Processus  and  St.  Martinia- 
nus,  their  jailors,  with  the  twenty-seven  soldiers,  who  were  all  mar¬ 
tyred  in  their  turn.  There  are  altars  in  each  of  these  prisons.”  (a) 

The  spot  is  also  pointed  out  where  he  resided,  and  the  altar  on 
which  he  offered  up  the  sacrifice  of  the  Mass.  These  are  now 
within  the  Church  of  St.  Pudentiana. 

“  St.  Peter  having  arrived  at  Rome  about  the  year  44,  with  the 
desire  of  planting  the  cross  on  the  summit  of  the  capitol,  went  at 
first  to  the  part  of  the  city  near  the  Tiber,  being  the  quarter  of  the 
Jews.  He  soon  converted  the  Senator  Pudens,  his  mother  Priscilla, 
and  his  two  sons,  Novatius  and  Timotheus,  and  his  two  daughters, 
Praxedes  and  Pudentiana,  with  their  servants.  The  house  of  this 
devout  neophyte  soon  became  the  residence  of  the  apostle.  There 
St.  Peter  celebrated  the  august  mysteries,  and  consecrated  Linus 


(a)  Neligan’s  Rome,  pp.  79,  80. 


and  Cletus,  tliis  was  no  doubt  the  title  of  the  Pastor  which  we  so 
often  read  of  in  the  early  writers  ;  whoever  has  seen  those  mosaics 
in  the  aisle  near  the  altar,  on  which  St.  Peter  so  often  said  Mass, 
must  be  satisfied  as  to  the  antiquity  of  the  place.  Plere,  too,  is  the 
well  into  which  these  holy  virgins  squeezed  the  blood  of  martyrs 
which  they  had  collected  with  sponges  ;  here,  too,  they  hid  the 
bodies  of  the  martyrs  and  their  remains,  which  they  had  gathered 
up.  Pius  I.,  in  the  second  century,  changed  the  senatorial  house 
into  a  church  with  the  title  of  the  Pastor.  (a) 

“  On  the  Ostian  Way  is  also  shown  the  place  where  Christ  appeared 
to  St.  Peter,  and  which  is  called  ‘  Domine  quo  uadis.'1  This  church, 
founded  in  the  early  times  of  the  Church,  attests  a  fact  which  the 
Catholic  pilgrim  dwells  on  with  pleasure.  St.  Peter  had  been  con¬ 
fined  in  the  Mamertine  Prison,  and  was  in  daily  expectation  of  the 
sentence  being  carried  into  execution  which  had  been  passed  on 
him.  The  Christians,  fearful  of  losing  their  chief  pastor,  had  re¬ 
solved  to  rescue  him,  and,  having  succeeded  in  their  attempt,  the 
saint  was  now  outside  the  walls  of  the  city,  travelling  on  the  Appian 
Way,  by  which  he  had  entered  Rome  twenty-five  years  before. 
When  he  had  arrived  at  the  place  where  this  church  is  now  built, 
he  perceived  his  divine  Master  coming  to  meet  him,  bearing  his 
cross.  Peter,  recognizing  him,  said,  ‘  Domine  quo  vadisi  Our 
Lord  replied,  ‘  Venio  iterum  crucifigii  St.  Peter  understood  him, 
and  returned  to  Rome,  and  there  awaited  the  cross  on  which  his  di¬ 
vine  Master  was  about  to  suffer  again,  in  the  person  of  his  vicar. 
The  constant  tradition  of  the  faithful  at  Rome  attests  the  truth  of 
the  apparition  of  our  Lord  ;  and  St.  Ambrose,  in  his  discourse  against 
Auxentius,  alludes  to  it.”  ( a ) 

Nor  are  these  the  only  evidences  which  we  have  of  the  residence  of 
the  apostle  in  the  holy  city.  The  pictorial  catalogue  of  the  popes, 
as  well  as  the  mural  and  other  inscriptions,  all  testify  to  the  same 
fact.  This  everlasting  pointing  to  the  history  of  St.  Peter,  this  ina¬ 
bility  to  separate  the  city  and  the  apostles,  give  us  additional  proof, 
if  it  be  needed,  of  the  residence  of  the  apostle  in  the  holy  city. 
No  other  city  claims  the  honors  which  Rome  monopolizes,  of  having 


(«)  Neligan’s  Rome,  pp.  69,  70. 


(b)  Ibid.,  p.  271. 


49 


\\ 


■  :a 


iff 

w 


St.  Peter,  the  prince  of  the  apostles,  as  its  first  bishop.  The  world 
knows,  and  it  has  always  known,  that  Rome  was  the  city  sig¬ 
nally  favored  by  God  and  St.  Peter,  and  that  there  is  no  possibility 
of  opposing  the  prescription  which  Rome  can  urge  in  its  favor. 
“We  must  remember,”  writes  one  who  seems  to  have  examined  these 
matters  with  impartiality,  “  that  St.  Peter  was  crucified  on  this  hill, 
but  was  buried  at  the  Vatican.”  I  should  be  inclined  to  believe  the 
latter  tradition,  and  perhaps  the  former  may  also  be  true  ;  but  the 
place  of  his  interment  is  more  likely  to  have  been  kept  in  remem¬ 
brance  than  that  of  his  suffering.  Even  some  Catholic  writers 
have  differed  as  to  the  precise  spot  where  he  was  crucified.  Euse¬ 
bius  appeals  to  a  constant  tradition  that  St.  Peter  was  buried  in  a 
cemetery  at  the  Vatican,  and  quotes  the  authority  of  Cams,  who  lived 
in  the  early  part  of  the  third  century. 

“  Some  writers  have  thought  it  necessary  to  deny  that  St.  Peter 
was  ever  at  Rome.  I  confess  I  am  utterly  at  a  loss  to  see  what 
great  advantage  is  given  to  Catholics  by  allowing  their  first  pope  to 
have  resided  at  Rome.  But,  at  all  events,  truth  is  to  be  preferred 

to  prejudice . After  examining  the  evidence  produced' by  Ba- 

ronius,  the  conclusion  seems  irresistible,  that  St.  Peter  undoubtedly 
visited  Rome,  and  suffered  martyrdom  there.  The  only  question  is 
concerning  the  period  of  his  residence.  It  used  to  be  maintained 
that  he  held  the  see  of  Rome  for  twenty-five  years.  .  .  .  The  only 
ancient  authors  that  can  be  quoted  as  asserting  it,  are  Eusebius  and 
Jerome.  ...  We  read  in  the  Chronicle  of  Eusebius,  in  the  year  43, 
that  Peter,  after  founding  the  Church  of  Antioch,  was  sent  to  Rome, 
where  he  preached  the  gospel  for  twenty-five  years,  and  was  bishop 
of  that  city.”  (a)  Such  was  the  language  of  one  who  looks  upon  the 
fact  of  St.  Peter’s  being  at  Rome  as  indisputable  ;  for  the  evidence 
which  establishes  it  is  too  plain  to  be  avoided  or  rejected.  The  re¬ 
jection  would  involve,  as  this  writer  insinuates,  the  rejection  of  .all 
authentic  history  ;  as  to  the  difficulty  on  which  he  seems  to  dwell, 
it  has  already  been  shown  to  be  of  no  avail  ;  for  no  Catholic  writer 
ever  pretended  that  St.  Peter  remained  at  Rome  during  the  period 
of  twenty-five  years,  without  leaving  it,  although  he  had  established 

(a)  Burton,  II.  E.  b.  ii.,  c.  25. 


A 


%  '  ■  .p.  3S 


ê 

I  «% 

'<Æ? 


VS 


his  episcopal  see  there.  All  suppose  he  did  not  remain  there  ;  and  if 
they  allow  that  he  was  the  bishop  for  upwards  of  twenty-five  years, 
notwithstanding  he  was  absent  during  many  years,  they  maintain  it 
on  precisely  the  same  grounds  as  they  ascribe  twenty-three  years  of 
spiritual  sovereignty  to  Pius  VI.,  and  also  to  Pius  VII.,  though 
each  of  these  popes  was,  for  a  considerable  time,  in  exile  in  a  for¬ 
eign  land,  far  away  from  the  city  whence  they  derived  the  title  of 
Roman  Pontiff. 

Dollinger,  in  his  work  called  The  Beginnings  of  Christianity,  ex¬ 
plains  the  difficulties  connected  with  the  chronology  in  the  following 
manner:  “Following,”  he  says,  “the  unanimous  tradition  of  Chris¬ 
tian  antiquity,  the  apostle  Peter  was  crucified  at  Rome,  after  having 
governed  the  Church  there,  in  quality  of  bishop,  and  transmitted  to 
his  successors,  with  the  Roman  episcopate,  the  primacy  which  Christ 
had  conferred  upon  him.  As  to  the  time  of  his  arrival  at  Rome,  and 
the  duration  of  his  episcopate  in  that  city,  opinions  are  very  diverg¬ 
ing,  and  it  is  impossible  to  reconcile  the  data  of  the  ancients  on  this 
point  otherwise  than  by  admitting  that  the  prince  of  the  apostles 
was  twice  in  the  capital  of  the  world. 

“  Iiis  first  abode  would  fall,  according  to  Eusebius,  St.  Jerome,  and 
Orosius,  in  the  second  year  of  the  reign  of  Claudius,  the  forty-second 
of  the  Christian  era,  an  epoch  in  which  St.  Peter  would  have  gone 
to  have  stopped  the  seductions  of  Simon  the  Magician,  and  would 
there  have  established  the  foundations  of  a  church.” 

Then,  being  included  in  the  edict  of  banishment  which  Claudius 
had  promulgated  against  the  Jews,  he  must  quickly  have  left  the 
capital  of  the  world  for  Jerusalem,  where  he  was  overtaken  by  the 
persecution  of  Agrippa.  It  would  seem  that  he  afterwards  under¬ 
took  a  more  extensive  apostolical  journey  to  Asia  Minor,  and  found¬ 
ed,  or  visited,  the  churches  of  Pontus,  Galatia,  Cappadocia,  and 
Bithynia,  to  which  he  addressed  later  his  evangelical  letter  from 
Rome.  St.  Jerome,  however,  assigns  this  excursion  into  Asia  Minor 
to  a  period  anterior  to  the  apostle’s  first  visit  to  Rome,  somewhat 
later  than  St.  Peter  went  to  Antioch,  and  thence  to  the  synod  of 
Jerusalem.  Under  the  reign  of  Nero  he  went  to  Rome  for  the  sec¬ 
ond  time,  where  he  suffered  with  Paul,  in  the  year  66,  the  death  of 
a  martyr.  It  is  of  this  journey  that  Lactantius  speaks.  Thus  may  be 


If 

■  ■  JÈM 

tVjifP 


explained  the  twenty-five  years  of  episcopacy  which  are  assigned 
by  St.  Jerome  and  Eusebius.  There  is  an  interval  of  twenty-five 
years  from  the  second  year  of  Claudius  to  the  last  year  of  Nero’s 
reign.  As  for  a  continuous  residence  of  twenty-five  years’  duration 
at  Rome,  that  was  never  mentioned  by  any  person  whatever.”  ( a ) 

One  more  argument  in  confirmation  of  what  has  already  been  ad¬ 
vanced  remains  yet  to  be  stated.  This  argument  proceeds  on 
the  authority  of  those  fathers  of  the  Church,  who  uniformly  assert 
that  St.  Mark  was  the  interpreter  of  St.  Peter,  and  that  he  wrote  at 
Rome  what  he  heard  St.  Peter  say,  in  his  addresses  to  the  converted 
Jews  in  that  city.  On  this  point  very  clear  evidence  can  be  ad¬ 
duced.  Clement  of  Alexandria  has  delivered  to  us  the  following 
tradition,  as  derived  from  the  oldest  proselytes.  ITe  says,  “  that  the 
Gospel  of  St.  Mark  was  occasioned  in  the  following  manner  :  when 
Peter  had  proclaimed  the  word  publicly  at  Rome,  and  declared  the 
gospel  under  the  influence  of  the  Spirit,  as  there  was  a  great  number 
present,  they  requested  Mark,  who  had  followed  him  from  afar,  and 
remembered  well  what  he  had  said,  to  reduce  these  things  to  writ¬ 
ing  ;  and,  after  composing  the  Gospel,  he  gave  it  to  those  who  re¬ 
quested  it  of  him.”  (5) 

Papias  tells  us  that  what  he  records,  he  had  received  from  the 
friends  of  the  apostles,  and  he  makes  the  following  statement,  on  the 
authority  of  John  the  presbyter:  “Mark  being  the  interpreter  of 
Peter,  whatsoever  he  recorded  he  wrote  with  great  accuracy,  but 
not,  however,  in  the  order  in  which  it  was  spoken  or  done  by  our 
Lord  ;  for  he  neither  heard  nor  followed  our  Lord,  but,  as  before 
said,  he  was  in  company  with  Peter,  who  gave  him  such  instruction 
as  was  necessary.”  (c) 

“  Mark,”  says  St.  Jerome,  “  the  disciple  and  interpreter  of  Peter, 
at  the  solicitation  of  the  brethren  at  Rome,  wrote  a  short  gospel,  ac¬ 
cording  to  what  he  had  heard  Peter  state,  which,  when  Peter  had 
heard,  he  approved,  and  delivered  to  the  Church  to  be  read  by  his 
authority,  as  Clement  writes  in  the  6th  book  of  the  Hypotyposes.; 
and  Papias,  the  Bishop  of  Hieropolis,  makes  mention  of  this  Mark, 
as  Peter  does  also,  in  his  first  Epistle,  designate  Rome  figuratively, 


(a)  Vol.  i.,  p.  70. 


( b )  Eusebius,  1.  vi.,  c.  14 


(c)  Ibid.,  1.  iii.,  c.  G9. 


~=f 


'v  -m-isiÉ. 


ÏÏÏ 


fl 


; 


by  tlie  name  of  Babylon.  The  Church  which  is  in  Babylon  .... 
saluteth  yon,  and  so  doth  my  son  Mark.” (a) 

Eusebius  writes  as  follows  on  this  subject:  “The  divine  word 
having  thus  been  established  among  the  Homans,  the  power  of  Simon 
was  soon  extinguished  and  destroyed,  together  with  the  man.  So 
greatly,  however,  did  the  splendor  of  piety  enlighten  the  mind  of 
St.  Peter’s  hearers,  that  it  was  not  sufficient  to  hear  but  once,  nor  to 
receive  the  unwritten  doctrine  of  the  Gospel  of  God,  but  they  perse¬ 
vered  in  every  variety  of  entreaties  to  solicit  Mark,  as  the  com¬ 
panion  of  Peter,  and  whose  Gospel  we  have,  that  he  should  leave 
them  a  monument  of  the  doctrine,  thus  orally  communicated,  in 
writing.  Nor  did  they  cease  their  solicitations  until  they  had  pre¬ 
vailed  with  the  man,  and  thus  become  the  means  of  that  history 
which  is  called  the  Gospel  according  to  St.  Mark.  They  say,  also, 
that  St.  Peter  having  ascertained  what  was  done,  by  the  revelation 
of  the  Spirit,  was  delighted  with  the  zealous  ardor  expressed  by 
these  men,  and  that  the  history  obtained  his  authority,  for  the  pur¬ 
pose  of  being  read  in  the  churches.” 

This  account  is  given  by  Clement,  in  the  6th  book  of  his  Institu¬ 
tions,  whose  testimony  is  corroborated  by  that  of  Papias,  Bishop  of 
Hieropolis  ;  but  Peter  makes  mention  of  Mark  in  the  first  Epistle, 
which  he  is  also  said  to  have  composed  at  the  same  city  of  Home, 
and  that  he  shows  this  fact  by  calling  the  city  by  an  unusual  trope, 
Babylon  ;  thus,  “  The  church  at  Babylon,  elected  together  with  you, 
saluteth  you,  as  doth  also  my  son  Marcus.”  (a) 

The  evidence  already  adduced  respecting  St.  Peter’s  residence  at 
Home,  is  such  that  no  unprejudiced  person  can  any  longer  doubt  the 
fact.  It  has  been  shown  that  Papias,  Clement,  Caius,  Dionysius  of 
Corinth,  Ireneus,  Tertullian,  Origen,  Lactantius,  Eusebius,  and  Peter, 
of  Alexandria,  Cyril  of  Jerusalem,  Epiphanius,  Ambrose,  Jerome, 
Rufinus,  Austin,  Optatus  of  Melvis,  Egysippus,  Theodoret,  Am- 
bius,  Orosius,  Innocent,  Gelasius,  Philastrius  of  Brixia,  all  bear  tes¬ 
timony  to  this  fact,  that  Peter  visited  Rome  ;  or,  to  state  the  argu¬ 
ment  in  other  words,  the  representatives  of  the  illustrious  churches 
of  Rome,  Alexandria,  Jerusalem,  Corinth,  Antioch,  and  Milan,  of 


(6)  Eusebius,  1.  ii.  c.  15, 


774 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEK. 


Italy,  Gaul,  Africa,  Plirygia,  Palestine,  and  Spain,  all  testify,  openiy 
and  unhesitatingly,  to  the  fact  of  Peter’s  residence  in  the  eternal 
city  ;  not  one  of  them  speaks  doubtingly,  not  one  refers  to  it  as  a  mere 
report,  not  one  makes  use  of  language  which  could  lead  us  to  im¬ 
agine  that  a  doubt  had  ever  been  whispered  in  his  hearing  opposed 
to  this  statement  ;  the  testimony  is  unequivocal,  nor  is  there  a  writer 
of  antiquity  who  says  one  word  in  maintenance  of  an  opposite  opin¬ 
ion  ;  all  who  refer  to  the  see  of  Peter,  and  to  the  place  of  his  death, 
speak  of  Rome  as  the  apostolic  see  and  the  city  of  his  martyrdom. 
Whilst  silence  on  this  head  would  not  have  militated  against  the  fact, 
the  positive  testimony  already  adduced  must  be  admitted  as  decisive 
of  the  question  ;  add  to  this  chain  of  patristic  evidence  the  local 
facts  which  have  already  been  mentioned,  and  in  consequence  of 
which  Rome  became,  from  the  earliest  ages,  the  resort  of  pilgrims 
of  every  grade  and  from  every  quarter  of  the  world,  and  the  fact 
can  no  longer  be  doubted,  that  St.  Peter  Avas  at  Rome,  and  bishop 
of  that  see  for  twenty-five  years,  and  suffered  martyrdom  there,  a.  d, 
66,  being  crucified  with  his  head  downwards.  Some  writers  affirm 
that  he  was  then  eighty-six  years  old. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

SUCCESSION  OF  THE  POPES. — ST.  PETEE  THE  CHIEF  OF  THE  APOSTLES. - MAETTE- 

DOM  OF  SS.  PETEE  AND  PAUL. 

That  St.  Peter  was  bishop  of  Rome  has  been  clearly  proved  from 
the  writings  of  Ireneus,  Tertullian,  Optatus,  Jerome,  Rufinus,  Chrys¬ 
ostom,  Theodoret,  and  Innocent.  Not  only  do  these  writers  state  that 
St.  Peter  was  at  Rome,  but  they  likewise  inform  us  that  he  founded 
and'  governed  the  Church  in  that  city  ;  Eusebius  and  St.  Jerome 
affirm  that  he  governed  it  during  the  space  of  twenty-five  years. 
The  see  of  Rome  has  been  known  in  ancient  as  well  as  in  modern 
times  as  the  see  of  Peter,  and  has  been  called  so  under  the  titles 
“  of  the  see  of  Peter,  Peter’s  chair,  the  holy,  the  apostolic  see.” 
These  are  the  ordinary  words  by  which  it  is  designated  now,  so  also 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE.  775 

was  it  wont  to  he  called  in  olden  times.  Rome,  as  St.  Cyprian  ex¬ 
presses  it,  is  the  cliair  of  Peter,  and  to  this  chair,  all  like  St.  Jerome 
had  recourse  in  trouble.  Though  Antioch  had  been  ruled  by  Peter 
for  seven  years,  it  wras  not  in  after  ages  called  the  see  of  Peter; 
though  Jerusalem  and  other  cities  could  boast  of  sees  established  by 
apostles  and  apostolic  men,  not  one  of  these  was  called  continuously 
the  holy  see,  the  apostolical  see.  These  terms  and  those  of  like  im¬ 
port,  are  applied  to  Rome,  and  to  Rome  exclusively.  The  fathers 
and  other  ecclesiastical  writers  have  left  us  catalogues  of  the  popes 
of  the  see  of  Rome.  The  lists  of  the  principal  sees  were  kept  with 
the  greatest  care,  and  to  them  all  members  of  the  Church  appealed 
when  establishing  their  own  claims,  or  when  they  wished  to  disprove 
the  claims  of  heresy  to  apostolicity.  Look  at  our  records,  they  were 
wont  to  say  ;  see  how  we  can  ascend  from  prelate  to  prelate  until 
we  arrive  at  either  an  apostle  or  one  directly  sent  by  an  apostle  ; 
show  your  lists  that  prove  your  Church  to  be  apostolical,  and  since 
the  Roman  Church  was,  of  all  others  the  most  illustrious,  the  most 
honored,  and  the  best  known,  and  the  Church  with  which  all  were 
in  communion,  hence  it  happened  that  to  it  more  frequent  appeals 
were  made  than  to  any  other  church.  At  the  head  of  the  list  of  its 
bishops  the  name  of  Peter  is  always  distinctly  placed,  as  appears 
from  the  catalogues  which  are  furnished  by  Eusebius  and  by  Epi- 
phanius.  “  Eusebius,”  writes  Linus,  “  whom  he  (Paul)  has  mentioned 
in  his  2d  Epistle  to  Timothy,  as  his  companion  at  Rome,  has  been 
shown  to  have  been  the  first  after  Peter  who  obtained  the  episcopate 

at  Rome . In  the  second  year  of  Titus’s  reign,  Linus,  bishop  of 

this  Church,  is  proved  by  Paul  to  have  been  a  fellow-laborer  and 

fellow-soldier  with  him . After  Evaristus  had  completed  the  eighth 

year  as  Pope  of  Rome,  he  was  succeeded  in  the  episcopal  office  by 
Alexander,  fifth  in  succession  from  Peter  and  Paul.”(«)  Epiphanius’s 
list  is  more  complete  than  this  :  “  the  succession  of  the  Popes  of 
Rome  was  in  the  following  order  : — Peter  and  Paul,  Cletus,  Clem¬ 
ent,  Evaristus,  Alexander,  Xystus,  Telesphorus,  Hyginus,  Pius, 
Anicetus — the  same  named  by  me  above  as  in  the  list,  and  let 
no  one  wonder  that  we  have  gone  through  each  of  those  matters, 


(rr)  Eusebius,  1.  3,  c.  4. 


776  LIEE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 

for  by  means  of  these  the  manifest  truth  is  pointed  out.11  (a)  St; 
Augustine  writes  :  “  How  much  more  securely  and  beneficially  do 
we  reckon  from  Peter  himself,  to  whom,  bearing  the  figure  of  the 
Church,  the  Lord  says,  ‘  upon  this  rock  I  will  build  my  Church,  and 
the  gates  of  hell  shall  not  overcome  it.1  ”(5)  St.  Optatus  makes  use 
of  nearly  the  same  language  as  St.  Augustine,  and  says  Peter  filled 
the  pre-eminent  chair,  which  is  the  first  mark  (of  the  Church)  ;  to 
him  succeeded  Linus,  to  Linus  succeeded  Clement,  to  Clement,  An- 

aclete . “You  who  assign  to  yourselves  the  holy  chair,11  he  adds, 

writing  to  the  Donatists,  “  tell  us  the  origin  of  your  chair.11 

St.  Jerome  states,  in  his  work  on  ecclesiastical  writers  :  “  Clem¬ 
ent,  of  whom  the  apostle  Paul,  writing  to  the  Philippians,  says, 
‘  With  Clement,  and  with  others  my  fellow  laborers,  whose  names 
are  written  in  the  book  of  life,1  was  the  fourth  bishop  of  Pome 
'  after  St.  Peter,  for  the  second  was  Linus,  the  third  Anaclete,  al¬ 
though  many  Latins  think  that  Clement  was  the  second  after  the 
apostle  Peter.”  (c) 

From  the  ancient  catalogues  and  pictorial  representations  we 
have  another  very  powerful  argument  not  only  of  St.  Peter’s  being 
Pope  of  Pome,  but  also  of  his  being  pope  there  for  the  space 
of  twenty-five  years.  The  most  ancient  catalogue  we  have  on 
record  was  drawn  up  about  the  year  354,  during  the  pontificate  of 
Liberius,  from  which  circumstance  it  has  been  called  the  Liberian 
Catalogue.  It  begins  with  St.  Peter  and  ends  with  Liberius.  To 
St.  Peter  it  assigns  twenty-five  years  of  episcopacy  at  Pome  ;  and 
of  all  succeeding  pontiffs  named  therein,  with  the  exception  of  Li¬ 
berius,  the  exact  term  of  possession  of  the  Poman  see  is  distinctly 
recorded. 

If  it  be  asked  why  the  term  of  Liberius’s  episcopacy  is  not 
given,  it  can  be  said  in  reply,  that  he  was  alive  when  that  list 
was  drawn  up.  This  presents  U3  with  an  authority  anterior  to  the 
catalogue  of  St.  Jerome,  and  yet  agreeing  completely  with  it. 

Since  the  fourth  century  numerous  catalogues  have  been  drawn 
up,  some  of  greater  and  some  of  lesser  antiquity,  but  in  all  these 
St.  Peter  ever  stands  forth  as  the  first  pontiff  of  Rome,  and, 

O  Epiphanius  adv.  Ilev.  t.  i.  p.  107.  ( b )  St.  Aug.  t.  viii.  c.  269.  (c)  P.  285. 


furthermore,  the  long  term  of  twenty-five  years  is  assigned  to  his 
episcopacy  ;  he  is  the  head,  the  leader,  the  founder,  of  the  pontifical 
succession  at  Rome.  Him  the  popes  of  all  nations  look  upon  as  the 
first  of  the  Roman  line.  It  matters  not  who  occupies  the  apostolic 
chair,  or  to  what  nation  he  belongs,  the  statement  which  he  makes 
is  this,  that  he  is  a  successor  of  St.  Peter.  This  fact  can  be  only 
explained  in  one  way — by  acknowledging  that  the  whole  world  was 
aware  and  convinced  of  the  fact  of  St.  Peter  having  been  bishop  of 
imperial  Rome. 

To  give  the  catalogue  in  detail  of  the  Roman  pontiffs,  would  not 
seem  necessary  in  a  brief  sketch  like  the  present,  as  it  may  be  found 
in  a  very  interesting  and  learned  work  published  a  few  years  ago 
by  the  Benedictines  of  Solesmes.  In  this  work  the  reader  will  find 
the  antiquity  of  each  catalogue  learnedly  and  clearly  established. 
There  is,  however,  one  catalogue  to  which  it  may  be  interesting  to 
make  some  allusion. 

In  the  famous  Basilica  of  St.  Paul,  on  the  Ostian  Way,  which 
was  destroyed  by  fire  on  the  15th  of  July,  1823,  but  which  has  now 
been  rebuilt  with  a  degree  of  magnificence  which  rivals  its  ancient 
splendor,  was  to  be  seen  a  pictorial  list  of  the  pontiffs,  together  with 
a  record  of  the  duration  of  each  pontiff’s  government.  This  list  was 
begun  as  early  at  least  as  the  time  of  Leo  the  Great,  (440,)  or,  as 
others  will  have  it,  as  early  as  423,  and  to  it  additions  had  constant¬ 
ly  been  made  down  to  the  present  time.  This  catalogue  of  the 
popes,  like  the  others,  begins  with  St.  Peter,  and  the  following  me¬ 
morial  was  affixed  to  his  likeness:  “Petrus  sed.  ann.  25,  m.  2, 
d.  27.”  Peter  sat  [in  this  see]  25  years,  2  months,  and  27  days. 

From  all  that  has  been  said  the  conclusion  is  plain,  that  St.  Peter 
was  not  only  bishop  at  Rome,  but  that  he  wTas  also  bishop  of  Rome 
for  a  lengthened  period,  and  also  that  the  fact  is  better  supported 
than  the  histories  of  the  Caesars,  the  Assueruses,  the  Herods,  and 
the  Etheldreds  who  have  ruled  nations.  Let  any  one  endeavor  to 
fix  the  chronology  of  the  reigns  of  these  sovereigns,  and  he  will 
soon  find  that  the  evidences  which  he  will  be  able  to  adduce  in 
favor  of  his  system  will  not  be  half  so  respectable,  or  so  ancient,  or 
so  abundant,  as  that  wdiicli  has  been  adduced  in  proof  of  St.  Peter’s 
journey  to  Rome,  and  living  there  as  bishop  of  the  eternal  city. 


3 


m 


1  fAv 


ï7 )> 


'T 


rCï; 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEK. 


The  conclusion  which  follows  from  the  fact  of  St.  Peter  being 
bishop  of  Rome  is  important,  and  one  which  every  Catholic  looks 
upon  as  the  foundation  of  his  .  faith  ;  for  if  St.  Peter  was  bishop  of 
Rome  he  was  also  bead  of  the  entire  Church,  the  ruler  of  the  spir¬ 
itual  kingdom  of  God,  and  the  shepherd  of  a  mighty  flock.  To  the 
truth  of  this  Scripture  and  history  alike  bear  evidence.  To  one 
possessed  of  faith  it  appears  clear  that  there  is  hardly  one  truth 
— certainly  that  one  truth  would  not  be  either  the  mystery  of  the 
Holy  Trinity  or  the  Divinity  of  God  the  Son,  who  became  incarnate 
for  our  sakes, — more  clearly  referred  to,  and  indeed  expressed,  in 
Holy  Writ,  than  the  supremacy  of  St.  Peter. 

As  Bossuet  well  observes,  “  Peter  appears  the  first  in  every  way, 
the  first  in  making  profession  of  faith,  the  first  in  the  obligation  of 
exercising  charity,  the  first  of  all  the  apostles  who  saw  our  Saviour 
risen  from  the  dead,  as  he  was  also  the  first  to  witness  before  the 
people,  the  first  when  there  was  question  of  filling  up  the  number 
of  the  apostles,  the  first  to  confirm  the  faith  by  a  miracle,  the  first 
to  convert  the  Jews,  the  first  to  receive  the  Gentiles,  the  first  every¬ 
where;  but  it  is  impossible  to  say  all.  Every  thing  concurs  in 

establishing  his  primacy.  Yes,  every  thing  even  his  faults . 

The  power  given  to  several  is  not  bestowed  without  restriction, 
whilst  that  given  to  one  alone,  and  over  all,  and  without  exception, 
is  communicated  in  full.  .....  All  receive  the  same  power,  but 
not  in  the  same  degree,  nor  to  the  same  extent.  Jesus  Christ  be¬ 
gins  with  the  first,  and  in  this  first  he  develops  all  the  rest  ....'. 
hi  order  to  teach  us  that  ecclesiastical  authority,  first  established  in 
the  person  of  one,  has  only  been  disseminated  on  condition  of  being 
always  recalled  to  its  principle  of  unity,  and  that  all  those  who 
shall  have  to  exercise  it  ought  to  hold  themselves  inseparably  united 
to  the  same  chair  :  it  is  that  chair  so  celebrated  by  the  fathers  of 
the  Church,  in  exalting  which  they  have  vied  with  one  another, 
attributing  to  it  the  principality  of  the  apostolic  chair,  the  chief 
principality,  the  source  of  unity,  the  highest  degree  of  sacerdotal 
dignity,  the  mother  church,  which  holds  in  her  hand  the  conduct  of 
all  other  churches,  the  head  of  the  episcopate  whence  proceeds  the 
light  of  government,  the  principal  chair,  the  only  chair,  through 
which  alone  all  are  able  to  preserve  unity.  In  these  words  you 


779 


LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEE. 

hear  St.  Optatus,  St.  Augustine,  St.  Cyprian,  St.  Iræneus,  St.  Pros¬ 
per,  St.  Aritus,  St.  Theodoret,  the  Council  of  Chalcedon,  and  the 
other  councils,  Africa,  Gaul,  Greece,  Asia,  the  East,  and  the  West, 

united  together . Since  it  was  the  design  of  God  to  permit 

that  there  should  arise  heresies  and  schisms,  there  was  no  constitu¬ 
tion  that  could  sustain  itself  more  firmly  or  more  powerfully  bear 
them  down.  By  this  constitution  every  thing  in  the  Church  is 
strong,  because  every  thing  therein  is  divine  and  united,  and  as 
each  part  is  divine,  the  bond  also  is  divine,  and  all  together  is  such, 
that  each  part  acts  with  the  power  of  the  whole.”  (a) 

But  «for  the  Catholic  reader  there  is  no  need  to  dwell  on  this 
point,  for  he  knows  that  if  this  supremacy  be  destroyed,  the  source 
of  unity  and  jurisdiction  is  gone,  and  the  Church  of  the  world  is  rent 
asunder  ;  establish  it  and  the  world  is  Catholic. 

Well  may  the  fathers  apply  the  following  titles  to  St.  Peter  :  “  the 
solid  rock,”  “  the  great  foundation,”  “  to  him  the  keys  of  the  kingdom 
were  granted,”  “  to  him  the  sheep  were  assigned,  and  he  is  the  uni¬ 
versal  shepherd,”  “  he  is  the  pillar  of  the  Church,  the  buttress,  and 
the  principal,  and  the  source  of  unity,”  “  he  is  the  eye  of  the  apos¬ 
tles,”  “the  mouth  of  the  apostles,”  “the  tongue  of  the  apostles,” 
“the  head  of  the  apostles,”  “the  highest  of  the  apostles,”  “the  cory- 
pheus  of  the  choir  of  the  apostles,”  “  the  prince  of  the  apostles,” 
“  a  leader  to  his  own  brethren,”  “  the  one  chosen  out  of  the  twelve,” 
“  the  one  preferred  before  all,”  “  the  only  one  who  has  the  primacy 
of  the  apostleship,  and  the  primacy  over  the  universal  Church,” 
“he  is  set  over  the  whole  habitable  globe,”  “he  is  the  fisherman 
of  the  universe,”  “  he  represents  the  whole  Church,”  “  in  fine,  he 
has  received  the  sovereignty.” 

Such  is  the  language  which  the  fathers  have  applied  to  the 
prince  of  the  apostles.  Language  like  this  cannot  be  equivocal; 
for  it  is  the  language  of  the  eastern  and  western  churches,  respecting 
the  supremacy  of  St.  Peter  and  his  being  the  vicar  of  Christ  on 
earth. 

Already  has  the  death  of  St.  Peter  been  spoken  of,  and  the  man¬ 
ner  of  it  been  described  ;  something  shall  now  be  said  about  the 


(a)  Bossuet,  Sermon  sur  l’Unité,  part  i. 


780 


LIFE  OP  ST.  PETEE. 


death,  of  St.  Paul.  11  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  were  shut  up  iu  the 
Mamertine  Prison,  iu  the  month  of  October,  65,  and  were  both 
taken  out  on  the  29th  of  June,  a.  d.  66  ;  they  passed  through  the 
gate  Trigemina,  when  the  lictors  separated  them,  according  to  the 
orders  which  they  had  received.  St.  Peter  was  brought  to  the 
Vatican,  where  he  was  crucified,  and  St.  Paul  commenced  his  jour¬ 
ney  to  the  Salvian  Waters,  where  he  was  beheaded.  It  is  in  the 
church  dedicated  to  St.  Paul,  where  he  was  martyred.  In  the 
church  are  three  springs  of  water,  which  miraculously  gushed  forth 
from  the  earth  where  the  head  of  the  apostle  touched  it.  In  an 
angle  is  the  column  to  which  the  apostle  was  bound  when*  he  was 
beheaded.  Near  it  is  the  altar  of  the  saint,  ornamented  with  col¬ 
umns  of  black  porphyry.  As  the  apostle  was  lead  to  the  place 
where  he  was  martyred,  he  converted  three  of  the  soldiers  of  the 
escort,  who  were  martyred  three  days  afterward.  As  his  head  was 
cut  off,  instead  of  blood  flowing  from  the  body  a  stream  of  milk 
issued  from  it,  which  covered  the  ground  and  the  lictor  ;  the  head 
made  three  bounds,  and  three  fountains  sprung  up  where  it  touched 
the  earth,  each  still  preserving  a  different  temperature. 

After  the  execution  Plautilla  covered  the  head  of  the  apostle 
in  her  veil,  and  buried  it  in  a  catacomb  of  Lucina  on  the  Ostian 
Way,  and  his  body  was,  by  the  careful  attention  of  Lucina,  after¬ 
wards  conveyed  to  the  same  spot.  At  the  same  moment  the  priest 
Marcellus  was  giving  a  royal  sepulture  to  St.  Peter,  who  had  been 
crucified  on  the  heights  of  the  Vatican. 

On  the  spot  where  the  apostles  separated  before  their  execution, 
there  is  erected  a  small  chapel,  with  an  inscription  alluding  to  this 
circumstance.  Dionysius,  in  his  Epistle  to  Timothy,  speaks  of  this 
separation  of  the  apostles,  and  also  of  the  words  they  addressed  to 
each  other.  Paul  said  to  Peter  :  “  Peace  be  with  thee,  foundation 
of  the  Church  and  pastor  of  the  lambs  of  Christ  and  Peter  said  to 
Paul:'  “  Go  in  peace,  preacher  of  the  good  and  guide  of  the  salvation 
of  the  just.”  ( a ) 


(a)  Neligan’s  Rome,  pp.  265-269. 


1 


CONTENTS 


LIFE  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST 


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PART  I 


FROM  THE  INCARNATION  OF  THE  WORD  UNTIL  THE  CURE  OF  THE 

MAN  BORN  BLIND. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Preface  of  St.  Luke. — Eternal  Generation  of  the  Word  and  his  Incarnation. — Testi¬ 
mony  rendered  to  Him  by  St.  John  the  Baptist. — The  Holy  Precursor  an¬ 
nounced  and  promised . 


CHAPTER  II. 

Annunciation. — Visitation. — Birth  of  St.  John  the  Baptist. — Canticle  of  Zachary 


CHAPTER  III. 

Doubt  of  St.  Joseph. — Birth  of  Jesus  Christ. — His  Circumcision.— His  Genealogy. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Adoration  of  the  Magi. — Purification. — Flight  into  Egypt. — Massacre  of  the  Inno 
cents. — Return  to  Nazareth. — Jesus  lost  and  found  in  the  Temple . 


CHAPTER  V. 

Manifestation  of  John  the  Baptist  and  his  Preaching. — Baptism  of  Jesus  Christ. — 
Fasting  and  Temptation  of  Jesus  Christ  in  the  Desert. — Testimony  of  John 
the  Baptist. — Andrew  and  Peter  called  for  the  first  time. — Vocation  of  Philip 
and  Nathaniel . 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Marriage  of  Cana. — Sojourn  at  Capbarnaum. — Second  Vocation  of  Peter  and  of 
Andrew,  followed  by  that  of  James  and  John. — J ourney  to  Jerusalem  for  the 
Feast  of  the  Passover. — Sellers  driven  from  the  Temple . 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


Discourse  with  Nicodemus 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Jesus  Christ  preaches  and  baptizes. — New  Testimony  of  St.  John. — Imprisonment 
of  the  Holy  Precursor. — Return  of  Jesus  to  Galilee  through  Samaria . 


CHAPTER  IX. 


The  Samaritan  Woman 


CHAPTER  X. 

An  Officer’s  Son  healed. — Cure  of  one  possessed,  and  of  the  Mother-in-Law  of  St, 
Peter. — Three  Men  reproved . 


CHAPTER  XI. 

The  Tempest  stilled. — Two  Demoniacs  cured. — Swine  precipitated  into  the  Sea, 
Paralytic  cured. — Vocation  of  St.  Matthew.— Jesus  eats  amongst  Sinners, 
Dispute  relative  to  Fasting . ' . 


CHAPTER  XII. 

A  Woman  healed  of  an  Issue  of  Blood. — The  Daughter  of  Jairus  resuscitated. 
The  Blind  see. — Devils  cast  out . 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

Probation. — A  Man  infirm  thirty-eight*  years  healed. — Discourse  of  Jesus  Christ  to 
the  Jews . 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

A  Penitent  Sinner  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  Christ. — The  Com  plucked, 


CHAPTER  XV. 

The  Withered  Hand  restored. — Mildness  of  Jesus  Christ  foretold. — Calling  of  the 
Twelve  Apostles . . 


CHAPTER  XVL 


The  Sermon  on  the  Mount 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


Continuation  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount, 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


Close  of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  Leper  cleansed. — The  Centurion’s  Servant. — The  Widow  of  Naim’s  Son  restored 
to  Life. — John  sends  two  of  his  Disciples  to  Christ. — He  is  commended  by 
Jesus  Christ . 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Holy  Women  who  followed  Jesus  Christ. — His  friends  wish  to  seize  his  Per¬ 
son. — Healing  of  a  Blind  and  Dumb  Man  who  was  possessed. — Blasphemy  of 
the  Pharisees. — Sin  against  the  Holy  Ghost . 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

Sign  of  Jonas. — The  Ninivites. — The  Queen  of  Saba. — The  expelled  Demon 
enters  in  again. — Exclamation  of  a  Woman. — The  Mother  and  Brothers  of 
Jesus. — Parable  of  the  Seed . 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Parables  of  the  Cockle,  of  the  Mustard-seed,  of  the  Leaven,  and  of  the  Net  cast 
into  the  Sea. — Preaching  of  Jesus  Christ  at  Nazareth. — Prophet  without  honor 
in  his  own  country . 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


Mission  of  the  Twelve  Apostles. — Instructions  and  Advice  that  Jesus  gives  them. .  180 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Decapitation  of  St.  John. — Multiplication  of  the  Loaves  and  Fishes.- — Jesus  walks 
on  the  water,  and  supports  Peter . 


CHAPTER  XXV. 


Discourse  of  Jesus  Christ  on  the  Eucharist. — Murmur  of  the  Jews 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

Continuation  of  the  Discourse  on  the  Eucharist. — The  Disciples  are  scandalized 
Constancy  of  the  Apostles . 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

Complaints  of  the  Pharisees. — Their  Traditions  rejected. — Cure  of  the  Chanaanean 
Woman’s  Daughter . 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

Deaf  and  Dumb  cured. — Multiplication  of  the  Seven  Loaves. — Demand  of  a  Sign 
from  Heaven. — Leaven  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees . 


mss 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

The  Blind  Man  of  Bethsaida. — Confession  of  St.  Peter. — Promise  of  the  Keys.— 
Passion  foretold. — Peter  rebuked. — Self  is  to  be  renounced. — The  Cross  must 
be  carried . 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

The  Transfiguration. — Return  of  Elias  announced. — Contrast  of  Jesus  Christ’s  Hu 
miliation  with  his  Glory . 


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784  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXXL 

The  Lunatic  cured. — There  is  a  Demon  who  can  only  be  cast  out  by  Prayer  and 
Fasting. — Another  Prediction  of  the  Death  of  Jesus  Christ  and  of  his  Resur¬ 
rection. — Tribute  paid .  236 

CHAPTER  XXXII. 

Dispute  of  the  Disciples  on  Precedency. — Evangelical  Childhood. — He  who  is  not 
against  us  is  for  us. — Scandal. — Necessity  of  retrenching  all  things  which  are 
to  us  an  occasion  of  falling. — Not  to  despise  the  little  ones. — The  Hundred 
Sheep .  243 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

Fraternal  Correction. — Power  of  binding  and  loosing. — We  are  to  pardon  seventy- 
seven  times. — Parable  of  the  Wicked  Servant. — Secret  Journey  to  Jerusalem, 
for  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles. — The  Ten  Lepers..  ! .  252 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

Jesus  shows  himself  at  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles. — He  preaches  in  the  Temple. — 

Divers  Judgments  concerning  him. — Archers  sent  to  apprehend  him .  258 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 

Mystic  Water. — Effusion  of  the  Holy  Ghost. — The  Jews  divided  amongst  them¬ 
selves. — Council  of  the  Priests. — Opposition  of  Nicodemus. — The  Woman 

taken  in  Adultery . .  265 

« 

CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Another  Discourse  of  Jesus  Christ  to  the  Jews. — He  gives  testimony  of  himself. — 

Death  in  Sin. — Slavery  of  Sin. — We  are  emancipated  from  it  by  the  Son  alone.  270 

CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

Sequel  of  the  Discourse. — Jews  Children  of  Abraham,  according  to  the  Flesh  ; 
Children  of  the  Devil,  by  imitation. — Jesus  Christ  before  Abraham. — The 
Jews  wish  to  stone  him . . .  277 

CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

The  Man  born  Blind. — Jesus  is  the  Good  Shepherd .  284 


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CONTENTS, 


PART  II, 


FROM  THE  MISSION  OF  THE  SEVENTY-TWO  DISCIPLES  UNTIL  THE 
ASCENSION  OF  OUR  LORD  JESUS  CHRIST. 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

t  Election,  Mission,  and  Instruction  of  the  Seventy-two  disciples. — Their  Return. — 
Names  written  in  Heaven. — Happy  the  eyes  that  have  seen  Jesus  Christ  ! — 
His  yoke  is  sweet,  and  his  burden  is  light. — Love  of  God  and  of  our  Neigh¬ 
bor. — The  Good  Samaritan. — Martha  and  Mary . 


CHAPTER  XL. 

The  Lord’s  Prayer,  according  to  St.  Luke. — Perseverance  in  Prayer, 
what  is  necessary. — The  Pure  Eye. — The  Pharisees  condemned . 


CHAPTER  XLI. 

Instruction  to  the  Disciples. — God  alone  is  to  be  feared. — Jesus  refuses  to  be  the 
Arbiter  between  two  Brothers. — The  Rich  Miser  condemned. — We  are  not  to 
be  anxious  for  the  morrow. — The  Good  and  Bad  Servants. . .  *. . 


Necessity  of  Penance. — The  Barren  Fig-tree. — The  Infirm  Woman  cured  on  the  Sab¬ 
bath  day. — Small  number  of  the  Elect. — The  Prophet  should  not  perish  out¬ 
side  of  Jerusalem . . . . 


CHAPTER  XLIII. 

A  Man  cured  of  the  Dropsy  on  the  Sabbath  day. — We  are  always  to  take  the  low¬ 
est  place. — To  invite  the  Poor. — Parable  of  those  who  excuse  themselves  from 
coming  to  the  Supper. — We  must  prefer  Jesus  Christ  before  all  things . 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 


Feast  of  the  Dedication. — Jesus  speaks  of  his  own  sheep. — He  and  his.Father  are 

one. — The  Parable  of  the  Lost  Sheep  and  the  Lost  Groat. — The  Prodigal  Son.  329 


CHAPTER  XLV. 

Parable  of  the  Steward. — To  make  Friends  for  ourselves  by  wealth  unjustly  ac¬ 
quired. — The  Rich  Bad  Man  and  the  Poor  Good  Man. — First  coming  of  the 
Messiah  devoid  of  lustre . 


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*786  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XLVI. 

We  must  pray  always. — The  Pharisee  and  the  Publican. — Marriage  indissoluble. — 

Virginity  preferable. — Little  Children  blessed .  350 

CHAPTER  XLVn. 

The  Young  Man  called  to  Perfection. — Salvation  difficult  to  the  Rich. — All  must  be 
relinquished  to  follow  Jesus  Christ. — Promises  attached  to  this  renunciation. — 

The  Parable  of  the  Laborers  in  the  Vineyard. . .  .  358 

CHAPTER  XLVIIL 

Resurrection  of  Lazarus. — First  Consultation  against  Jesus  Christ. — Caiphas  proph¬ 
esies. — Jesus  retires  to  Ephraim . . . . .  368 

CHAPTER  XLIX. 

Return  to  Jerusalem.— Zeal  of  the  Two  Disciples  repressed. — The  Passion  foretold 
with  its  circumstances. — Ambitious  pretension  of  the  Children  of  Zebedee. — 
Murmuring  of  the  other  Disciples,  and  instructions  given  to  them .  3*76 

CHAPTER  L. 

Passage  through  Jerico. — A  Blind  Man  restored  to  sight. — Zacheus. — Parable  of 

the  Ten  Pounds. — Sight  restored  to  two  Blind  Men .  383 

CHAPTER  LI. 

Mary  pours  precious  Ointment  over  Jesus  Christ. — Murmuring  of  Judas  and  the 
Apostles. — Design  of  killing  Lazarus. — Triumphant  entry  into  Jerusalem. — 
Vexation  of  the^Pharisees .  390 

CHAPTER  LII. 

Christ  Aveeps  over  Jerusalem. — The  accursed  Fig-tree. — Sellers  driven  out  of  the 
Temple. — Faith  omnipotent. — Grain  of  Wheat. — Jesus  is  troubled. — A  voice 
from  Heaven .  399 

CHAPTER  LIIL 

Incredulity  of  the  Jews. — The  Timid  condemned  with  the  Incredulous. — From 
whence  came  the  Baptism  of  John. — Parable  of  the  Two  Sons. — Parable  of 
the  Vineyard  and  the  Wicked  Husbandmen .  408 

CHAPTER  LIV. 

Parable  of  the  Marriage  Feast. — Obligation  of  paying  the  Tribute.  The  Resurrec¬ 
tion  proved. — The  First  Commandment  of  the  Law  is,  the  Love  of  God  and 
our  Neighbor. — The  Messiah  is  the  Son  of  David,  and  yet  his  Lord .  417 

CHAPTER  LY. 

To  hear  the  Doctors  of  the  Law,  not  to  imitate  them. — The  Scribes  and  Pharisees 
are  accursed. — The  Widow’s  Mite. — The  ruin  of  the  Temple  foretold. — Ques¬ 
tion  as  to  the  time  of  the  ruin  of  Jerusalem,  and  of  the  end  of  the  world .  426 


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CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  LVI. 

Forerunning  signs. — Sign  of  the  Son  of  Man. — The  Last  Trumpet. — The  Elect 

gathered  together. — Vigilance  always  necessary. — One  taken,  another  left. .  .  433 


CHAPTER  LVII. 

Sequel. — Good  and  bad  Servants. — Wise  and  foolish  Virgins. — Talents. — Judgment 
of  Jesus  Christ. . . 


CHAPTER  LVIII. 

Conspiracy  against  Jesus. — Judas  makes  his  Contract. — Paschal  Supper. — Wash¬ 
ing  of  the  Feet. — Treason  foretold . . . 


CHAPTER  LIX. 

Institution  of  the  Eucharist. — Jesus  is  troubled. — Woe  to  the  Traitor. — Jesus  makes 
him  known  to  John. — Withdrawal  of  Judas.  Dispute  of  the  Apostles  upon 
Priority. — Presumption  of  Peter. — His  Denial  foretold. — State  of  warfare  about 
to  commence  for  the  Disciples . .7 . 


CHAPTER  LX. 

Discourse  after  the  Supper. — The  Disciples  encouraged  and  consoled, 
the  Father  seeth  the  Son. — The  Spirit  of  Truth  promised . 


CHAPTER  LXI. 

Sequel  of  the  Discourse. — Jesus  Christ  is  the  True  Vine. — We  are  to  persevere  in 
Charity. — Persecutions  foretold. — Testimony  of  the  Holy  Ghost . 


CHAPTER  LXII. 

The  end  of  the  Discourse. — Joy  promised  after  Sorrow. — Jesus  prays  for  Himself 
and  for  his  Disciples . 


CHAPTER  LXIII. 

Garden  of  Olives. — Kiss  of  Judas. — Soldiers  struck  down. — Malchus. — Jesus  is 
apprehended  and  conducted  to  Annas  and  Caiphas. — The  Blow. — False  Wit¬ 
nesses. — Confession  of  Jesus  Christ . 


CHAPTER  LXIV. 

Insults  and  Outrages. — Denial  of  St.  Peter,  and  his  Tears. — Jesus  interrogated  a 
second  time  by  the  Priests. — Repentance  of  Judas,  and  his  Despair . 


CHAPTER  LXV. 

Jesus  conducted  before  Pilate— Pilate  interrogates  him,  and  sends  him  to  Herod.  512 


CHAPTER  LX VI. 

Jesus  conducted  again  before  Pilate. — Barabbas.  Pilâtes  V  ife.  Flagellation 
Crowning  with  Thorns . 


■/TTTri 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  LXVII. 

JEcce  Homo. — Pilate's  second  Interrogation. — Jesus  is  condemned. — He  carries  his 
Cross. — Simon  the  Cyrenean. — Daughters  of  Jerusalem. — Jesus  Crucified  be¬ 
tween  two  Thieves. — Title  of  the  Cross. — Lots  cast  for  the  Garment . 


CHAPTER  LXVIIL 


Blasphemies  and  Insults. — The  Good  Thief. — The  Words  of  Jesus  to  his  Mother. 
Darkness. — Jesus  dies. — Prodigies. — The  Saviour’s  side  pierced. — Burial. 
Descent  into  Hell . 


CHAPTER  LXIX. 

The  Resurrection. — The  Angel  of  the  Lord. — The  Soldiers  frightened. — The  Stone 
raised. — Journey  of  the  Women. — Race  of  Peter  and  of  John. — Apparition  to 
Magdalen. — Apparition  to  the  other  Women. — Return  of  the  guards  to  Jeru¬ 
salem,  and  their  Deposition . 


CHAPTER  LXX. 

Divers  Apparitions  to  Peter,  to  James,  to  the  Two  Disciples  at  Emmaus,  and  to  the 
Eleven  (first  and  second) . 


CHAPTER  LXXI. 

Apparition  by  the  Sea-side. — Miraculous  Fishing. — Peter  appointed  Pastor  of  the 
whole  Flock. — Apparition  upon  a  Mountain  of  Galilee. — Mission  of  the  Apos¬ 
tles. — Final  Apparition  at  Jerusalem. — Promise  of  the  Holy  Ghost. — Ascen¬ 
sion. — Conclusion . 


CONTENTS 


OF  THE 


CHAPTER  I. 

Return  of  the  Disciples  from  Mount  Olivet  to  Jerusalem. — They  retire  to  an  upper 
room. — St.  Peter’s  discourse  followed  by  the  election  of  St.  Matthias  in  the 
place  of  Judas. . . . 


CHAPTER  II. 

Descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost. — The  gift  of  Tongues. — The  Preaching  of  St.  Peter. 
Conversion  of  Three  Thousand  persons . 


CHAPTER  III. 

The  Lame  Man  cured  at  the  gate  of  the  Temple. — Second  Preaching  of  St.  Peter.  585 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Five  Thousand  men  converted. — Peter  and  John  are  cast  into  Prison. — Council  of 
the  Apostles. — Discourse  of  St.  Peter. — Silence  imposed  on  the  Apostles. — 
Their  Prayer  followed  by  a  fresh  infusion  of  the  Holy  Ghost. — Sanctity  of  the 
First  Christians. — Barnabas . 


CHAPTER  Y. 

Ananias  and  Saphira. — Miracles  of  the  Apostles. — They  are  put  in  Prison,  and  de¬ 
livered  by  an  Angel. — Advice  of  Gamaliel. — The  Apostles  beaten  with  Rods.  597 


CHAPTER  VL 

Murmur  of  the  Greeks  against  the  Hebrews. — Election  and  Ordination  of  the  Seven 
Deacons. — Stephen  full  of  grace  and  strength. — The  Jews  dispute  against 
him. — He  is  seized  by  them  and  brought  before  the  Council . 


CHAPTER  VIL 

Discourse  of  St.  Stephen. — His  Death. — Saul  is  accessory  thereto,  and  keeps  the 
garments  of  those  who  stone  him . 


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CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Persecution  of  the  Faithful. — Conversion  of  the  Samaritans. — Simon  the  Magi¬ 
cian. — The  Eunuch  baptized .  619 

CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Conversion  of  Saul . . .  625 

CHAPTER  X. 

Peter  cures  Eneas,  the  Paralytic,  at  Lydia,  and  at  Joppa  raises  Tabitha  to  Life. — 

An  Angel  appears  to  Cornelius,  the  Centurion. — Vision  of  St.  Peter. — Corne¬ 
lius,  with  his  Family,  is  instructed  and  baptized .  631 

CHAPTER  XL 

Peter  shows  cause  for  his  Conduct. — Preaching  of  Barnabas  and  Saul  at  Antioch, 

where  the  name  of  Christian  is  first  given  to  the  Faithful .  641 

CHAPTER  XII. 

James  the  brother  of  John  is  put  to  Death  by  Herod. — Peter  delivered  from  Prison 

by  an  Angel. — Death  of  Herod .  644 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Holy  Ghost  decrees  that  Barnabas  and  Saul  shall  be  chosen  for  the  work  of 
Preaching  to  the  Gentiles. — The  Magician  Bar-Jesu  is  struck  Blind  at  the  bid- 
ding  of  Paul. — Conversion  of  Sergius  Paulus. — Address  of  Paul  to  the  syna¬ 
gogue  of  Antioch  of  Pisidia. — Blasphemy  of  the  Jews. — Persecution  excited 
by  them. — Conversion  of  the  Gentiles .  649 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

Jews  and  Gentiles  converted  in  Iconium. — A  Cripple  is  cured  in  Lystra. — The  Two 
Apostles  are  there  taken  for  Gods. — Next  day  Paul  is  stoned,  and  left  for 
Dead. — He  returns  with  Barnabas  to  Antioch .  656 

CHAPTER  XV. 

Dispute  on  the  subject  of  Circumcision. — Paul  and  Barnabas  come  to  consult  with 

the  other  Apostles. — Council  of  Jerusalem. — Separation  of  Paul  and  Barnabas.  659 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Timothy  circumcised. — Paul  forbidden  by  the  Holy  Ghost  to  preach  in  Asia  or  in 
Bithynia. — He  is  called  into  Macedonia. — A  Sorceress  dispossessed. — Paul 
and  Silas  are  scourged,  imprisoned,  and  expelled  the  country .  666 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Preaching  at  Thessalonica. — A  Tumult  caused  by  the  Jews. — St.  Paul  in  Athens. — 

His  Discourse  in  the  Areopagus  followed  by  the  conversion  of  Denis  the  Are- 
opagite .  672 

CHAPTER  XVIIL 

Paul  preaches  the  Gospel  in  Corinth,  and  afterwards  in  Ephesus. — Apollo .  677 


CONTENTS, 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  Baptism  of  John  insufficient. — Miracles  operated  by  the  mere  Touching  of  the 
garments  of  St.  Paul. — Jewish  Exorcists  beaten  and  abused  by  the  Devils. — 
Books  burned. — Sedition  excited  by  the  Silversmith  Demetrius . 


CHAPTER  XX. 

St.  Paul  in  Troas. — A  Young  Man  who  had  been  killed* by  a  fall  restored  to  Life. — 
In  Miletus,  St.  Paul  delivers  an  Address  and  Exhortation  to  the  Pastors  of  the 
Churches . 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

Prophecy  of  Agabus. — St.  Paul  in  Jerusalem.— He  is  arrested  by  the  Jews, 
Tribune  Lysius  withdraws  him  from  their  Custody . 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Discourse  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Jews. — The  Tribune  condemns  him  to  the  Lash 
declares  himself  a  Roman  Citizen . . 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

St.  Paul  struck,  by  order  of  the  High-priest. — He  curses  him,  and  excuses  himself 
for  so  doing. — Dispute  between  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees. — Conspiracy 
against  St.  Paul. — He  is  sent  to  Cesarea . 


CHAPTER  XXIY. 
Accusation  of  St.  Paul  before  Felix,  and  his  Defence 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

St.  Paul  arraigned  before  Festus.— He  defends  himself,  and  appeals  to  Cæsar. 
Agrippa  and  Bernice  desire  to  hear  him . 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 


St.  Paul’s  Address  to  King  Agrippa 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

St.  Paul  is  shipped  for  Rome. — He  encounters  a  Violent  Storm. — The  Vessel  is 
lost,  but  all  on  board  are  saved,  conformably  to  the  Revelation  made  to  Paul 
by  an  Angel . 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

A  nival  at  Malta  and  sojourn  there. — St.  Paul  miraculously  cures  all  the  Sick. — 
He  departs  from  Malta  and  arrives  at  Rome. — He  assembles  the  Chiefs  of  the 
Jews. — He  addresses  them,  but  for  the  most  part  with  little  success. — He  an¬ 
nounces  the  Gospel  to  all  those  who  come  to  visit  him . 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

Containing  those  passages  from  the  Epistles  of  St.  Paul  wherein  he  makes  mention 
of  what  happened  to  him  during  the  Two  Years  of  his  Imprisonment . 


<fV. 

é  I 


CONTENTS 


OP 


THE  LIFE  OF  ST.  PETEK. 


S 


CHAPTER  I 

St.  Andrew  and  St.  Peter. — St.  Peter  the  Chief  of  the  Apostles. — Great  Draught 

of  Pishes. — The  Apostles  receive  the  Holy  Ghost. — Ananias  and  Saphira..  731 

CHAPTER  II. 

The  Apostles  brought  before  the  Council. — Prudent  counsel  of  Gamaliel. — St. 

Peter  at  Joppe. — He  meets  with  Cornelius .  739 

CHAPTER  III. 

Marsilius’s  hostility  to  Pope  J ohn  XXII. — His  Assertion  that  St.  Peter  had  never 

been  at  Rome. — Testimony  proving  that  he  had .  745 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Simon  Magus. — He  promises  to  fly  to  the  Heavenly  Abodes. — Struck  to  the 

Earth  at  the  Prayer  of  St.  Peter. — His  Death. — St.  Augustine’s  Statement  753 

CHAPTER  V. 

St.  Peter  dates  his  first  Epistle  from  Rome. — Testimony  of  Papias,  Yalesius, 

and  Grotius  to  that  effect .  757 

CHAPTER  YI. 

The  Chains  of  St.  Peter  in  the  Church  of  St.  Pietro  in  Vincoli. — The  Mamertine 
Prison  the  Place  of  his  Confinement. — The  Ostian  Way,  where  our  Lord 
appeared  to  St.  Peter. — Crucifixion  of  St.  Peter .  766 

CHAPTER  YII. 

Succession  of  the  Popes.- — St.  Peter  the  Chief  of  the  Apostles. — Martyrdom  of 

SS.  Peter  and  Paul .  774 

i.^Mjri-n  .U--  II  J  ....  . -  ■ 


? 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE 


SUBJECTS  IN  THE  LIVES  OF  THE  APOSTLES, 


Abraham,  father  of  the  faithful,  page  611,  note;  promises  made  to  that  patriarch,  ibid. ; 
he  receives  the  sign  or  token  of  the  alliance,  ib. 

Achaia  evangelized  by  Apollo  of  Alexandria,  681  ;  and  by  Paul,  ib. 

Action  justly  willed,  and  criminally  executed;  what  it  is,  580,  note;  important  distinc¬ 
tion  concerning  free-will,  which  is  never  separated  from  the  will  of  God,  ib.,  note. 

Arjabus,  a  prophet,  644,  see  Famine  ;  he  prophesied  the  death  of  St.  Paul,  695. 

Ambiguity  in  Scripture  is  to  he  respected;  why,  581,  note. 

Ananias  and  Saphira  struck  dead,  599. 

Ananias  (the  priest)  seeks  Saul  on  the  part  of  God,  and  imposes  hands  upon  him,  628. 

Antioch  ;  it  was  in  this  city  that  the  disciples  began  to  bear  the  name  of  Christians,  643  ; 
it  becomes  the  see  of  St.  Peter,  645. 

Antioch  of  Pisidia  ;  St.  Paul  preaches  there,  651  ;  he  visits  it  a  second  time,  680. 

Apollo  ;  who  he  was,  681  ;  he  preaches  in  Ephesus,  ib.  ;  he  is  himself  instructed,  not¬ 
withstanding  his  learning,  ib. 

Apostles  apprehended,  see  Arrests  ;  put  in  prison,  602  ;  delivered  by  the  angel  of  the 
Lord,  ib.  ;  see  the  words  Upper  Room,  Cures,  Miracles,  Shadows,  Pastors  ;  are 
scourged,  605  ;  remain  in  Jerusalem  during  the  persecution,  620,  and  the  note. 

Apparition  of  Gamaliel  to  the  priest  Lucian  ;  why,  604,  note  ;  of  an  angel  to  the  centu¬ 
rion  Cornelius,  see  Macedonia,  Paul,  Vision. 

Aquila  and  his  wife  receive  St.  Paul,  677. 

Arabia,  evangelized  by  Paul,  630  ;  see  Damascus  and  what  occurred  there. 

Areopagus  ;  what  it  was,  674  ;  Paul  is  taken  thither,  ib. 

Arrest,  first,  of  the  apostles,  591  ;  second,  602;  third,  ib. 

Asia  ;  prohibition  to  preach  the  Gospel  there  ;  wherefore,  682  ;  Paul  makes  several 
pastoral  visits  to  various  parts  of  it,  682,  690. 

Athens  ;  Paul  preaches  the  Gospel  there,  674,  675. 


v 

É 


v 


i\ 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE. 


B 


Baptism  of  Jesus  Christ  announced  by  St.  Peter,  583  ;  is  conferred  on  three  thousand 
persons,  584;  see  Corinthians,  Cornelius,  Crispus,  Eunuch,  Jailer,  Lydia  ;  why  it 
was  rarely  administered  by  the  apostles  themselves,  678,  and  the  note;  see  Ana¬ 
nias,  Apollo,  Paul. 

Bar-Jcsus,  a  false  prophet,  650  ;  unmasked  by  St.  Paul,  ib.  ;  struck  blind,  651. 

Barnabas  (or  Joseph)  sells  his  land,  and  brings  the  price  thereof  to  the  apostles,  597  ; 
sent  to  Antioch  by  the  Church  of  Jerusalem,  643  ;  goes  in  search  of  St.  Paul,  and 
comes  with  him  to  Antioch,  ib. 

Berea  ;  the  Jews  of  that  city  receive  the  evangelical  word  with  avidity,  673  ;  see  Scrip¬ 
ture. 

Body  of  St.  Stephen  discovered  ;  how,  604,  note  ;  see  Gamaliel. 

Books  of  magic  burned  at  Ephesus,  685. 

Breaking  of  bread  ;  importance  of  that  expression,  584;  see  Eucharist,  and  again  page 
585,  note. 

c 

Calvin  ;  error  of  that  heresiarch  regarding  the  descent  of  Jesus  into  hell,  581,  note. 

Captivity  of  the  Jews;  difference  regarding  the  number  of  years  explained,  611,  note. 

Cesarea  is  evangelized,  together  with  the  adjoining  cities,  625  ;  the  centurion  Cornelius 
receives  the  light  of  the  Gospel,  634. 

Chanaan  ;  period  when  the  children  of  Israel  first  entered,  612. 

Chrism  (holy)  ;  whether  the  apostles  used  it  in  the  sacrament  of  confirmation,  622,  note. 

Christians  ;  when  that  name  was  first  given  to  the  disciples,  643  ;  see  Antioch. 

Church  ;  birth  of  the,  584  ;  it  is  independent  of  men;  how  and  why,  ib.,  in  the  note. 

Cilicia;  evangelized  by  St.  Paul,  665;  see  Syria. 

Circumcision  ;  dispute  concerning  it  amongst  the  brethren,  660;  question  laid  before 
the  Church,  661,  and  the  explanatory  note,  662. 

Community  of  goods;  one  of  the  distinctive  features  of  the  primitive  Church,  596,  and 
the  note. 

Confirmation  ;  importance  and  necessity  of  this  sacrament,  622  ;  hbw.it  is  conferred,  ib., 
and  the  note. 

Conscience  ;  how  strong  its  voice  is;  it  is  the  voice  of  God  himself,  594,  note. 

Conversion  of  five  thousand  men  at  the  first  preaching  of  St.  Peter,  591  ;  see  Baptism. 

Corinth  is  evangelized,  677  ;  see  Crispus. 

Corinthians  converted  by  St.  Paul,  678;  and  baptized  by  his  companions  in  the  mis¬ 
sion,  ib.  ;  see  Baptism. 

Cornelius,  the  centurion  of  Cesarea,  634  ;  and,  regarding  him,  the  refutation  of  an  error 
of  Pelagius,  note;  goes  to  meet  Peter,  and  prostrates  himself  at  his  feet,  637  ;  is- 
instructed  by  the  apostle,  633  ;  receives  the  Holy  Ghost,  639  ;  is  baptized,  640. 

Council  of  Diopolis  or  Lydda,  which  condemned  the  errors  of.  Pelagius,  663,  quoted 
in  the  note;  of  Jerusalem,  664. 

Creed,  apostles’  ;  a  conjecture  regarding  it,  644. 

Cripple  cured  at  the  gate  of  the  temple,  586  ;  another  cured  by  Paul,  in  Lystra,  657. 

Crispus,  ruler  of  the  synagogue  in  Corinth,  believes  in  the  Gospel,  678  ;  see  Synagogues. 

Cures,  miraculous,  see  Cripple,  Paralytic,  Possessed. 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE. 


Damascus,  a  city  of  Arabia  ;  Saul  goes  there  to  persecute  the  faithful,  626  ;  how  he  en¬ 
tered,  627  ;  see  Ananias  ;  Saul  preaches  in  Damascus  Jesus  risen  from  the  dead, 
629  ;  second  visit  of  Saul  to  Damascus,  680  ;  Saul  runs  the  risk  of  losing  his  life,  ib.  ; 
how  he  escapes  from  the  city,  ib. 

David  foretold  of  Christ,  and  not  of  himself,  in  those  memorable  words  :  The  Lord  said 
to  my  Lord  :  “  Sit  thou  at  my  right  hand,”  582. 

Dead  restored  to  life,  see  Eutychus,  Tabitha. 

Deacons,  seven,  chosen  by  the  apostles;  why,  607,  608;  see  Imposition  of  Hands  ; 
service  of  tables,  608  ;  names  of  the  seven,  ib.  ;  their  other  functions,  ib. 

Denis  the  Areopagite;  his  conversion,  676  ;  note  concerning  him,  ib. 

Discourse  of  St.  Peter  to  the  disciples  in  the  upper  room,  574;  to  the  Jews,  followed  by 
the  conversion  of  three  thousand  persons,  579  to  584;  other  discourse  in  the  tem¬ 
ple,  587  to  591  ;  followed  by  the  conversion  of  five  thousand  persons,  ib.  ;  other 
discourse  before  the  princes  of  the  people,  592,  603. 

Discourse  of  St.  Stephen,  wherein  is  retraced  the  entire  history  of  the  Jewish  people, 
610  ;  of  St.  Paul  in  the  synagogue  of  Antioch,  651  to  654  ;  in  the  midst  of  Areo¬ 
pagus,  674;  to  the  faithful  and  to  the  bishops  of  the  Church  of  Ephesus,  690  to 
693  ;  to  the  people  of  Jerusalem,  699. 

Discourse  of  Paul  before  the  governor  Felix,  708  ;  before  king  Agrippa,  714. 

Dispersion  of  the  apostles  to  diffuse  the  light  of  the  Gospel  among  the  Gentiles,  644  ; 
it  is  only  known  by  a  constant  tradition,  ib. 

Doctors  (or  teachers)  ;  what  they  were,  649,  and  the  note. 

Dogma  (Catholic)  ;  what  it  is,  and  what  it  really  must  be,  to  exist  at  all,  638,  note. 

Dove  which  descended  on  Jesus  at  his  baptism  ;  note  on  that  subject,  675  ;  and  on  the 
representation  of  the  Holy  Ghost  under  that  form,  676. 

Dust  of  the  feet  shaken  dtf  by  Paul  and  Barnabas  ;  why,  655. 

E 

Ecstasy  of  St.  Paul,  658  ;  conjecture  regarding  the  period  of  its  occurrence,  ib.,  note. 

Election  of  the  seven  deacons,  607,  608  ;  their  names,  608  :  see  Service  of  Tables. 

Ephesus  ;  first  voyage  of  St.  Paul  to,  680  ;  second  voyage  of  St.  Paul  to,  682  ;  tumult 
amongst  the  artisans  of  that  city,  686  ;  Church  of  Ephesus  visited  by  Paul,  690. 

Epistle  to  the  Philippians  ;  at  what  period  it  was  written  by  Paul,  671. 

Epistles  of  St.  Paul;  when  and  where  they  were  written,  728. 

Ethiopia  ;  prophecy  regarding  its  return  to  God,  623,  in  the  note. 

Eunuch  of  the  queen  Candace  baptized  by  Philip,  624. 

Eutychus  resuscitated  by  St.  Paul,  689. 

Evangelist  ;  wherefore  that  title  as  given  to  the  deacon  Philip,  608,  in  the  note. 

F 

Famine  predicted;  charity  of  the  faithful  on  that  occasion,  643,  644;  another,  see 
Agabus. 

Flagellation  of  the  apostles,  605  ;  of  Paul  and  Silas,  669. 

Frcedmen  ;  what  they  were  in  Jerusalem,  609,  and  the  note  ;  synagogue  of  the,  ib. 


Galatia  evangelized  by  Paul,  680. 

Gamaliel,  a  Jewish  doctor  (of  the  law),  defends  the  cause  of  the  apostles  against  the 
synagogue,  603,  and  the  note;  appears  to  the  priest  Lucian,  604,  note;  was  the 
teacher  of  Saul,  at  what  time,  699. 

Generation  ;  eternal  of  the  Word  preached  and  explained  by  Paul,  653,  and  the  note. 

Gentiles  ;  grand  mystery  of  their  vocation  revealed  to  Peter,  632. 

Gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost  ;  what  it  is,  583,  and  the  note. 

God;  what  he  is,  675  ;  his  works,  ib.  ;  remarks  on  the  representations  made  of  him, 
675,  676. 

Gospel  ;  on  what  based,  and  when  commenced,  580  ;  preached  to  the  Gentiles,  see  An¬ 
tioch,  Cesarea,  Lystra,  Salamina  Sergius,  Vocation. 

Gospel  of  St.  Matthew  ;  conjecture  as  to  its  date,  and  how  it  has  come  down  to  us,  645 

Greece  evangelized  by  Paul,  688. 

Greeks  enter  into  the  bosom  of  the  Church,  642. 


Hell  ;  Jesus  Christ  was  delivered  from  its  pains;  what  is  understood  by  these  words, 
581,  and  the  note. 

Herod  struck  dead,  648. 

Hierarchy  of  the  Church  is  a  sacred  thing,  584,  note;  see  Church,  Pastors. 

Holy  Ghost  (the),  first  descends  on  the  apostles,  577  ;  his  second  descent,  595  ;  see 
Upper  Room,  Cornelius,  Prayer. 


Idols  and  their  shrines;  what  they  are,  675,  note. 

Ignorance  of  the  Jews  guilty  of  the  death  of  Jesus  ;  how  inexcusable,  587,  and  the  note, 
Imposition  of  hands  ;  importance  of  that  ceremony,  accompanied  by  prayer,  in  the  con¬ 
secration  of  the  seven  deacons,  608,  note;  s oo,  Confirmation  ;  that  made  by  Ana¬ 
nias  on  Saul  was  not  for  confirmation,  but  for  healing,  628,  and  the  note. 
Imprecations  are  not  always  contrary  to  the  spirit  of  charity,  575,  and  the  note. 


James,  fhe  brother  of  John,  killed  by  Herod’s  orders,  645,  and  the  note  on  his  surname 
of  Major  pib. 

Jerusalem  ;  its  Church  visited  by  Paul,  680  ;  the  brethren  urge  Paul  not  to  go  into  that 
city,  lest  the  Jews  might  kill  him,  695  ;  Paul  braves  the  persecution,  ib.  ;  rising  of 
the'  people  against  the  apostles,  697. 

Jesus,  delivered  to  the  Jews  by  the  special  will  of  God,  580  ;  is  seated  at  the  right  hand 
of  his  Father,  582  ;  his  resurrection  preached  by  Paul  to  the  Gentiles,  653. 

Jews  reject  the  Gospel,  654  ;  they  banish  St.  Paul  and  Barnabas,  655  ;  they  have  a 
mind  to  stone  them,  656  ;  they  stone  Paul,  658  ;  they  are  expelled  from  Rome 
under  Claudius,-  677  ;  why,  ib.,  note  ;  cursed  by  Paul,  678;  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem 
swear  to  kill  Paul,  705. 

Joel  (prophecy  of),  regarding  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  579,  and  the  note. 


t  Cf, 

V,.  M p 
% 


Joppa  (the  town  of)  is  evangelized,  633  ;  see  Tabitha. 

Judas  Iscariot  is  replaced  by  another  in  the  college  of  the  apostles,  575. 

Judas  the  Galilean,  an  impostor  and  rebel,  604. 

Julian  the  apostate  would  fain  suppress  the  name  of  Christian,  643,  644,  note. 

K 

Keeper  of  the  prison,  with  his  family,  converted  and  baptized,  670. 

L  . 

Land  (promised,  or  Chanaan)  ;  see  Abraham,  Chanaan,  Slavery. 

Languages,  diversity  of  ;  one  of  the  effects  of  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  577  ;  how 
this  miracle  is  to  be  considered,  and  in  what  way  explained,  578,  note. 

Law,  ancient  and  new  ;  what  it  is,  and  the  difference  between  the  two  laws,  580,  note 
Jewish;  how  regarded  by  St.  Paul,  697. 

Liturgy  ;  what  it  literally  is,  649,  note. 

Lots  ;  are  not  always  unlawful,  see  Mathias  ;  difference  between  the  discipline  of  the 
apostolic  times  and  those  which  came  after,  with  regard  to  lots,  575,  note. 

Lydia,  a  woman  of  Thyatira,  baptized,  6S4;  persuades  Paul  and  his  companions  to 
abide  in  her  house,  ib. 

Lystra,  a  town  of  Lycaonia;  what  passed  there,  656,  657  ;  see  Cripple. 

M 

Macedonia;  that  country  is  evangelized  ;  vision  on  that  subject,  667. 

Mark  (St.)  or  John  follows  Barnabas  and  Saul,  648. 

Mathias  (St.)  takes  the  place  of  Judas,  576  ;  see  Lots. 

Matthew  (St.)  ;  see  Gospel. 

Mesopotamia  ;  sojourn  of  Abraham  in,  608  ;  difference  on  this  head  explained,  ib.,  note. 
Miletus,  church  of,  visited  and  exhorted  by  Paul,  690. 

Ministry  of  the  word  belongs  specially  to  the  bishops  ;  why,  607,  note. 

Miracles  ;  support  the  doctrine  of  the  apostles,  5S4  ;  see  Cripple,  Conversions,  Perse¬ 
cutions,  Silence  imposed,  Shadow  of  St.  Peter. 

Moses  (history  of)  and  his  legislation,  613  ;  and  incidentally,  his  prophecy  of  the  Mes¬ 
siah,  615,  note. 

o 

Offspring  of  God;  what  is  to  be  understood  by  that,  675,  note. 

Oracles  ;  opinion  of  Fontenelle  on  this  subject,  668,  and  the  note. 

Ordination  of  St.  Barnabas  and  Saul,  649,  and  the  note. 


Paphos  evangelized,  650. 

Paralytic  cured  by  St.  Peter,  633. 

Pastors  (the  choice  of)  cannot  depend  on  the  will  of  the  people  ;  why,  584,  note. 
Patience  of  God  ;  two  great  examples  thereof,  590,  note. 

Patriarchs,  the  twelve;  their  tombs  at  Sichem,  612;  difference  as  to  the  place  ox- 
plained,  ib.,  note. 


v'H/, 


mr 


798 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE. 


Paul  (St.)  ;  when  and  where  he  began  to  bear  that  name,  650  ;  unmasks  the  false 
prophet  Bar-Jesu,  ib.  ;  converts  Sergius  Paulus,  651  ;  is  stoned  by  the  Jews,  658  ; 
scourged  and  imprisoned  in  Macedonia,  669  ;  goes  to  Thessalonica,  672  ;  to  Berea, 
673. 

- works  at  the  trade  of  tent-making  in  order  to  maintain  himself,  677  ;  curses  the 

Jews;  why,  678,  and  the  note  ;  has  his  head  shorn  ;  why,  680,  and  the  note  ;  goes 
to  Jerusalem,  695  ;  is  thrown  into  prison  there,  698;  see  Discourse  ;  is  taken  for 
a  malefactor,  698. 

- when  on  the  point  of  being  scourged,  declares  himself  a  Roman  citizen,  702,  and 

the  note  ;  strengthened  in  his  prison  by  a  vision,  704. 

-  sent  to  Cesarea  with  an  escort  for  his  safety,  706  ;  brought  before  Felix,  707; 

and  accused,  708  ;  speaks  before  Felix  and  his  wife,  710. 

- remains  two  years  in  prison  without  being  found  guilty,  7 1 0  ;  is  brought  up  before 

Festus,  and  appeals  from  him  to  Cæsar,  7 1 1  ;  appears  again  before  King  Agrippa, 
714;  acknowledged  innocent,  7 1 7  ;  shipped  for  Rome,  718. 

« - is  shipwrecked  on  the  island  of  Malta,  723  ;  works  many  miracles  there,  724  ;  at 

Puteoli,  725;  in  Rome,  is  received  by  the  brethren,  ib.  ;  confers  with  the  chiefs  of 
the  Jews,  ib.  ;  preaches  and  converts  even  in  his  captivity,  ib. 

• - persecuted  in  Rome,  728,  729  ;  is  deserted  by  his  friends,  729;  is  put  to  death 

with  the  prince  of  the  apostles,  ib.  ;  see  the  words  Eutychus,  Lystra,  Dead  resus¬ 
citated,  Possessed,  Pastoral  visits. 

Penance,  virtue  of;  what  it  is  according  to  theologians,  583,  in  note. 

Pentecost  ;  a  festival  observed  by  the  Hebrews,  and  afterwards  by  the  Christians,  576  ; 
difference  of  its  purpose  in  these  two  celebrations,  ib.,  note. 

Persecutions  ;  beginning  of  the,  591;  see  Arrest,  Prayer,  and  again,  619;  under 
Herod,  645. 

Peter  (St.)  addresses  the  disciples,  574  ;  his  discourse  to  the  Jews,  579  ;  to  the  people, 
in  the  temple,  587  ;  justifies  his  conduct  with  regard  to  the  Gentiles,  641  ;  is  put 
in  prison,  646  ;  is  delivered  by  the  angel,  ib.  ;  see  the  words  Ananias,  Antioch, 
Cripple  cured,  Shadoiv  of  St.  Peter,  Paralysis,  Tabitha  restored  to  life. 

Philip,  one  of  the  seven  deacons,  see  that  word  ;  instructs  and  baptizes  the  eunuch, 
623,  624  ;  is  carried  away  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  625. 

Phrygia  evangelized  by  Paul,  680. 

Porch  of  Solomon;  what  it  was,  587,  and  the  note;  and  again,  600,  and  the  note. 

Possessed  by  the  devil,  delivered  by  St.  Paul,  668. 

Predestined  ;  see  on  this  subject,  655,  and  the  note. 

Prœordinati  ad  vitam  ceternam  ;  explanation  on  this  subject,  655,  and  the  note. 

Prayer  ;  unanimous  of  the  apostles  inspired  by  the 'Holy  Ghost,  594  ;  during  the  night, 
was  a  custom  of  the  first  Christians,  669. 

Prescience  of  God  ;  what  it  is,  580  ;  its  infallibility,  581,  and.the  note  ;  and  to  the  word 
Action. 

Presence  (real)  in  the  sacrament  of  the  Eucharist,  opposed  by  the  Calvinists  ;  how,  589, 
and  the  note. 

Prison  opened  miraculously,  669  ;  another  opened  by  an  angel,  see  Peter. 

Promise  made  to  Abraham  justified  and  accomplished  in  the  person  of  the  deicide  Jews, 
589,  and  the  note. 

Prophet  ;  this  name  is  sometimes  given  to  Jesus  Christ,  589,  and  the  note. 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE, 


Prophetesses  ;  daughters  of  Philip  the  evangelist,  695. 

Proselyte  ;  whence  comes  that  name  applied  to  one  of  the  seven  deacons  chosen  by  the 
apostles,  608,  note. 

Ptolemais,  or  St.  John  d’Acre  ;  Paul  passes  through  it,  and  visits  the  brethren  there,  694. 

R 

Religious  ;  what  they  represent  by  their  poverty,  596,  note. 

Resurrection  of  the  dead  ;  dogma  of  the,  objected  to  and  proved,  591,  and  the  note  ;  see 
Sadducees  ;  preached  at  Athens  by  St.  Paul,  and  is  rejected,  676. 

Rome;  arrival  of  St.  Paul  in  that  city,  725  ;  he  preaches  Jesus  there,  726  ;  it  was  in 
that  city  that  he  wrote  the  greater  part  of  his  epistles,  728  ;  he  suffers  martyrdom 
there,  729. 

Room  ;  upper,  the  apostles  retire  to,  573. 

s 

Sacrifice  ;  evening,  amongst  the  Jews,  was  replaced;  how,  586,  and  the  note. 

Sadducees  denied  the  dogma  of  the  resurrection,  601. 

St.  John  d’Acre,  or  Ptolemais,  visited  by  St.  Paul,  694,  note. 

Salamina  evangelized,  650  ;  see  Bar-Jesu. 

Samaria,  or  Sebaste  city;  why  so  named,  620,  note. 

Samaria  ;  country  evangelized  by  St.  Peter;  remarkable  exception  to  that,  620,  note. 

Samaritans  are  evangelized  and  baptized,  621,  623. 

Saul  ;  his  history  and  his  portrait  traced  by  himself,  619,  and  the  note;  his  country, 
699  ;  persecutes  the  faithful,  620,  626  ;  is  cast  on  the  ground  on  the  way  to  Da¬ 
mascus,  626  ;  is  baptized,  629  ;  preaches  in  the  synagogues,  ib.  ;  goes  to  Arabia, 
ib.  ;  returns  to^lamascus,  630. 

- - -  comes  to  Jerusalem,  630  ;  is  presented  to  the  apostles,  ib.  ;  the  Jews  are  desirous 

to  have  him  put  to  death,  631  ;  goes  to  Cyprus  to  preach  the  Gospel,  650;  see 
Paul. 

Sceva  ;  the  seven  sons  of,  attempting  to  expel  the  devils,  are  abused  and  beaten  by 
them,  684. 

Scripture,  holy  ;  rule  on  the  manner  in  which  it  ought  to  be  consulted,  and  taken  for 
a  guide  in  the  examination  of  revealed  religion,  673,  and  the  note. 

Separation  of  Paul  and  Barnabas;  why,  665  ;  is  not .  ways  a  division,  ib.,  note. 

Sergius  Paulus,  proconsul,  converted  by  St.  Paul,  6*51  ;  see  Bar-Jfsu ^ 

Service  of  tables  ;  what  it  was  in  the  primitive  Church,  607,  608,  note. 

Shadow  of  St.  Peter  cures  the  sick,  601. 

Silas,  a  prophet,  664  ;  companion  of  St.  Paul,  665  ;  is  imprisoned  and  abused,  669  ; 
goes  forth  with  honor  from  the  prison,  671  ;  separated  from  St.  Paul,  673. 

Silence  imposed  on  the  apostles  is  a  proof  of  the  truth  of  what  they  testified,  594  ;  how 
it  is  so,  see  the  note,  p.  593. 

Silence  observed  by  the  rulers  of  the  people  on  the  occasion  of  the  miraculous  libera¬ 
tion  from  prison,  602,  important  note  ;  silence  imposed  on  the  devils  by  St.  Paul, 
668  ;  why,  ib.,  note. 

Simon  the  Samaritan  renders  himself  guilty  of  the  sin  since  known  as  Simony,  622, 
and  the  note. 

Simony  ;  what  that  sin  is,  622,  note. 


800 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE. 


Soul  is  not  a  substance  of  God,  but  only  his  work,  675,  note. 

Stephen  (St.)  chosen  as  one  of  the  deacons,  608  ;  confounds  his  adversaries,  609,  and 
note;  calumniated,  ib.  ;  his  admirable  address  to  the  ancients,  610;  is  stoned,  618. 
Synagogues  ;  their  number  in  Jerusalem,  609,  note;  names  of  those  who  opposed  St. 
Stephen,  ib. 

Syria  evangelized  by  Paul,  631  ;  see  Cilicia. 


Tabernacle  and  ark  of  the  covenant,  617  ;  was  not  to  last  forever,  617  ;  see  Temple. 

Tabitha,  or  Dorcas,  resuscitated  by  St.  Peter,  633. 

Tempest,  violent,  and  shipwreck  of  the  vessel  in  which  St.  Paul  was,  719,  722,  723. 

Temple  of  Jerusalem;  its  destruction  yas  a  necessary  consequence  and  a  proof  of  the 
coming  of  the  Messiah,  601,  note;  its  ruin  was  twice'the  object  of  the  accusation 
and  condemnation  of  Jesus  and  of  St.  Stephen,  610,  and  note. 

Theodas,  an  impostor,  cited,  604,  and  note. 

Thessalonica  evangelized,  672. 

Timothy  circumcised,  666. 

Troas  evangelized  by  St.  Paul,  689  ;  see  Eutychus. 

Travels,  apostolical,  of  St.  Paul,  see  the  words  Achaia,  Antioch,  Arabia,  Asia,  Athens, 
Berea,  Cilicia,  Corinth,  Damascus,  Ephesus,  Galatia,  Greece,  Jerusalem,  Lystra, 
Macedonia,  Phrygia,  Ptolemais,  Salamina,  Syria,  Thessalonica,  Troas,  Tyre,  &c. 

Tyre  visited  by  St.  Paul,  694. 

V 

Vision  of  Peter  relating  to  the  vocation  of  the  Gentiles,  636,  and  note;  of  St.  Paul,  see 
Macedonia  ;  of  St.  Stephen,  617  ;  see  Apparition. 

Visits,  pastoral,  are  necessary  ;  wherefore,  680,  note.  >, 

Vocation  of  the  Gentiles,  see  Gentiles,  Paul. 


w 

Will  of  God  ;  is  never  detached  from  any  event,  and  never  interferes  with  man’s  free¬ 
will,  nor  lessens  his  guilt;  how  this  is  so,  580,  581,  and  the  note;  see  Prescience. 
Word,  evangelical;  importance  of  its  ministry,  see  Ministry  ;  is  rejected  by  the  Jews, 
see  Jews  ;  is  carried  to  the  Gentiles  and  received  by  them,  see'  Gentiles,  Vocation, 
Travels.  -•%  A 


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DOES  NOT  CIRCULATE 


BT  301  *L513*  1864 

Lidny?  Francois  da?  1709- 
1788 

The  history  of  the  life  of 
Our  Lord  Jesus  Christy 


Boston  College  Library 

Chestnut  Hill  67,  Mass. 

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